How to Cook a Turkey {in an Oven Bag}

Easy Thanksgiving Roasted Turkey! Here you’ll learn all you need to know to cook the perfect juicy and tender turkey, the secret starts with an oven bag. It’s a breeze to prepare and it turns out delicious every time following a few simple steps!

How to Cook Turkey {In an Oven Bag}

• Servings: 12 -24
• Prep Time 15 minutes
• Cook Time 3 hours
• Cool Time 20 minutes
• Total Time 3 hours 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 12 - 24 lb. turkey (fresh or frozen and fully thawed)
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3 garlic cloves, minced (1 Tbsp)
• 1 tsp dried thyme, or 1 Tbsp chopped fresh*
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 4 celery ribs, chopped into 2-inch pieces
• 1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped into chunks
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped into 2-inch pieces

Instructions

1. Move oven rack one level below center and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a small mixing bowl stir together butter, garlic, thyme and season with a little salt and pepper.
3. Remove neck and giblets from turkey and remove any pin feathers left behind. Tuck wings under turkey. Season cavity of turkey with salt and pepper.
4. Using the back end of a wooden spoon separate turkey breast skin from breast. Rub butter underneath skin (again I just use the back end of the spoon), smooth over skin to spread butter out. Altnerately you can just rub butter over skin but I feel it seasons better when rubbed underneath.
5. Season all over turkey with a fair amount of salt and pepper.
6. Add 1 Tbsp flour to the Reynolds Kitchens Turkey Size Oven Bag and shake. Place oven bag in a roasting pan, add celery, onion and carrots to oven bag. Place turkey over vegetable layer in oven bag.
7. Close oven bag with the oven safe tie included. Cut 6 slits across top of the oven bag to allow steam to escape then tuck ends of oven bag into the pan.
8. Cook unstuffed turkey according to size (thickest portion of thigh and breast should register 165 degrees in several places on an instant read thermometer):
   12 - 16 lb turkey: 2 - 2 1/4 hours
   16 - 20 lb turkey: 2 1/4 - 2 1/2 hours
   20 - 24 lb turkey: 2 1/2 - 3 hours
9. Let turkey rest 20 minutes. Carefully cut top of oven bag open, transfer turkey to carving board and carve.

Recipe Notes

• Plan about 1 lb of turkey per person, for example a 12 lb. turkey should feed about 12 people, a 24 lb. turkey should feed about 24 people.
• To thaw a frozen turkey allow about 24 hours for ever 5 pounds of turkey thawing in a refrigerator set to 40 degrees. I like to add an extra day just to be safe. A fully thawed turkey can be held in the refrigerator 2 more days.
• *Other herbs work great here including parsley, rosemary, sage or marjoram. You can also add lemon zest to the butter mixture if desired.
• Ensure that oven bag does not touch top element or sides of oven or it can melt.