Simple Oven Roasted Turkey Breast is the perfect alternative to a full size turkey for small families. With its crispy skin and tender, juicy meat, your whole family is going to love this one!
Thanksgiving is quickly approaching, and dreams of cranberry sauce, pie, and turkey are dancing through our heads. Thanksgiving is the feast of all feasts, a time for family gatherings, a chance to rest and recharge, and what’s not to love about that? We know that the thought of a large Thanksgiving meal can be daunting, stressful, and, well…the opposite of restful. However, it doesn’t have to be that way.
Has anyone else ever felt pressured to roast a whole turkey just for tradition’s sake? We are here to tell you that you do NOT have to roast a whole turkey. Turkey breasts are totally satisfying and delicious with their crispy skin and juicy meat. Pair this with your favorite mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, and pumpkin pie for a Thanksgiving to remember!
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Can I use an oven bag to roast a turkey breast?
There is some debate on oven bags vs. traditional roasting. The idea behind an oven bag is that it should lock in moisture and flavor. Your turkey will also cook faster, you don’t have to worry about basting, and cleanup is a breeze! There are a lot of benefits to roasting in a bag, however if you prefer to roast a bird the traditional way sans bag, more power to you. It’s really just about personal preference.
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Turkey Skin: Optional?
We are big proponents of always cooking with bone in and skin on meat. The flavor can’t be beat, and there’s nothing quite as delicious as crispy skin. If you avoid excess fat for dietary reasons, or just aren’t a fan of the skin, you can always remove the skin before roasting.
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To Baste or Not to Baste:
Basting requires you to open the oven door repeatedly, losing a ton of heat! You do not need to baste, and we actually recommend not basting with this recipe. If you do decide to baste, you will need to plan on some additional cooking time.
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Boneless or Bone-in Turkey Breast
Turkey breasts are sold both boneless, and bone-in. Bone-in turkey breasts tend to be larger and contain both sides of the breast, while boneless turkey breasts are generally just one breast. This recipe will work with either, though a single boneless turkey breast will require a shorter cooking time.
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What should I do with leftover Oven Roasted Turkey Breast?
Leftover turkey is one of the best things about Thanksgiving! We doubt you’ll be able to stop yourself from eating this whole turkey breast with your family. However, if somehow you end up with leftovers, you should always use them in a sandwich the next day with some cranberry sauce, provolone cheese, and your favorite leafy greens. Mmmmm!
If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other delicious Thanksgiving inspired recipes:
Watch the video below where we will walk you through every step of the recipe with a video demonstration.
I made a 3lb turkey breast with these spices. I reduced the rosemary ( simply because I’m not a big fan) used all else as stated. It was delicious! Wil absolutely use again.
Best recipe ever!!! Made wonderful dark gravy too. I’ll never cook a turkey breast any other way. Thanks!
Wonderful
Tasty
Delicious!
Tried out this recipe last night. It was a hit! This one’s a keeper!
I made the recipe exactly as it was written, except I used an air fryer and deboned my full turkey breast myself so I ended up with two boneless turkey breast halves. It was the best turkey I’ve ever had in my life and my family agreed. My daughter and I actually had a heated discussion about who got the leftovers to take home! I’m so thankful my husband bought two turkey breasts that day I will be doing this again.
I had not baked a turkey in many years so I searched for a simple recipe and came upon this one. The photo made the baked turkey look so tasty I decided to try it. I tasted the paste after mixing it and it seemed too salty. So I discarded that batch and mixed it up again, cutting the salt in half. The challenge was loosening the skin to get the paste inside to rub it around the bird. The skin was really snug so I had to cut it with a knife to get access to different areas. But I was able to cover most of the bird with the paste. Maybe there is a technique for doing this that I need to learn. The end result, DELICIOUS!! Moist and flavorful. Cooked a 4.4 lb turkey at the recommened temperature for about 90 minutes. Will definitely use this recipe again!
I had not baked a turkey in over 30 years as my late husband had always done that. So, looking for a recipe that seems simple enough yet flaverful was my goal. The photo of this turkey made it look very tasty so I gave it a try.
After I mixed the seasonings together I tasted it and it was very salty. So I discarded that mix and made it again, reducing the amount of salt. It still had a salty taste but that did not come out in the baked turkey.
The challege was getting the skin loosened from the bird in order to smooth out the paste fairly evenly over it. I had to tear the skin to loosed it. But I managed to cover the bird well enough to spread the paste around.
End result, DELICIOUS!! Moist and flavorful. I was very pleased with how it turned out. Dinner was a success! I wll use this recipe again.
Our household cares less for Turkey. We did not buy one this year due to that. But we had other family coming so I bought a Turkey Breast. Found this recipe and WOW! Delicious 🤤. The only bad thing there was not enough for everyone 😳. Will use this recipe every year for my Turkey.
Wow! I almost never write reviews but I had to review this one. I was really nervous to host a small Thanksgiving dinner having never cooked turkey ever. I chose this recipe based on the reviews and the video looked super easy. It was a total hit! Everyone loved it. My husband said it was maybe the best turkey he’d ever had. Lots of flavor and moist. If I’m being picky maybe it was a little heavy on the rosemary, but I will definitely be making this again and again.
This is a delicious recipe. The turkey came out so moist and juicy. The leftovers are still juicy after a few days. Will make this again. Thanks!