- November 10, 2023
- Chicken
Cheesecloth Herb Butter Turkey Recipe
This Cheesecloth Herb Butter Turkey recipe combines the rich flavors of a tender, moist turkey with the aromatic essence of fresh herbs and a decadent herb-infused butter. Wrapping the turkey in cheesecloth during roasting not only keeps the meat incredibly juicy but also imparts a beautiful golden-brown hue, making it a show-stopping centerpiece for your holiday feast.
Why This Recipe Works:
Thanksgiving Perfection: This Cheesecloth Herb Butter Turkey Recipe is my foolproof way to make a moist, tender turkey loaded with flavor every time! The cheesecloth protects the turkey and keeps it from getting to dark in the oven, while the herb butter adds a ton of flavor that make this the absolute best Thanksgiving turkey recipe out there.
Straightforward to Make: I know that making a Thanksgiving turkey can be a labor of love. Naturally, since turkeys are pretty large birds, they take time and effort to roast. But this herb butter roasted turkey recipe is pretty straightforward to make! The cheesecloth will help prevent any issues with it drying out, and a simple trussing of the turkey can ensure that it will cook evenly throughout. And remember, baste, baste, baste! These simple steps will result in a wonderful holiday turkey feast every single time!
What Is Cheesecloth?
Cheesecloth is a kind of cloth that is often used in the kitchen, mostly to make cheese! It is thin with very small holes that allow some moisture to escape, almost like a gauze. In this cheesecloth herb butter turkey recipe, the cheesecloth will help the turkey to retain moisture and not get too dark before it is ready!
Supplies Needed:
- Cheesecloth
- Roasting Pan
- Kitchen Twine
Ingredients:
- Turkey: One whole turkey! If buying a frozen turkey make sure you plan ahead for defrosting time.
- Melted Butter: The cheesecloth will be coated in melted butter to add flavor and lock in moisture.
- Herb Butter: To make a simple herb butter, simply mix softened butter, salt, dried rosemary, dried thyme, paprika, and black pepper!
- Chicken Stock: Add chicken stock to the bottom of the roasting pan so that you have plenty of liquid to baste the chicken!
- Vegetables: Add onions, carrots and celery into the chicken stock for added flavor to the basting liquid.
- Citrus: Adding citrus like orange and lemon to the cavity will tenderize the meat and add flavor moisture to the inside. I also added lemon to the vegetables in the roasting pan for extra flavor, too!
- Fresh Herbs: Stuff the turkey with fresh rosemary and thyme sprigs, too!
How To Roast A Turkey Using Cheesecloth:
Preheat & Prep Turkey:
- Preheat: Preheat the oven to 450 F (to start, the temperature will eventually be reduced). Adjust the oven racks as needed so the turkey and roasting pan will fit in the oven.
- Prep: Remove the turkey from the packaging and remove as much moisture from the bird by patting it dry with paper towels both on the inside and outside. Remove and discard the neck and the bag from the inside of the bird.
- Make Herb Butter: In a bowl, combine the softened butter and dried herbs and spices to create a paste.
- Separate Skin from Meat: Gently separate the turkey skin from the breast and thigh meat by carefully sliding your hand between the skin and the meat, being cautious not to tear the skin.
- Spread Butter on Turkey: Take the prepared compound butter and spread it evenly under the turkey skin, making sure to get some of the compound butter over the breast and thigh meat. you can use your fingers or a rubber spatula for this step.
- Stuff: Stuff the turkey cavity with orange (if you need to halve or quarter it to allow it to fit you can) and a few rosemary and thyme sprigs.
- Truss: Truss the turkey to ensure it cooks evenly. Use kitchen twine to tie the legs together and secure the wings to the body.
- Add Chopped Veg: In the base of the roasting pan, add the chopped carrots, celery, onion, lemon and fresh herbs. Cover in the chicken stock and then add in the roasting rack. Place the turkey onto the rack.
Apply Cheesecloth & Roast:
- Melt Butter & Apply Cheesecloth: Melt the other 2 sticks of butter and cut a piece of cheese cloth large enough to cover the turkey. I recommend folding the cheesecloth so it has 3-4 layers of fabric that will cover the bird entirely. Carefully dip the folded cloth into the melted butter so it is fully soaked and covered. Gently drape the cheesecloth over the top of the bird so it is fully covered by the cheesecloth. Brush any remaining butter over the cloth and turkey as needed so it is fully covered.
- Roast: Roast in the 450 F oven for 30 minutes. Remove and reduce the temperature to 325 F and baste the turkey and cloth thoroughly with the liquid from the roasting pan. The cloth should be saturated.
- Continue Cooking and Basting: Continue roasting for the next 2 hours, basting every 39 minutes to continue to saturate the cloth.
- Remove Cheesecloth: After those 2 hours, carefully remove the cheesecloth. If the cloth is sticking slightly, just baste and wet the cloth to help it easily remove from the skin of the bird (if not, it could tear the skin). Baste the skin and then return uncovered for a final 30 minutes of roasting or until the breast reaches an internal temperature of 165 F.
- Let Rest & Serve: Once the bird is fully cooked, remove it from the oven and let it rest 20-30 minutes covered lightly with foil before slicing so the juices can rest. Slice and serve as desired. Don’t forget to try this with my make ahead turkey gravy recipe as well.
What To Serve With Roasted Turkey:
My cheesecloth herb butter turkey recipe is perfect to serve on Thanksgiving or any of your upcoming holiday get togethers! You can serve this roasted turkey with a bunch of different sides, but here are some of my personal favorites:
- Smoked Stuffing Recipe
- Maple Bourbon Cranberry Sauce
- Smoked Sweet Potatoes
- Lemon Pepper Parmesan Brussels Sprouts
- Green Bean Casserole
- Best Mashed Potatoes
- Make Ahead Turkey Gravy
Frequently Asked Questions:
Putting cheesecloth on a turkey is a great way to prevent the turkey from drying out or getting too dark in the oven before it is fully cooked! The cheesecloth is dipped in butter so that it adds extra moisture and locks in flavor, too!
Cheesecloth is oven safe, since it is saturated in butter before being draped onto the turkey! You cannot broil the cheesecloth, but roasting it or baking it with the turkey is perfectly safe.
Store any of your turkey leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days! You can make sandwiches, and soups, or add the turkey to salads or nachos as leftovers! It also makes a great leftover turkey pot pie with a stuffing crust recipe too.
More Holiday Recipes to Try:
- Smoked Turkey Breast
- Mini Smoked Cheese Balls
- Smoked Duck Breast
- Sweet Potato Canapes
- Roasted Fall Vegetables
- Smoked Turkey Legs Recipe
Cheesecloth Herb Butter Turkey Recipe
Ingredients
- Oragnic Cheesecloth
- 12-14 lb Turkey (if you're using a larger turkey see the notes section below)
- 2 sticks Melted Butter for the cheesecloth
Herb Butter
- 2 sticks Butter softened
- 2 tbsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Dried Rosemary
- 1 tbsp Dried Thyme
- 1 tbsp Paprika
- 2 tsp Black Pepper
Aromatics (For Basting and Stuffing)
- 6 cups Chicken Stock
- 3 Carrots large chop
- 3 Celery Stalks large chop
- 1 large Yellow Onion large chop
- 1 Lemon quartered
- 1 Orange for stuffing
- Fresh Thyme Sprigs
- Fresh Rosemary Sprigs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 F. (to start, temperature will eventually be reduced). Adjust the oven racks as needed so the turkey and roasting pan will fit in the oven.
- Remove the turkey from the packaging and remove as much moisture from the bird by patting it dry with paper towels both on the inside and outside. Remove and discard the neck and the bag from the inside of the bird.
- In a bowl, combine the softened butter and dried herbs and spices to create a paste.
- Gently separate the turkey skin from the breast and thigh meat by carefully sliding your hand between the skin and the meat, being cautious not to tear the skin.
- Take the prepared compound butter and spread it evenly under the turkey skin, making sure to get some of the compound butter over the breast and thigh meat. You can use your fingers or a rubber spatula for this step.
- Stuff the turkey cavity with the orange (if you need to halve or quarter it to allow it to fit you can) and a few rosemary and thyme sprigs.
- Truss the turkey to ensure it cooks evenly. Use kitchen twine to tie the legs together and secure the wings to the body.
- In the base of the roasting pan add the chopped carrots, celery, onion, lemon, and fresh herbs. Cover in the chicken stock and then add in the roasting rack. Place the turkey onto the rack.
- Melt the other 2 sticks of butter and cut a piece of cheese cloth large enough to cover the turkey (I recommend folding the cheesecloth so it has 3-4 layers of fabric that will cover the bird entirely). Carefully dip the folded cloth into the melted butter so it is fully soaked and covered.
- Gently drape the cheesecloth over the top of the bird so it is fully covered by the cheesecloth. Brush any remaining butter over the cloth and turkey as needed so it is fully covered.
- Roast in the 450 F. oven for 30 minutes to start. Remove the turkey from the oven and reduce the temperature to 325 F. Then baste the turkey, pouring the liquid from the roasting pan over the cloth thoroughly. The cloth should be saturated before the turkey is returned to the oven.
- Continue roasting for the next 2 hours or so, basting (as directed before) every 30 minutes to saturate the cloth.
- After those 2 hours, carefully remove the cheesecloth. If the cloth is sticking slightly then baste and wet the cloth to help it easily remove from the skin of the bird (if not it could tear the skin). Baste the skin again without the cheesecloth and then return uncovered for a final 30 minutes of roasting or until the breast meat reaches an internal temperature of 165 F. Use a meat thermometer to ensure it is properly cooked.
- Once the bird is fully cooked, remove it from the oven and let it rest for at least 20-30 minutes covered lightly with foil before slicing so the juices can rest. Slice and serve as desired.
The total cooking time here is only 3 hours yet your turkey looks large. We have a 21 lb turkey which will require at least 5-6 hours to cook. So with our time frame, how long would you leave the cheesecloth on? Also, in step #11 you say to roast with the cheesecloth for 30 minutes at 450, then REMOVE and lower temp to 325.
Why are we removing the turkey? I get that we are then cooking it with the cheesecloth for 2 hours at 325 and so on.
My turkey was probably about 15-16 lbs. You may need to add an additional time, use a meat thermometer as a guide. You just want to remove the cloth for the last 30 minutes or so of cooking (or roughly when the turkey is around 150 F internal). In step 11, it’s telling you to remove the bird, reduce the temperature, then baste the bird at that point before returning it to the oven (you don’t want to do that with the oven door open so you need to remove it to baste). You have to then continue to baste every 30 minutes as the following directions state.
I am making your turkey recipe today! Thank you so much for such detailed directions! My turkey is 19lbs, so definitely adding additional roasting time! Thanks again, excited to try!
Great recipe! Made my best turkey yet following these directions.
That’s incredible to hear! I am so glad and thank you for leaving a comment and a rating, I really appreciate it! 🙂