Tips for preparing a delicious Pastured Turkey
Start with a dry brine.
We recommend a dry brine for pasture turkey! It’s the simplest way to add flavor, lock in moisture, and crisp the skin.
Start 24–48 hours before roasting. Use a pre-measured SLO packet or mix your own.
Per pound of turkey: ¾ tsp coarse sea salt and 1½ tsp dried orange peel (1 oz ≈ 6–7 Tbsp). For example, a 12 lb bird takes 3 Tbsp salt and 6 Tbsp peel. Fine sea salt? Use ¼ less.
Prep and coat. Remove the neck and giblets and save them for gravy or stock. Pat the turkey dry (don’t rinse it). Carefully loosen the skin over the breast and legs and rub some brine underneath, then rub the rest over the skin and inside the cavity. Set it on a rack in the roasting pan and refrigerate it uncovered.
Short on time? You can start while the turkey is still thawing, as long as the skin is tacky. It won’t reach as deep into the meat, but still adds flavor and helps crisp the skin.
Pick out the clumps. Before roasting, remove any chunks of salt or clumped orange peel from the bottom of the roasting pan. Don’t wash the pan. What’s left adds flavor.
Skip the extra salt. Leave salt out of your seasoning and out of gravy made from the drippings. Salt from the brine stays in the bird.
Thaw the turkey.
A turkey is big! There’s a lot of meat to thaw so that means it will need more time to thaw. Plan ahead so your turkey is completely thawed before you put it in the oven.
Thaw in the fridge: 24 hours for every 4–5 lb.
Or thaw in cold water: in a leak-proof bag, 30 minutes per lb. Change the water every 30 minutes.
Cooking your turkey.
Use a meat thermometer! Pastured turkeys cook faster and dry out more easily. Roast at 325°F and start checking well before the 15 minutes per lb estimate.
Pull it at 150–155°F in the breast, measured in the thickest part, not touching bone. It keeps cooking as it rests.
Check the leg too. Pastured turkeys have more dark meat, so also check the thickest part of the thigh. It should read at least 165°F.
Rest 30 minutes, loosely covered with foil. The breast should reach the safe 165°F. If it hasn’t, put it back in the oven.
Baste every 30–45 minutes. Remove the bacon (if used) for the last 45 minutes so the skin crisps. If the breast browns too fast, tent it loosely with foil.
Don’t stuff the bird. The shorter cook time may not cook stuffing through, so bake it in a separate dish.
Chill leftovers within 2 hours. Use or freeze them within 3–4 days.
Roast Pastured Turkey
We’ve put together a recipe that enhances the natural rich flavor of the pastured turkeys we raised. It has herb butter that goes under the skin, bacon that lays across the breast, and a lemon, onion, and garlic mixture for the cavity.
Here’s our recipe!
Don’t forget the sides!
- Sausage & Herb Stuffing
- Cranberry Sauce
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Sheet Pan Roasted Root Vegetables
- Creamy Mashed Potatoes
- Sweet Potato Pie
- Leftover Turkey Soup