Herb Roasted Turkey Breast
Turkey breast roasted with an herb butter, including sage, rosemary, thyme and lavender, herbs associated with the French term “garrigue”. Served with a light herbed gravy.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 110 mins
- Total Time: 2 hours 5 mins
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: roasting
- Cuisine: French
Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic, minced and divided
- 5 tbsp butter (1 reserved), left out of fridge for 20 minutes or so to soften
- 1 sprig rosemary, finely chopped
- 4 sage leaves, chopped
- 1 sprig thyme, chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
- 4 lbs boneless turkey breast
- 2 tbsp shallot
- 1 3/4 cup chicken stock (swap in 1/4 cup reserved porcini liquid or other such rich broth if you have it)
- sliver lemon peel
- pinch thyme
- pinch lavender or substitute 2 basil leaves, chopped
- 2 sage leaves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees convection setting (350 conventional).
- Make the herb butter: place 4 tablespoons of the softened butter in a small bowl. Add 1/2 of the minced garlic, the rosemary, 4 chopped sage leaves, the chopped thyme, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine well, and set aside.
- With a clean paper towel, pat the turkey breast dry upon removing it from packaging. Set the turkey out on a clean work surface, and rub the butter all over the turkey. Put more on the skin side, work some under the skin if you can.
- Place the turkey breast on a roasting rack, in a roasting pan. Place in the oven and roast. Roasting times vary based on your oven and the size of the turkey. Roasting times for a 3 to 5 lb turkey breast typically given as 90 to 120 minutes. Check at 90 minutes, temperature in middle should be 170 degrees. Ours took about 100 minutes in a convection oven to be ready. When done, remove the turkey breast from oven and let rest for 10 minutes on a large platter.
- Begin making the light gravy after the turkey has been cooking for 30 minutes or so. Heat the remaining tablespoon of butter in a sauce pan. Add the shallot, and cook 5 minutes until softened.
- Add the chicken stock to the sauce pan, and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to simmer.
- Add the lemon peel, pinch of thyme, lavender and 2 sage leaves. Simmer the stock until it is reduced by about 1/2. Keep warm.
- After you’ve put together the gravy ingredients and they are simmering together, pull out a quarter cup and use that to baste the turkey about halfway through the cooking time.
- When the turkey is cooked, strain the broth through a sieve, with a bowl underneath to catch and reserve the liquid. Pour the liquid into the roasting pan. Place the pan on the stove top, and bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and stir frequently, scraping the bottom of the pan to incorporate the bits of turkey fat that dropped to the bottom of the pan during the roasting. Simmer for a few minutes, then pour the liquid into a serving bowl.
- Slice the the turkey, and plate a few pieces along with your side dishes. Serve with the light gravy and a bottle of red wine!
Notes
- We previously included rinsing the turkey breast before cooking. We now follow the USDA guidelines to wash your hands, not the turkey!
- Take the butter out about 30 minutes prior to cooking to soften it.
- If you don’t have a convection oven, increase the temperature to 350 degrees for a conventional setting. Cooking time will be similar to convection with that adjustment.
- The turkey breast should register 165 degrees upon inserting a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the breast meat.
Keywords: roasted turkey breast, turkey with herb butter, wine pairings for turkey
Find it online: https://cookingchatfood.com/roasted-turkey-breast-with-wine/
