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close up view of sliced roast turkey breast with crispy skin, a two pronged fork is picking up a piece.
5 from 6 votes

Roasted Turkey Breast Recipe

This easy Roasted Turkey Breast recipe is the only one you need! This turkey breast is juicy, flavorful and has perfectly crispy skin.
Author Diana
Servings 8 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Resting Time 20 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 4-8 lb turkey breast bone in or boneless
  • ½ cup unsalted butter softened, or olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh sage chopped
  • 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary chopped
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme chopped
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

To Make Turkey Gravy

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.
  • Make the herb butter. In a bowl combine softened butter with garlic, herbs, salt, and pepper. Mash it with a fork or just stir with a small spatula. Set aside.
  • Prep the turkey by cutting off any extra skin if needed. Pat it dry with paper towels.
  • Carefully loosen the skin with your fingers be careful not to tear it, then add half the butter underneath the skin and push it to even it out. Rub the remaining butter all over the turkey breast. Place on a roaster or on a baking pan, and roast for 45 minutes.
  • Check on the turkey, if it’s browning too much then cover with a piece of foil. Continue to roast until the internal temp is 160°F/71°C. About 20 minutes per pound.
  • When it’s done, remove from the oven, loosely tent with foil and allow it to rest for 15-20 minutes. The temp will continue to rise to 165°F/174°C.
  • Carve, remove from bone and slice to serve.

For the Gravy:

  • Remove the drippings from the pan the turkey breast was cooked in, and measure out 4 tablespoons. Scrape the pan with a spatula to remove the brown bits (all the flavor is there!)
  • Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan. Add the brown bits and the 4 tablespoons of drippings. Add ¼ cup of flour, and saute for 30 seconds. Then add 2-3 cups of stock, water, milk, or a combination of those liquids, and cook until thickened. Remove from heat and serve.

Notes

  • Dried herbs can be used in place of fresh, just use 1 teaspoon of each. 
  • You can choose to use either butter or olive oil when roasting a turkey breast. Both will help keep the meat moist, but I find softened butter easier to work with. 
  • I highly recommend getting the butter and herb mixture underneath the skin so that it seasons the meat, but try not to completely disconnect the skin from the meat while you're doing it. 
  • If you don't have a small roasting pan, a 9x13-inch pan can also be used. Here  I'm using a 14x11-inch roaster with a rack. 
  • Turkey Breast Roasting Time Per Pound: 20 minutes, or 16 minutes per pound for boneless turkey breast.
  • To Store: Keep leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days. 

Nutrition

Calories: 386kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 50g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 161mg | Sodium: 1093mg | Potassium: 608mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 539IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 2mg