One of my favorite recipes for Oven Roasted Herbed Turkey Breast by far. This roasted turkey breast is a bone in recipe that yields a flavor packed, moist and tender turkey breast. This recipe is an adaptation of Guy Fieri’s Foolproof Turkey Breast. The turkey breasts are brined, and then roasted with a citrus, spice blend that delivers a gorgeously flavored turkey. This recipe is not just for Thanksgiving, it’s perfect for anytime you want to cook a succulent turkey breast and it’s equally amazing for a whole chicken or chicken breasts.
How to Brine turkey breast
Brining is definitely a labor of love. It takes time, and not for the inpatient. (That would be me) I have never really been in the brine club, but I did want to try this for preparing turkey breasts as they have a tendency to dry out due to the lack of fat. I was not disappointed. The brine yields a very tender, moist and incredibly flavorful slow roast turkey breast enhanced only by the citrus and herb blend that coated the top and underside of the breast. This brine is very easy to prepare and it works like a charm on white meat poultry. You just exercise a little patience while the brining does its magic.
Below is a table for the brining equivalents based on the weight of the turkey you intend to brine. I brined two small sized turkey breasts weighing in at about 3 1/2 lbs total. Use Kosher salt for the entire recipe, do not use table salt.
Preparing the Brine
In a large pot, add water, Kosher salt, brown sugar, honey (or molasses), Sage leaves and peppercorns. Heat water and stir until salt is completely dissolved. Turn heat source off and remove from heat. Add ice cubes and allow the bring to completely cool. If the brine is still warm, add more ice until it’s completely cooled. Once cooled, add brine to a large container or pot that is big enough for the turkey and brine. Place lid on container or pot and place in refrigerator. You can also use two, zip bags (one inside the other) but make sure you place it in another container to protect the inside of your fridge in case of leakage. Place in the refrigerator and allow to brine for 12 hours.
Once the brine has done its magic, 12 hours or so later. It’s important that you rinse the poultry well. You don’t want sneaky pockets of salt locked within the poultry. I’m recommending a full 5 minute rinse, ensuring all the brine has been removed. Once rinsed well, pat dry and now you are ready for the citrus herb rub blend.
The best Citrus and Herb Rub for Poultry
This citrus, dry herb and olive oil blend is so good! You will want to use it to roast everything. It’s brightly flavored with citrus zest and combines all the Mediterranean herbs like dried Oregano, Rosemary, Thyme with some garlic, salt, pepper and paprika.
For the herb blend, mix 1 tbsp dry rubbed sage, 1 tsp granulated garlic, 1/2 tsp Kosher salt, 1 tsp fresh ground pepper, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp dried Thyme, 1 tsp dried whole Rosemary, 1/2 tsp sweet paprika, zest of 1 lemon, zest of 1/2 orange and mix with 2-3 tbsps of olive oil. Once mixed, rub the turkey breasts on the underside and top sides.
NOTE: The original recipe calls for the turkey to rest in the fridge for another 4 hours. I have made this both with the 4 hour rest and without, I didn’t find too much difference with the flavor and texture. So here are both versions, and you can try whatever you prefer.
Resting an additional 4 hours: Once the turkey is rubbed, cover loosely and allow to rest in the refrigerator for 4 hours. After 4 hours, remove from refrigerator and remove (plastic or foil that you used to cover it) bring to room temp for about 15 minutes and follow roasting directions.
No resting time: Once the turkey is rubbed, allow to rest at room temperature for 15-30 minutes. Follow roasting directions.
Roasting Turkey Breast
Whether you have allowed for four hours of resting or not, the cooking method remains the same. Preheat oven to 425ºF. Place turkey breasts in a roasting pan, breast side down. Once the oven is preheated, place turkey in oven for 15 minutes for 3-6lbs and 30 minutes for 6-10lbs. When the time is up, carefully turn turkey breasts over so they are breast side up. Reduce heat to 325ºF. Roast for 45-75 minutes depending on size of turkey. Note that the cooking time will be a bit faster due to the brining. A good rule of thumb is 15-20 minutes per pound. Turkey will be completely done when the internal temperature reaches 165ºF in the thickest part of the turkey breast.
Allow to rest for about 10 minutes before slicing. Serve immediately.
This recipe comes in at a healthy 283 calories for a 6oz serving.
Brined poultry will cook faster than non brined. For a 3 1/2 lb turkey breast, brined, this will cook in about 60 minutes. Generally 16-20 minutes per pound for fully thawed poultry.
Yes, adjust the recipe for brine and citrus herb blend accordingly. Also make sure you remove giblets from turkey before brining.
You can, however, you cannot use the drippings as a base. You need to use low sodium chicken broth as the base and add drippings in small amounts at a time as they will be extremely salty.
Yes, it works great for both. Just follow directions for weight and adjust both brine quantity and citrus herb blend accordingly.
Yes! This is perfect for pork loin and lamb chops.
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Oven Roasted Herbed Turkey Breast
Equipment
- Large stock pot
- Large plastic, glass container
- Extra large zip top bags
Ingredients
- 3.5 lbs turkey breast bone in
Brine
- 3 qts water
- 4 cups ice cubes
- 1/2 cup Kosher salt See comment on salt in Notes below.
- 2 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/4 cup honey or molasses
- 3 whole sage leaves fresh
- 1/2 tbsp Peppercorns whole, black
Citrus and Herb Rub
- 1 tbsp Sage dry, rubbed
- 1 tsp Garlic granulated
- 1/2 tsp salt Kosher
- 1 tsp pepper coarse grind
- 1 tsp Oregano dried
- 1 tsp Thyme dried
- 1 tsp Rosemary whole, dried
- 1/2 tsp Paprika sweet, ground
- 1 zest of whole lemon
- 1/2 zest of half orange
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
How to brine turkey breast
- In a large pot, add water, Kosher salt, brown sugar, honey (or molasses), Sage leaves and peppercorns. Heat water and stir until salt is completely dissolved.
- Turn heat source off and remove from heat. Add ice cubes and allow the bring to completely cool. If the brine is still warm, add more ice until it's completely cooled.
- Once cooled, add brine to a large container or pot that is big enough for the turkey and brine. Place lid on container or pot and place in refrigerator.
- You can also use two, zip bags but make sure you place it in another container to protect the inside of your fridge in case of leakage.
- Place in the refrigerator and allow to brine for 12 hours.
- After 12 hours, remove turkey breast from brine. Discard brine.
- Rinse very well as you don't want pockets of brine within the turkey. A solid 5 minute rinse will work perfectly.
- Once rinsed, pat dry on both top and underside.
Citrus and Herb Rub
- For the herb blend, mix 1 tbsp dry rubbed sage, 1 tsp granulated garlic, 1 tsp Kosher salt, 1 tsp fresh ground pepper, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp dried Thyme, 1 tsp dried whole Rosemary, 1/2 tsp sweet paprika, zest of 1 lemon, zest of 1/2 orange and mix with 2-3 tbsps of olive oil.
- Once mixed, rub the turkey breasts on the underside and top sides.
- Once the turkey is rubbed, allow to rest at room temperature for 15-30 minutes. Follow roasting directions.
- *See notes in post regarding additional rest time.
Roasting the turkey breast
- Preheat oven to 425ºF.
- Place turkey breasts in a roasting pan, breast side down. Once the oven is preheated, place turkey in oven for 15 minutes for 3-6lbs and 30 minutes for 6-10lbs.
- When the time is up, carefully turn turkey breasts over so they are breast side up. Reduce heat to 325ºF. Roast for 45-75 minutes depending on size of turkey.
- Note that the cooking time will be a bit faster due to the brining. A good rule of thumb is 15-20 minutes per pound.
- Turkey will be completely done when the internal temperature reaches 165ºF in the thickest part of the turkey breast.
- Allow to rest for about 10 minutes before slicing. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated online and should be used as a guide.
All content and photographs ©Claudia’s Table and claudiastable.com
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