Take your holiday roast turkey to a delicious new level with this recipe that shows you exactly how to make a gorgeous Bacon Wrapped Turkey with a bacon lattice top.
Why haven’t we always been wrapping turkey in bacon? This is the best roast turkey I’ve ever had!
Sure, you can roast a turkey in the traditional way, and it will be delicious if you follow my tips. But if you really want to create a showstopping centerpiece for your Thanksgiving meal, this is the turkey recipe you want to follow.
Pair this flavorful turkey wrapped in bacon with your favorite holiday sides! I suggest trying my crockpot mashed potatoes and serving a healthy veggie to offset the extra richness of this smoky, salty, savory, and juicy bird.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s actually easier this way – Making a bacon lattice isn’t that difficult, it’s actually kind of fun! And because we’re covering the whole turkey with bacon, we don’t have to stress about seasonings or getting the perfect crispy turkey skin if we don’t want to. There’s no need to brine or add a rub to this turkey, and it doesn’t need to be basted while it’s roasting either.
- It tastes amazing – You already know that bacon is delicious, but once you taste roast turkey that’s been cooked with bacon, you’ll fall in love! The bacon imparts a smoky, salty flavor to the meat and keeps the turkey moist and juicy.
- Bacon wrapped turkey is very impressive – Your dinner guests will be stunned when they see you bring this gorgeous turkey to the table.
Key Ingredients Needed for Bacon Wrapped Turkey
Here’s what you need to make this delectable turkey:
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Turkey: I’m using a 10-pound turkey here, and this recipe will easily cover a turkey that is between 8 and 12 pounds. You want to make sure that your turkey is fully thawed before starting.
- Seasonings: To season the outside of the turkey we’ll use bacon, but to season the inside we’ll use salt, pepper, fresh garlic and onion, and fresh herbs. I like a mix of sage, thyme, and rosemary.
- Bacon: A pound of bacon is just the right amount to cover a 10-pound turkey. Buy regular-cut bacon rather than thick cut.
How To Make Bacon Wrapped Turkey
First, we’ll weave a bacon blanket to cover the breast, then wrap the legs and wings before roasting the turkey in the oven.
Tip!
Before starting to wrap the turkey, toss salt and pepper, an onion cut into quarters, whole garlic cloves, and fresh herbs into the cavity. Tie the legs together and tuck the wings underneath. Finally, dry the skin of the turkey with paper towels. Now you’re ready!
- Start by laying 5 slices of bacon in a row on a piece of parchment paper.
- Just like making a lattice on a pie crust, turn down every other slice of bacon halfway, then lay another piece of bacon on top of the folds, perpendicular to the first row.
- Replace the pieces of bacon that you folded, then fold back the opposite pieces of bacon on the other side, and add another perpendicular piece.
- Continue weaving in this manner until you’ve added 5 pieces to the grid, and created a solid rectangle of woven bacon. Adjust your weaving so that the bacon is very close together, even overlapping.
- Transfer the woven bacon to the breast of the turkey using the parchment paper to help.
- Remove the paper and arrange the bacon so that as much of the breast is covered, tucking in any long edges.
- Wrap additional bacon around the turkey legs and wings.
- Roast: Add water to the pan, and toss in any extra herbs or pieces of onion that you might have. Bake in a preheated 350°F/180°C oven for 2-3 hours, depending on the size of the bird.
Tip!
You can make this turkey ahead of time! Wrap the turkey with bacon up to two days ahead of time and keep it wrapped and in the fridge. Remove the turkey from the fridge 2 hours before roasting to take the chill off of it.
Recipe Tips
- The best way to defrost a frozen turkey is at the bottom of the refrigerator, it will take about 3-5 days to fully defrost depending on the size of the turkey.
- Buy the longest strips of bacon that you can find. This will make the weaving and wrapping process much easier. Avoid center-cut bacon, as it’s usually shorter.
- Since bacon shrinks as it cooks you should weave the bacon as tightly as possible while it’s still raw.
- You shouldn’t baste a bacon wrapped turkey. Opening and closing the oven too much will drop the temperature of the oven, and the bacon will get crispy all by itself.
- Add Water to the Pan. Bacon grease will smoke and burn at the bottom of your pan if you skip this part, and likely set off your smoke alarms! Water in the pan also creates a steamy oven environment, which helps the bacon cook slowly and evenly with the turkey.
- The turkey is done when a kitchen thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reaches 155°F/68°C, and the inner thigh reaches at least 165°F/74°C.
- Let it Rest. Don’t slice into your turkey until it has rested for at least 30 minutes on the counter. Trust me, it will be worth the wait!
- For More Turkey Tips, visit my Ultimate Guide to Thanksgiving Turkey. There you’ll learn all about other options for cooking a turkey, how to choose a turkey, how to defrost a turkey, how to carve a turkey, and more!
Storing Tips
Leftover roast turkey with bacon can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
What To Serve With Bacon Wrapped Turkey
This turkey is a spectacular main dish, but it needs your best sides to make it the perfect holiday meal! Try some of these tried and true favorites this year:
Side Dishes To Serve with Turkey:
- Roasted Sweet Potato Salad
- Boursin Mashed Potatoes
- Broccoli Casserole
- Creamy Green Bean Casserole
- Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
- Sausage Stuffing
Desserts to Serve with Turkey:
More Perfect Turkey Recipes
All Thanksgiving→
FAQs
While you don’t need to brine this bacon-wrapped turkey, you certainly can if you have the time! My easy Turkey Brine recipe is perfect for this.
The drippings leftover from roasting a turkey wrapped in bacon are going to be SO delicious, but possibly too salty to use on their own to make gravy. I suggest tasting the drippings first, and cutting them with low sodium chicken broth to make a pan gravy, thickened either with flour or corn starch.
I don’t recommend cooking stuffing inside the cavity of a turkey, as it’s nearly impossible to get it to the correct temperature that way. Instead, make your stuffing in a casserole dish on the side. You can bake it while the turkey is resting.
There you have it! Bacon-wrapped turkey is a modern twist on the classic holiday bird that is completely delicious and super easy to make. Make sure you pin the recipe so that more people can find it too.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Bacon Wrapped Turkey
Equipment
- Roasting pan with rack
- Parchment paper
- Kitchen thermometer
Ingredients
- 8-12 lb (4-6kg) whole turkey thawed
- 2 onions halved or quartered (yellow, white, brown)
- 2 heads garlic halved horizontally
- 1 bunch mixed fresh herbs sage, thyme, rosemary, parsley
- ½ cup(113g) unsalted butter
- salt and pepper
- 1 and ½ cups (350ml) water
For the Lattice
- 1 pound sliced bacon
- ½ stick salted butter melted
Instructions
- Remove the turkey from the fridge one hour prior to cooking to allow it to come to room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Remove the neck and giblets, and save them for gravy if you wish to make giblet gravy. Remove any pin feathers that were left behind, and pat the bird dry using paper towels. Do NOT rinse the turkey.
- Tuck the wings behind the bird, then season the cavity with salt and pepper and stuff with onion quarters, garlic cloves, and fresh herbs. Truss the legs using butcher twine for better presentation. If desired, you can add bits of butter underneath the skin of the breast as well, but it's not entirely necessary since we're adding bacon.
- Place the turkey in a roasting rack, then create a bacon blanket by weaving 10 slices of bacon together on a piece of parchment paper. Use the parchment to transfer the woven bacon to the breast of the turkey.
- Then wrap the turkey legs and wings with the remaining bacon. Tuck in any lose ends
- Brush the bacon wrapped turkey with melted unsalted butter on all sides. If you wish to make gravy using the drippings, add some aromatics to the bottom of the roasting pan (I add 1 onion sliced in half, garlic, and fresh herbs).
- Bake in the preheated oven for 2-4 hours depending on the size of the bird (check cooking times in the notes below).
- To prevent excessive browning, shield the turkey breast with foil. Check the temperature of the bird using a kitchen thermometer. When a kitchen thermometer is inserted into the thickest part of the breast reaches 68°C/155°F, and the inner thigh reaches at least 74°C/165°F, the turkey is done and must be removed from the oven immediately.
- Allow the bird to rest for 30-40 minutes and up to 1 hour before carving, this will help redistribute the juices and keep the turkey moist.
Notes:
- Please see images in the post for details on weaving bacon strips into a lattice.
- Buy the longest strips of bacon that you can find. This will make the weaving and wrapping process much easier. Avoid center-cut bacon, as it’s usually shorter.
- Since bacon shrinks as it cooks you should weave the bacon as tightly as possible while it’s still raw.
- Approximate cooking times for unstuffed whole Turkey:
- 8 pound – 3.6kg: 2 hours.
- 10 pound – 4.5kg: 2 hours and 30 minutes
- 12 pound – 5.5kg: 3 hours.
- Nutrition values are calculated based on a 10 lb turkey for 12 portions. These are just rough estimates.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Tiana B says
I have done this for now..10 years!!! It’s always a hit and my husband won’t let me make turkey any other way!!! I do baste mine with garlic Cajun butter about once an hour, I also inject the turkey before the wrap…. Takes like a fried turkey, always moist and leftovers “chefs kiss” thanks
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Thanks for sharing your bacon wrapped turkey tips and tricks!
Calvin Langley says
Great recipe. If you haven’t. Wrapped your bird in a cozy bacon blanket. Give it a try . Remember to drape a piece of tinfoil. And uncover the last hour. So the bacon can turn a golden brown… Yummmmy . Happy Thanksgiving 🦃 enjoy…
Andrea says
I usually cover the turkey for 1 to 2 hours when baked .
Do I need cover the Turkey when is wrapped in bacon?
Thank you,
Andrea
Diana says
Hi Andrea, I don’t usually cover it but I keep an eye on the bacon/turkey breast – To prevent excessive browning, shield the turkey breast with foil. I hope this helps!