Easy Oven Roasted Turkey Breast recipe - the only recipe you need to make a juicy, delicious bone-in turkey breast with perfectly crispy skin. The gravy is simple yet flavorful!
Serve this delicious turkey breast with Classic Sweet Potato Casserole and Green Bean Casserole from Scratch.
OVEN ROASTED TURKEY BREAST
Last year, I made a turkey breast for our holiday dinners and I decided right then that it's the best way to prepare the bird. You get the best meat for half the price and time of cooking. It's a win-win if you ask me. Follow my easy recipe to make the best, juicy turkey with crispy and delicious skin! While last year I cooked it in my Instant Pot, this year I will show you how to roast it perfectly in the oven.
This Oven Roasted Turkey Breast is very easy to prepare and the result is juicy meat with crispy skin. The turkey breast cooks in half the time as a whole turkey since it's usually half the size, yet you get the best meat from the bird. No need to tie the legs and struggle to fold the wings under the bird to set it on the roaster. Turkey breast is easier and faster to prepare.
How to roast turkey breast in the oven?
- Start by preheating the oven to 425 degrees F. Prepare your roaster pan.
- For the best results, wash the turkey breast and pat dry with paper towels. Do not season while it's wet. Mix oil and seasoning in a small bowl and brush all over the turkey breast. Place half the vegetables inside the turkey cavity. Arrange the rest around the breast on pan.
- Roast turkey for 20 minutes per pound. For my 7 lb turkey breast, the timing was 140 minutes (2 hours and 20 minutes). For a perfectly juicy turkey with crispy skin, baste the turkey breast with pan juices every 20 minutes or so. You can take the skin off before slicing if you want to cut down on calories.
- After the turkey is done, use the pan drippings to make the gravy: measure out 2 cups of liquid, add ¼ cup of water mixed with cornstarch and simmer the mixture together in a saucepan until it thickens.
How to thaw turkey breast?
To thaw a frozen turkey breast properly, you need to plan to pull it out of the freezer at least 24 hours before cooking. Big turkeys may take even 2 days to thaw. Place the frozen turkey breast in the bottom of your fridge and let it thaw. This is the safest way and it's recommended by the USDA.
How long to cook turkey breast in the oven?
All turkeys you buy in the store will have a guide on the back of the packaging. It's good to follow it, but you have to remember to check it before you cut it to get the turkey out. The general rule is to roast the turkey breast for 20 minutes per pound. So, if my turkey breast weighs 7 lbs, I will cook it for 140 minutes (2 hours and 20 minutes). When the time is up, check the breast in the meatiest place to make sure it reads 165 degrees F. To get the crispy skin and juicy meat, you should baste the turkey breast with pan juices every 20 minutes or so. Just carefully spoon the juices from the bottom of the pan and pour all over the turkey.
What to Serve with Turkey Breast?
Everything! Ha! Here is a list of my favorite side dishes to serve with turkey and turkey breast:
Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes
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Green Bean Casserole From Scratch
Garlic Parmesan Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Honey Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Honey Roasted Butternut Squash
Garlic Parmesan Pull-Apart Rolls
WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVER TURKEY?
My go-to recipe is my One-Pot Turkey Tetrazzini. It's quick and the clean up afterward is minimal since the whole dish cooks in one pot. Another great way to use it is to make turkey and cranberry sauce sandwiches or sliders AND toss it in place of chicken to make my Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup.
If you like this recipe and make it, snap a photo and share it on INSTAGRAM! Tag me @crunchycreamysweet so I can check it out and leave a comment! 😀
Oven-Roasted Turkey Breast
Ingredients
- 7 lb bone-in skin-on turkey breast
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- ¾ teaspoon paprika
- 2 teaspoon chopped poultry fresh herb mix rosemary, sage and thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 medium onion chopped into large slices
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 celery stalks
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Prepare your roaster pan.
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix oil, paprika, herb mix, salt and pepper.
- Wash the turkey breast, remove gravy pocket. Wash and pat dry. Brush turkey breast with olive oil mixture. Place one chopped celery stalk, 2 garlic cloves and half of the onion inside the turkey. Place remaining veggies around the breast on pan. Add stock to the bottom of the pan.
- Place the turkey in the oven and cook for 20 minutes per pound. I cooked my 7 lb turkey breast for 140 minutes (2 hours and 20 minutes). Baste the turkey breast with pan juices every 20 minutes or so.
- If you want the skin crispier, place the turkey under broiler set to 440 degrees F. Broil until skin is golden and crispy, watching the turkey the whole time. You may have to rotate the pan during broiling.
- To make the gravy, drain the pan drippings through a sieve to catch the onions and garlic. You can also press them through it to get all the flavor into the gravy. Measure out two cups of the liquid and place in a saucepan. Add a mixture of 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with ¼ cup of cold water and whisk well. Bring the mixture to boil and simmer until thickens.
Gina says
I made this today. I threw 2 lemon halves and an onion in the crevice, and schmeared softened butter, salt, pepper, garlic & paprika all over it. I was a little scared about the high temp, but it came out delicious!!! I tented “him” with foil after the first 1/2 hour and basted every 20 minutes. 2 hours 20 minutes was perfection for a 7 lb breast. I let it rest for an hour after I took it out and it was juicy and perfect.
Melissa says
Do you put the lid on the pan, or bake it uncovered?
Jack Connolly Walker says
You don't want to fully cover the turkey. Leave it uncovered or make a foil tent to put over it. Note that a foil tent will not let the turkey brown as well so remove the foil at the end and increase the temp keeping watch to not burn or over cook .
Ann says
Do you leave the oven temperature at 425 the entire time?
Thanks
Melinda Foster says
I don’t know why some others had trouble with this recipe. I followed it exactly (was a little skeptical about the high heat for the entire time but kept it there). The turkey breast was perfectly cooked. When I took it out the internal temperature was a perfect 180 degrees. The skin was dark and crispy. The meat was moist and soft. My husband raved at how good it was.
The gravy was yummy. I cooked an organic butterball 6.75 lb. breast.
Anna says
Awesome! Thank you so much, Melinda! I am so glad the turkey breast was a success!
Kate says
Hi! I'm making this recipe for Christmas. Do you put the breast on a rack inside the roasting pan or just in the roasting pan? Thanks!
Norma Johnson says
I always use a rack to set the breast on while it roasts. This prevents turkey from setting in grease and allows skin to get crispy.
Evie says
Hi! I'm planning on making this for Christmas, what exactly is "2 tsp chopped poultry fresh herb mix rosemary, sage and thyme"? - is the mix only the rosemary, sage and thyme and is called 'chopped poultry fresh herb mix'? If so, are they equal parts? Help please! Thank you!
Kelly Parker says
I put it on a rack. It doesn’t sit well just in the pan. Plus- you need to turn down the temp while cooking to 325
I’m trying this for the first time too, but have cooked many turkeys in the past- can’t wait to see how this turns out! Don’t forget to turn down the temp or the turkey will be dry- also- I cover in tin foil for the first hour
Rosie says
Kelly!
I am totally with you regarding your thoughts and comments.
Having made oven turkeys either whole or just a breast for over 45 years, sometimes 3 or 4 times a year, got this down to the proverbial science.
We don’t eat the skin anymore so …
Bake initially for about an hour uncovered until turkey is golden brown
Then cover (tent it) with foil for the remaining 2 hours at 350 degrees based on about 7.5 pound breast/ 20 minutes per pound.
Don’t use a thermometer and never did; don’t even own one!
Still, tender, juicy and baked to perfection.
Yes, we bake our stuffing inside the turkey!
John says
This is a follow up: Although it cooked hot and we had to keep adding broth, the aroma was wonderful. In the end, the taste was very good, but dry. We'll do the recipe again, but do something to keep it moist- maybe reduce the temperature as stated previously.
John says
This is the first time for an inexperienced person to cook a Turkey breast and with this recipe. I followed it exactly and set the oven temperature for 425 degrees. I used 2 cups of broth in the pan. Within one hour all the borsht was gone and the bottom of the pan was burnt. I added more broth and continued. Within another hour all the broth was again cooked away and the bottom of the pan was black, I added more broth and will continue cooking g the seven and half pound turkey for 2 hrs and 20 minutes. At this point I have used 8 cups fo broth and I suspect that when I take it out, there will be no broth left. At this point I looked in Joy of Cooking. It said to preheat to 450 and then turn dow to 325 and cook the same time as you say. No where do you say to turn down the temperature. I have looked multiple times. Also, in reading the comments I noticed that one person put the turkey breast on a rack in the pan. Had I read all these comments I would have also used a rack (we had one), but no where in the instructions did it say to use a rack or to consider that as an option.
Thank you,
Tania says
I cook my regular turkey full size in 325....so I will use the same temperature for the breast....and check with a thermometer....I do t trust high temp for birds...but that's me.lol
Tania says
Ps... I will use a rack...so does not burn the bottom.
Kara says
Good but would not have used chicken broth for the gravy because it made the gravy taste like chicken gravy rather than turkey gravy. I would have cooked it a while longer too. Parts were not completely cooked and my oven temp was correct.
Anna says
Thank you, Kara!
Tania says
Me too, don't like to use gravy on the cooking, and since I use 325 all the way, it cooks longer ....and juicier.
Kerri says
I followed your recipe, and I have to say this is by far the BEST turkey I've ever eaten. It turned out perfect! I'll be cooking my turkeys this way from now on. The only thing I'm wondering is the calorie count. Turkey is low fat, so I'm assuming it's a misprint.
Thank you for sharing such a wonderful recipe that I'll be enjoying for many years.
Anna says
Yay! That's wonderful, Kerri! I am so glad the turkey was a hit!
Vj says
I made this at Thanksgiving and it was terrific. Moist and delicious. I used dried herbs and more 400° than 425 and didn't baste.
Anna says
Thank you so much!
Melissa says
Made this for our four adults for Thanksgiving. So easy and delicious! I did tent foil over turkey breast since I noticed it was browning faster than expected. It was easy to remove to continue basting which I think is key. I had an almost 6lb turkey breast that was cooked in about 1 hour and 40 minutes. I didn't use a rack but did use some foil balls to keep the turkey breast centered and upright in the roasting pan.
Anna says
Thank you so much, Melissa!
Monica Cariker says
First time making Thanksgiving dinner and WOW. My guest loved it. Simple yet tasty. Looking forward to making this again next year. Thank you for this recipe.
Anna says
Wonderful! Thank you so much, Monica!
Patty says
Best turkey breast I’ve ever roasted. So moist and flavorful. Thanks
Anna says
Fantastic! Thank you, Patty!
Kerry says
This came out super good! I had an 8lb turkey and it took just over 2 hours. (Yes, I used a meat thermometer to be sure). Perhaps because I have an electric oven? Either way it was cooked just perfect and so flavorful! Will be using again! Thank you so much for sharing this!
Anna says
Wonderful! Thank you for trying my recipe, Kerry!
MaryAnn says
Do you just ignore the gravy packet?
Anna says
I never use the gravy packet that comes with the turkey. I always make my own gravy. Hope this helps!
Becky says
Do you put the breast on a rack or just in the roasting pan.
Jen says
I’d love to know the same! (I’m in the EU and hope we can see an answer soon-eek!) Happy Thanksgiving!