Roast Turkey, Stuffing and Gravy

The comforting aroma of a turkey roasting in the oven is hard to beat. Everyone eagerly awaits the golden brown turkey and savory side dishes to be served.

Preparing a roast turkey dinner for family, guests, or a large crowd can be intimidating, but it is easier than you think. Take the stress out of roasting a stuffed turkey with these easy-to-follow instructions.

How to make perfect Roast Turkey, stuffing and gravy.

• Turkey – plan for one and a half pounds of turkey per person. This takes into consideration that a whole turkey has a lot of bone, cartilage, neck, and shoulder parts that are not typically served. Usually, this will allow for extra to make delicious leftover turkey recipes like Turkey Enchilada Casserole or Leftover Turkey Pot Pie.
• Remove giblets and turkey neck from completely thawed turkey. Rinse the turkey with cold water, then pat dry with paper towel.
• Generously season the cavity of the turkey with salt and pepper.

Preparing the turkey stuffing.

• Cut day-old bread into cubes and toast on a cookie sheet until lightly browned. Transfer to a large bowl.
• Using a large skillet, sauté the onion and celery in butter until softened.
• Toss into the bread cubes. Add the dry stovetop stuffing mix.
• Season with poultry seasoning, ground sage, salt and pepper, tossing as you season to ensure all the bread gets a bit of seasoning.
• Add the chicken broth a bit at a time to moisten the bread cubes. The bread cubes should be moistened, but not soggy.
• Fill the cavity and upper breast top of the turkey with stuffing. Pull the skin over the stuffed cavities and secure with skewers. Tie with kitchen string or skew the legs together and secure the wings to the side of the turkey.

My family loves plain, traditional turkey bread stuffing, but some variations to the stuffing recipe could include adding shredded carrots, cranberries, dried fruits, sausage, chestnuts or other nuts. Mom used to add the turkey giblets and some ground beef to her stuffing.

My secret ingredient is adding a box of Stove Top Stuffing mix. I know it seems like cheating, but it does add a punch of flavor to the stuffing recipe. I also prefer to use my Homemade Chicken Stock instead of store-bought chicken broth.

Roasting the Turkey

• Place the stuffed turkey on the rack of a large roasting pan. Rub butter over the turkey and generously season with salt and pepper. I usually place the neck in the bottom of the pan as this adds extra flavor to the drippings used for making the gravy.
• Add some chicken broth to the bottom of the roasting pan.
• Tent the turkey loosely with aluminum foil. Roast 350ºF for 3-4 hours.
• Baste the turkey about every 30 minutes with the pan drippings. Remove the foil for the last 30 minutes and continue to roast until done. If the legs begin to brown too much cover loosely with foil.
• Turkey is cooked when the meat thermometer reads 180ºF (82ºC) and the juices run clear. Insert meat thermometer in the thickest part of the inner thigh, but not touching the bone. The stuffing placed in the cavity of the bird should read an internal temperature of at least 165ºF (74ºC).

Pro Tips

A meat thermometer is a must-have tool for making the perfect roast turkey. To check the temperature insert the meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh without touching the bone.

There is nothing worse than slicing into your beautifully roasted turkey only to find red juice coming out of it. Avoid the ensuing panic of having to put it back in the oven while everyone already seated at the table! Use a meat thermometer!

Carve the turkey with a sharpened carving knife or my favorite tool – an electric carving knife.

Homemade roast turkey gravy recipe

• Making homemade turkey gravy is easy and an essential complement for your holiday feast. The rich pan drippings are the key ingredient for making savory roast turkey gravy!
• Remove the turkey from the roasting pan and let rest while preparing the gravy.
• Transfer the drippings from the roasting pan to a gravy fat separator, or skim off extra fat. Using the same roasting pan, add 1- 3 cups of chicken broth. This will vary depending on how much liquid is leftover from the roasted turkey.
• In a small jar mix ⅓ cup flour and ½ cup of broth and shake vigorously to ensure no lumps.
• On the stovetop heat the drippings and broth, gradually whisking in the flour mixture. Bring to a slow boil, then reduce heat and simmer until gravy thickens.
• Season to taste with ground sage, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper.
• Continue to simmer for 10-15 minutes.