Roasted Turkey Recipe with Amazing White Wine Gravy
A simple roasted turkey recipe with an incredible gravy flavored with white wine that your family will rave about. Roasting the bird with the wine, butter, and herbs results in a juicy meat and golden, crispy skin. With included cooking tips, like the number one way to keep your turkey moist, you’ll find this a classic, easy recipe that will become a family favorite.
✩ What readers are saying…
“I have made this turkey numerous times and it is hands down the best turkey and the best gravy! Yum.” -Mary
Like many of you, our holiday meal traditions include our favorite side dishes surrounded by a flavorful turkey, and this white wine roasted turkey recipe featuring a delicious white wine baste has been a favorite for years.
In fact, I would say this is the best turkey recipe for a number of reasons: It’s straightforward and easy, with no fussing, long wait times, or having to deal with turning a hot turkey. But really for us it comes down to the great flavor created from the butter, thyme, and wine, which makes the most amazing gravy ever. Really- the gravy is so good.
But can you make this without the wine?
I know that some people can’t, or just prefer not to cook with wine. So yes, you can make this by substituting broth for the wine and it will be perfectly good and delicious in it’s own way. I’ve included substitutions for the wine in the recipe card below.
Holiday Season Tip: Buy more than one turkey
Turkey is at it’s lowest price over the holiday months and if you have freezer room, buying at least two (and sometimes more) turkeys when they’re on sale is a great way to save money. Here are a few ways to use your extra turkey:
- Roast your holiday turkey and freeze the other one to cook later in the winter.
- Roast the extra turkey in January or February for a dinner or on a weekend meal prep day. Eat some fresh and cut up the rest of the meat for the freezer.
- Cubed, cooked turkey is a great convenience food to have stocked up in the freezer. Use it in turkey recipes like this favorite curried turkey and rice soup and in any recipe that calls for chicken like these favorite rotisserie chicken recipes.
I buy at least two every year and I’m never sorry I took advantage of the sales (sometimes even free turkey when you do your regular shopping!).
Roasted Turkey Recipe: Step-by-Step
Do you ever feel nervous about cooking a turkey? I used to almost shake in my boots at the thought – it seemed so scary, especially when I thought about the guests waiting for the main event of the meal.
Here are some things I’ve learned from years of turkey roasting:
- It doesn’t take as long as you think – unless it’s a HUGE bird.
- Simpler is better (I leave the day-long brining, turning while hot, and other techniques to others).
- Using a thermometer is key to moist white meat. Actually my #1 tip!!
- Gravy makes everything – even the dreaded dry breast – taste better.
And this turkey recipe covers all the above easily:
- 15 minutes to prepare.
- Cooked in under 3 hours (with a foil covering for part of the time to self-baste).
- Tested for doneness with an instant read thermometer.
- And since this recipe makes a truly wonderful gravy, point #4 is a total win, so you can roast your turkey with confidence!
Step 1: Lay the celery and onions in a single layer in the center of a large roasting pan.
Remove the giblets and neck from turkey. Discard giblets (or use for another recipe) and place the neck in a small saucepan and set aside (see more in step 3).
Step 2: Pat the turkey dry with a paper towel (so the butter sticks), bend the wing tips under the body, and set breast side up on the vegetables in the pan. Mix salt, pepper, and thyme together in a small bowl. Brush the turkey all over with the melted butter and sprinkle with the salt mixture. Roast uncovered for 40 minutes.
Step 3: Make turkey broth. While turkey is roasting, add vegetable scraps to the saucepan with the turkey neck, cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cook, covered, while turkey roasts.
Step 4: Remove turkey from oven and reduce temperature. Pour a cup of white wine over the turkey and cover the pan tightly with foil. Roast 1 hour. Remove foil, baste with pan juices and roast for another 30-60 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer reaches 165 degrees when inserted into the thickest part of the thigh.
TIP: Use the turkey broth in the gravy, if needed, and other side dishes like our family’s favorite, lick-the-plate-clean, Sausage-Cranberry Dressing. Or just freeze for later.
Step 5: Remove turkey from the pan to a platter or cutting board and cover with foil to rest for 20 minutes before carving.
To make this even easier, be sure to grab the Thanksgiving day turkey countdown with all the steps and timing you need to get the turkey on the table when you want. It’s free for subscribers to our weekly newsletter – sign up here! (If you’re already a subscriber, you won’t be signed up again.)
How to Make Turkey Gravy
To be completely honest, it has always been the gravy that caused me more anxiety than roasting the bird. It seemed to take me a lot longer to figure out how to get a gravy that was lump-free and really tasty.
After trying different thickeners, starting with a white sauce, shaking in a jar with cold water, and more, I keep coming back to this easy method: whisking the flour into a bit of the bubbling broth and then slowly adding the remaining broth.
- While the turkey is resting, strain the pan drippings into a 4-cup glass measure. Add neck broth as needed to equal 2½ cups.
- Pour 1/2 cup of the liquid into a medium-sized saucepan and heat on medium-high. Slowly whisk in the 1/4 flour until smooth. Add remaining 2 cups of liquid slowly and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Taste to adjust seasonings and serve immediately with turkey
Our family prefers the texture of gravy made with flour, but for those who are gluten-free, it’s easy to adapt this wine-based gravy to use potato or cornstarch, so don’t let that stop you from trying this recipe.
Every time I serve this recipe for roasted turkey, I always get tons of compliments on the gravy. Everyone loves it as much as I do.
The bonus? There is zero anxiety involved with cooking this turkey – yay!
Reader Raves
“I have been making this roasted turkey recipe with our homegrown turkeys for a couple years now, and it is beyond our favorite…STILL. We are a big gravy family, so without a doubt this gravy is outstanding and does not disappoint!” -Abby
“I have made this numerous times and can attest it is the best!” -Mary
I hope you love this roasted turkey recipe as much as we do – if you make it, be sure to leave a recipe rating to let me know!
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Roasted Turkey Recipe with Amazing White Wine Gravy
Equipment
- roasting pan to fit up to a 12 pound turkey
- 3-quart saucepan
Ingredients
- 10 to 12 pound turkey
- 2 to 3 stalks celery cut in half
- 1/2 large onion sliced
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 cup butter melted
- 1 cup white wine*
For Gravy:
- 1/4 cup flour **see note for gluten free option
- 2 ½ cup broth from pan juices + extra broth if needed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay the celery and onions in a single layer in the center of a large roasting pan.
- Remove the giblets and neck from turkey. Discard giblets (or use for another recipe) and place the neck in a small saucepan and set aside. Pat the turkey dry with a paper towel (so the butter sticks) and bend the wing tips under the body. Set the turkey, breast side up, on the vegetables in the prepared pan.
- Mix salt, pepper, and thyme together in a small bowl. Brush the turkey all over with the melted butter and sprinkle with the salt mixture.
- Roast, uncovered, for 40 minutes, until lightly browned.
- Make Stock: Meanwhile, add vegetable scraps to the saucepan with the turkey neck, cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cook, covered, while turkey roasts to make broth.
- Remove turkey from oven and reduce temperature to 350 degrees. Pour the cup of white wine over the turkey and cover the pan tightly with foil, tenting the center to avoid touching the turkey breast as much as possible.
- Roast 1 hour. Remove foil, baste with pan juices and roast for another 30-60 minutes (uncovered) or until an instant-read thermometer reaches 165 degrees when inserted into the thickest part of the thigh.
- Remove turkey from pan to a platter or cutting board and cover with foil to rest for 20 minutes before carving.
Make Gravy:
- While the turkey is resting, strain the pan drippings into a 4-cup glass measure. Add neck broth as needed to equal 2½ cups.
- Pour 1/2 cup of the liquid into a medium-sized saucepan and heat on medium-high. Slowly whisk in the 1/4 flour until smooth. Add remaining 2 cups of liquid slowly and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Taste to adjust seasonings and serve immediately with turkey.
Notes
Nutrition
Roast Turkey FAQ’s & Tips
I use whatever type of dry white wine I have, usually something like a Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc.
This is a tricky question, and depends on how big the turkey is, the oven temperature, whether the turkey is stuffed or not, or is cooked with a cover.
As an example, the basic recommendation of 20 minutes per pound would result in cooking the 10-12 pound turkey in this recipe for 3.5-4 hours, which is much longer than the 2 hours 40 minute cooking time in the recipe. That’s because my recipe starts roasting at a higher temperature before lowering it to 350 degrees, and then bakes for an hour with a foil cover.
So the REAL answer to how long does it take to roast a turkey is to use a thermometer in the thigh and when it reaches 160 to 165 degrees, the turkey is done. (The turkey temperature will rise 5-10 degrees as it sits after removing from the oven.)
This is probably the #1 issue that people deal with, but it really refers to the breast meat, since the dark meat has more fat and so is usually very moist. Here are some things you can try to keep your turkey breast meat juicy if that’s an issue:
–My #1 tip is to use a thermometer and check the temperature 30 minutes to an hour before you think it should be done. DO NOT rely on the insert pop-ups – they often pop-up when the breast is already overcooked.
-Try cooking the turkey breast-side-down for the first 40 minutes to an hour. It’s not the easiest thing to do to turn a big, hot turkey, so I don’t bother, but try it if you would like to (and honestly the one time I tried it, I didn’t feel it made much of a difference for all the stress involved, lol).
-Try a salt “dry brine” a couple days before cooking: rub 2-3 tablespoons sea salt or 3-4 tablespoons kosher salt over a 12-15 pound turkey and let it sit in the fridge, -uncovered, for up to 72 hours. Do not rinse and roast as usual (it doesn’t make it too salty, but you won’t need to add any of the salt the recipe suggests). Note: this only works with natural turkeys that don’t have any saline solution (“self-basting”) added.
-Let the turkey rest for 20 minutes, uncovered, before carving. Tenting with foil after removing from the oven will cause it to keep cooking. As the turkey sits, the juices will redistribute evenly.
Favorite Turkey Side Dishes
- Amazing Garlic Green Beans Recipe
- Amazing & Easy Lemon Garlic Baked Grated Carrots
- Incredible Sweet & Savory Sausage Cranberry Stuffing Dressing
- Garlic & Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes
- The Original Soft 100% Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls Recipe
This recipe has been updated – it was originally published in 2015.
I’ve been cooking turkey meals for well over 50 years. I’ve tried them all. Brined, spatchcocked, wrap in butter cheesecloth, wrapping in bacon and on and on. When your email arrived a couple of days ago with the link to your turkey roasting recipe, by chance I had a 16 pound turkey thawed that we bought last year on sale. I thought, why not? I’ll give this recipe a go. I’m so impressed. I find it hard to remember a turkey that I roasted that came out as moist as this one. And, it was delicious. The wine has got to be the key. I’m not a fan of cooking with wine, I prefer to drink it (in moderation). The gravy is a dream. On top of all this, it is such an easy way to roast a turkey. The 16 pounder cooked in less than 2 1/2 hours. Thank you for all your wonderful inspirational blog posts. I look forward to your emails.
Oh my gosh, I’m THRILLED you found this turkey to be as easy and delicious as I do, Carolyn! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review (and making my day😀).
I really want to try this recipe, but I usually use a cooking bag. How do you think I could adapt the recipe while using a cooking bag?
I don’t actually know, Betsy! In thinking about it, I’m not sure the alcohol from the wine would be able to evaporate in the bag, which you really need to happen. I know the bags are supposed to self-baste, right? Maybe you could cook the wine down first and then add it with the vegetables in the beginning to cook for however long your bag suggests?
This sounds amazing Jami, thank you! I’m going to try it, but was wondering which white wine do you prefer using?
I use a dry wine, like a Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc. Hope you enjoy this, Marci!
Hi Jami.
So do you recommend resting the turkey covered with foil (like in step 8) after roasting? Or does that make it more dry as mentioned in the FAQs? I’m doing a 14lb turkey with tons of leftovers for our small family of 5 this year. Always love your recipes and tips.
Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving!!
Julie
I do let it sit covered with foil before cutting, just about 30 minutes.
This sounds amazing but I do have a question. In the detailed blog post, you mention starting the turkey breast side down and not turning it. But in the recipe card, you say turn breast side up. Also, I know nothing about wine so could you suggest a type of wine to use. Thank you.
Sorry that was confusing for you, Barbara. That was just one of the suggestions of different ways to keep the breast moist in the FAQ section. I specifically say that I don’t bother with it, but that it is an option. I find the best way to keep the breast moist is to take it out when the thigh temp is at about 160 degrees. I don’t start breast side down for this recipe.
I have made this numerous times and can attest it is the best!
Oh, thank you for this review, Mary!!
I also cook the neck and giblets to make more broth for the gravy. Before adding water I brown the neck in a little oil and butter. I think it adds more flavor–you know, all those layers the TV chefs talk about. Take care and have a joyous holidays.
Bonnie from Eugene
Oh, that sounds delicious – I bet that does add more flavor, Bonnie, I’ll have to try that!
Have you roasted a larger turkey using this recipe? I’m wondering if I would need to adjust the times for roasting in steps 4 and 7 if I’m using a 15-16 pound turkey. I’ve always used a turkey bag for my turkey and I would really like to try your recipe this year. It looks wonderful and so easy also.
Yes, Terri, I’ve done a 16 pound bird this way before and you’re right you do have to adjust the time, though I simply added time to the cooking after removing the foil. I used the time listed for that size bird and tested with an instant read thermometer. I can’t remember exactly, but I think it’s only about 20-30 minutes more.
I have been making this roasted turkey recipe with our homegrown turkeys for a couple years now, and it is beyond our favorite…STILL. We are a big gravy family, so without a doubt this gravy is outstanding and does not disappoint! I have made this recipe after brining our turkeys for a couple days…amazing! Thanks for the go-to favorite recipe, we will be sharing this with all our turkey customers!
Wow, thank so much, Abby – I’m so glad you like this as much as we do! It really does make the best gravy. 🙂 I’ll have to try brining my bird, too.
I have made this turkey numerous times and it is hands down the best turkey and the best gravy! Yum. Going to try your stuffing recipe this year. 🙂
I’m so glad, Mary! Everyone loves the gravy here, too. 🙂 Hope you like the stuffing (I just made this year’s version last night for our early T-day dinner…sigh).