Apple Cider Glazed Roast Turkey
An easy recipe for Apple Cider Glazed Roast Turkey which is guaranteed to give you a flavorful and tender turkey!
This post is sponsored by the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association, however all opinions and recipe are my own.
Now that it’s November, let’s just dive straight into all the holiday recipes! This is my absolute favorite time of year to be in the kitchen, so it’s been hard not having a kitchen while our kitchen renovation is still going on. Admittedly, it’s not as bad as I had anticipated, although it’s not as easy to get my baking fix as it was before! Not too much longer, I keep telling myself!
I had access to a full kitchen a couple of weeks ago, so I made use of it testing a bunch of holiday recipes - including this turkey! Since 95% of Americans eat turkey at Thanksgiving, I love creating a new turkey recipe each year to share with my readers. I have actually made this Apple Cider Glazed Roast Turkey twice, just to make sure I got the recipe right, and it is pure perfection!
This Thanksgiving turkey starts off with an apple cider brine. I am a firm believer in the brining process (although my Mayonnaise Roasted Turkey is not brined and it's still delicious!!), as I have found it always produces a super tender turkey. The trick to brining is just having a container large enough to brine the turkey in. I remember hosting a Friendsgiving in our tiny apartment when Marc was in residency, and I brined it in one of those brining bags. It was...messy to say the least, and definitely a good learning experience. Since then, I have used a clean bucket or Marc’s huge stock pot that he used to brew beer in, which is just the perfect size. This makes the process of brining so much easier!
The brine for this Apple Cider Glazed Roast Turkey is a simple combination of apple cider, water, kosher salt, and sugar. After a good 16-24 hours in the brine, the turkey is ready to go into the oven. The benefit of the brine is ensuring the meat is super tender and juicy.
Before I put the turkey in the oven, I slathered it with melted butter, sprinkled it with rosemary sea salt, and stuffed it with some onion and apples. Simple and delicious!
The roasting process for this turkey is pretty straight forward - 425 degrees for 30 minutes and then reduce the heat to 325 for another 2-2 ½ hours depending on the size of your turkey. Side note: you should allow 1 lb of turkey per person when buying your turkey, and allow 24 hours for every 4-5 lbs of turkey. That’s 3 days of thawing in the refrigerator for a 15 lb turkey so be sure to plan in advance! To ensure your turkey is cooked through, you’ll want to be sure to insert the meat thermometer into the innermost part of the thigh, the thickest part of the breast, and the innermost part of the wing, and they should all be 165 degrees F.
In addition, I basted my turkey every 30 minutes with apple cider to keep it moist and delicious. There will be no dry turkey at my Thanksgiving table! The apple cider combined with the turkey juices makes amazing gravy, too. A little sweet and a little savory - I’m pretty sure I’ll be drizzling it over my entire plate at Thanksgiving.
Before we get to the recipe, here is a fun fact about turkey: did you know that Minnesota ranks #1 in turkey farming, raising 42.5 million turkeys per year?! As a Minnesotan, I think this is pretty cool! Be sure to check out the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association’s website to learn more about Minnesota’s turkey farmers, and meet some of the families.
Like this recipe? Check these out, too!
Garlic Herb Mayonnaise Roasted Turkey
Instant Pot Maple Mustard Turkey Breast
Herb Butter Roasted Turkey Breast
Apple Cider Glazed Roast Turkey
Ingredients
For the Brine:
- 10-15 lb turkey, giblets removed
- 1 gallon apple cider
- 1 cup kosher salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
For Roasting the Turkey:
- 1 onion, quartered
- 1 apple, quartered
- ½ cup butter, melted
- 3 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
- ~2 cups apple cider, for basting
Instructions
- Place the turkey into a pot or bucket.
- Add the apple cider, kosher salt, sugar, and enough water to just cover the turkey (should be about 1 gallon), and stir to dissolve the sugar and salt.
- Cover and refrigerate for 16-24 hours.
- After brining, rinse with water to remove excess salt and then thoroughly pat dry with paper towels.
- Place the turkey onto a roasting pan and stuff with the onion and apple quarters.
- In a small bowl, stir together the sea salt and rosemary.
- Brush the turkey all over with the melted butter and then sprinkle with the rosemary sea salt.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place the turkey in the oven on the lowest rack and cook for 30 minutes.
- Reduce the temperature to 325 and cook another 2-2 ½ hours, depending on the size of your turkey, basting the turkey with the remaining apple cider every 30-45 minutes.
- Test the internal temperature of the turkey into the thigh and the breast. The turkey is done once the temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
- Cover with aluminum foil and let rest for 20 minutes before slicing turkey.
