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People always tell me turkey is the worst part of the holiday plate. They’ll load up on mac and cheese, the candied yams, collard greens, all the good stuff, and then skip the bird altogether.
When I was testing recipes, we finally tried an unbrined bird just to see the difference… y’all ever had food so bad it makes you angry? That turkey was disrespectful. I finally understood why so many folks avoid the bird altogether.
Honey, the dry turkey stops here. This recipe is the ender of dry, bland turkey, gravy optional (but is it really? I love gravy on just about anything...).
The first time I nailed this recipe, my husband looked at me and said, “The juice from this turkey is ridiculous!” He was shocked, I was shocked, and I knew we had our winner.
This step-by-step post gives you foolproof juicy, tender meat and crispy skin, roasted in about 90 minutes instead of waiting 3-4 hours for your turkey. So while this turkey roasts, you can actually finish the sides without juggling oven schedules or burning your potatoes!
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love this Spatchcocked Turkey Recipe
- Ingredients Needed
- How to Spatchcock a Turkey
- How to Dry Brine + Roast the Spatchcocked Turkey
- What Readers Say about this Recipe
- Equipment I Used
- Pro Tips for the Best Thanksgiving Turkey!
- FAQs + Troubleshooting
- Juicy Dry Brined Spatchcock Turkey
- More Holiday Mains We Love
Why You'll Love this Spatchcocked Turkey Recipe
- Even cooking, nothing is overcooked - because the turkey is flat, everything cooks at the same plane at the same time.
- Juicy, juicy, juicy! - The dry brine not only seasons our turkey perfectly, it not only gives us crispy skin, but it also gives us superiorly juicy turkey! You'll see the moment you slice into the turkey breast: it will shock you just like it did me!
- Cook the turkey in just 90 minutes - nothing is worse than having a turkey take up your only oven space literally all day. This butterflied turkey roasts fast and hot y'all.
- Easier to cook than a whole turkey - no guesswork here, no wondering if the thighs are raw or the turkey breasts are juicy. Rub it down on all sides, fridge, butter, roast. It couldn't be more simple!
Ingredients Needed
Full ingredients, measurements, and printable instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Citrus Zest - I often use a blend of lime, lemon, and orange, but using only one type is just fine. We just really want those oils in the skin to flavor the turkey.
- Kosher Salt
- Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
- Brown Sugar - this helps give us an evenly brown color while also adding a slightly sweet flavor.
- A Medium Sized Turkey (around 14-15 pounds) - I suggest a 14-pound turkey to serve 10 guests without leftovers! This recipe, however, works with birds from 13-16 pounds.
For the Holiday Herb Butter
- Clarified Butter or Ghee - butter is full of moisture, so clarifying it gets rid of milky solids and water. Don't want to fuss with clarified butter? Vegetable oil or another high-smoke-point oil like grapeseed, avocado, or peanut oil works well.
- Fresh Herbs - I used the classic thanksgiving blend of thyme, rosemary, and sage, though if I were to pick just one it'd be the sage for that holiday flavor.
How to Spatchcock a Turkey
The spatchcock method (also known as the butterfly method) is a technique used where the spine of a bird, in this case, the backbone of a turkey, is cut out and the sternum is cracked so that your turkey is laying flat, butterflied and the entire inner cavity is now exposed.
Step 1
Flip the bird!
Place the turkey breast side down on your work surface so the spine faces up and the tail end is toward you.
Step 2
Start snipping one side.
Have a good sturdy grip on your turkey and begin cutting up one side of the spine, starting at that tail end. Pro Tip: use a paper towel to keep a grip on the turkey if its slippery!
Step 3
Remove the spine.
Once you have one side cut open, cut the spine off completely by cutting down the other side of it. If you want to keep the spine (I suggest doing so to make turkey stock and turkey gravy), cut the tail off. It holds glands that can have an unpleasant taste.
Step 4
Flip and flatten out.
Flip the turkey breast-side up. Use the heel of your palm to break the breast bone, it will make a cracking sound. Now that you have a flat turkey, it's ready to dry brine. Place the turkey on top of a wire rack over a baking sheet. The turkey should be spread out with the thighs out to the side.
How to Dry Brine + Roast the Spatchcocked Turkey
For turkey day, we want this bird ready by dinner time. We need to start dry brining the night before, then take out the bird to about 3 hours before dinner: 30 minutes of warming up to room temperature, 90 minutes to cook, and 45 minutes to rest.
Step 1
Get that rub on there and dry brine overnight
Mix the dry brine mixture together and rub the mixture all over the turkey on all sides, both on the turkey skin and the exposed cavity of the turkey.
Dry brine overnight at least, but I've gone 3 days without a problem!
Step 2
Cover in buttah, baby.
Melt the clarified butter with the finely chopped herbs (you can do this ahead and rewarm).
Pat the turkey dry with paper towels, then brush that herb butter all over the skin. Get into every nook just like the dry brine. It’s fine if the butter firms up on the skin, it'll melt just the same in the oven.
Step 3
Roast + rest.
Roast the turkey on the wire rack–baking sheet setup. If it browns before the full 90 minutes, tent with foil.
Once done, let it rest for 45 minutes so the juices settle back into the meat. Don't bother with any of the pan drippings, they’ll be too salty from the dry brine (and possibly evaporated from the high heat).
Step 4
Carve + serve!
The thighs and legs should pull away easily. Remove each breast whole (save the bones for stock!) then slice to serve.
Need visuals? Check out J Kenji Lopez-Alt’s carving video.
What Readers Say about this Recipe
Equipment I Used
These are my main tools for this recipe, they make every step much easier.
Pro Tips for the Best Thanksgiving Turkey!
- If you're using a frozen turkey - let it thaw for 24 hours per every four pounds. So if Thanksgiving is on Thursday, you need to pull the turkey out of the freezer by Saturday at the latest for a 16 pound bird.
- Do not use a larger turkey for this recipe - 16 pounds is as large as I would go; the larger the bird, the harder it is to control the timing and the cooking temperature.
- In fact, if you're feeding more than 12 people, I say go for two smaller birds. You can cook both in the oven at the same time and you will be able to control them easier than one gigantic bird.
- Remove that red 'thermometer' - Those 'pop up' thermometers found in commercial turkeys are meant to pop up at 185ºF, an entire twenty degrees higher than what it needs to be! Sabotage!
FAQs + Troubleshooting
These are many frequently asked questions y'all have asked me over the years!
About 1.25 pounds per guest. So a 15 pound turkey will feed 12 dinner guests.
My recipe works perfectly for turkeys between 13-16 pounds, as larger turkeys won't fit in most roasting pans, a wire rack, or rimmed baking sheet.
No. For the love of all that is holy, flavorful, and crispy-skinned...Don't rinse the brine off! It'll just re-moisturize that skin we dried out.
Nope, no basting needed! It's an added benefit to dry brining.
Dry brining takes up way less fridge space than a big old bucket and bag! The salt absorbs into the meat as it rests, so there’s no messy rinse, and the citrus zest, sugar, and peppercorns flavor the skin. Best of all, it delivers juicy meat and crisp, golden skin!
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Juicy Dry Brined Spatchcock Turkey
Ingredients
- 1 (13 lb-16 lb) whole turkey, giblet bag and neck removed
Citrus Dry Brine
- 2 large oranges, finely zested
- 3 lemons, finely zested
- 2 limes, finely zested
- ⅓ cup kosher salt
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
Herb Butter
- 8 tablespoon clarified butter or ghee, or other high heat oil like peanut oil, avocado oil, etc.
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme leaves, off the stem and finely chopped
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves, off the stem and finely chopped
- 4 sage leaves, finely chopped
Instructions
Spatchcock the Turkey
- OPTIONAL: Using a sharp paring knife, locate the wishbone in the neck area of the turkey. Gently cut around the wishbone, cutting it from the neck.1 (13 lb-16 lb) whole turkey
- Flip the turkey onto its breasts, so the backbone is facing up. Using sharp poultry shears, start at the butt end and cut up each side of the spine until its completely removed. Save the spine as well for turkey stock.
- Flip the turkey breast side up, then use the heel of your palm to crack the breastbone and make the turkey lay flat. Flip the thighs and legs onto the top of the bird.
Make the Citrus Dry Brine
- In a small bowl, mix the orange zest, lemon zest, lime zest, kosher salt, pepper, and light brown sugar together well.2 large oranges, 3 lemons, 2 limes, ⅓ cup kosher salt, ¼ cup light brown sugar, 1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
- Dry the skin of the turkey well with a paper towel, then generously rub the dry brine mixture over all the skin and the flesh on the underside. Place the turkey on a wire cooling rack on top of a large baking sheet and let brine uncovered in the fridge overnight, about 8-10 hours at least.
Make the Clarified Herb Butter
- Melt the clarified butter in a saucepan over low heat or in a microwave with the chopped herbs. Set aside8 tablespoon clarified butter or ghee, 3 sprigs fresh thyme leaves, 2 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves, 4 sage leaves
Roast the Turkey
- Preheat your oven to 450℉ (230℃).
- Pull the turkey out of the fridge 30 minutes to 1 hour before roasting, this helps get the chill off the as the cold will result in tougher meat.
- Blot the skin of the turkey gently with a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture on the skin. Take a pastry or silicone brush and liberally brush the herb butter all over the skin.
- Roast the turkey on the wire rack on the baking sheet in your preheated oven. Keep an eye on the turkey breasts, put aluminum foil over the turkey breasts if they're becoming too browned too quickly.
- Roast the turkey for 90-110 minutes, or until a meat thermometer put into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165℉ (74℃).1 (13 lb-16 lb) whole turkey
- Remove from the oven and let rest and cool for 40 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips for the Best Turkey
- Need some visuals on carving your spatchcock turkey? Check out this video on carving a spatchcocked turkey from J. Kenji Lopez-Alt for help.
- If you're using a frozen turkey let it thaw for 24 hours per every four pounds. So if Thanksgiving is on Thursday, you need to pull the turkey out of the freezer by Saturday at the latest for a 16 pound bird!
- Do not use a larger turkey for this recipe - 16 pounds is as large as I would go; the larger the bird, the harder it is to control the timing and the cooking temperature. And that's just my rule for turkey in general!
- In fact, if you're feeding more than 12 people, go for two smaller birds. You can cook both in the oven at the same time and you will be able to control them easier than one gigantic bird.
- Remove that red 'thermometer' in the breast - Those 'pop up' thermometers found in common commercial turkeys are meant to pop up at 185 degrees! An entire twenty degrees higher than what it needs to be, no wonder turkey ends up so dry and flavorless all the time!
- Use a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the thigh until it reads an internal temperature 165 degrees F. Bonus points for using an instant-read thermometer.
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