Super Easy Overnight Roast Turkey

This super easy overnight roast turkey recipe is great because it will free you up to be taking care of the other things on Easter, Thanksgiving or Christmas…such as enjoying your family and relaxing

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Here are just a few things that people have said about this:

Carla – “My mom used to do this too. Watch out you will be really hungry all day from waking up to such a wonderful smell lol!!”

Debbie – “My sister’s mother in-law cooks her turkeys like this. They are very moist and flavorful.”

Pat – “I have always done my turkeys like that. They turn out great.”

Tina – “I have always prepared my turkeys this way. My Mother and Grandmother ….It’s a family tradition.”

Turkey is one of my family’s favorite things to eat and is extremely economical if you use the entire thing.

In some of my previous blog posts, I shared with you how I get the most for my money with this bird as well as some of the recipes I use. (Believe me, when your family enjoys eating turkey as much as mine does it’s always a feat to come up with new ways to use it)

The first thing to do is buy the good ol’ bird when it is on sale. I happen to have two refrigerators with freezers so when they are on sale I always buy at least two. Thanksgiving is a great time to take advantage of this tactic as they are always offered at the local grocery stores at fantastic prices.

I used to do my turkey the way most people do, take everything out, stuff it, stick it in a roasting pan, cook it for 4-5 hours, and ta-da …a beautiful bird to carve and serve. What I hated about that is that in the Summertime in North Carolina it is usually very hot and humid. Who wants to heat up their home all day long and then sit down to try to eat? Not me, that’s for sure!! That’s why I cook my turkey overnight.

ATTENTION:  This will NOT be the kind of turkey that you bring to your table and carve. This is going to fall apart as you take it out of the pan.

This would be great if you need to cook 2 turkeys to accommodate a large number of family and friends that come to your place for Easter, Thanksgiving, or Christmas. Or, if you don’t care about the obligatory 5 minutes of gawking at the picture-perfect roasted bird, give this overnight recipe a whirl. I promise it is life-changing.

Overnight Roast Turkey

1 – 20 to 22 pound Turkey
1 – Stick of Butter

(yep, that’s it)

Thaw your turkey as you normally would if it is frozen. Take out the neck and anything else they have been kind enough to stick into the cavity of the turkey. Make sure to check both ends!

Put the turkey in a roasting pan breast side down. I know I know you, this is not how you normally do it but trust me here.

Place the stick of butter inside the “large” cavity of the turkey. (unwrapped the butter of course)

Cover the entire thing tightly with aluminum foil.

Put the turkey in the oven for one hour at 250 degrees. (Do this about an hour before you are going to go to bed)

Turn the oven down to about 190 degrees

Go to bed!!

Tada!!!

This will take approximately 10 – 15 hours to roast beginning to end. Even if you are going to eat in the early to mid-afternoon the next day it will keep just fine in the oven at this temp.

This turkey will fall apart as you take it out of the roasting pan.

I took everything out of the pan except the juices, separated off the fat, and made gravy with the remaining juices. Here is my gravy recipe

Make sure to save all of the bones and skin (or what’s left of the skin if you eat it) as you will be using that the next day to make stock. I usually just put them all in a Ziploc bag and stick it in the frig for the next day.
Make sure you save all the leftover turkey, there should be quite a bit. We have a family of 5 and had LOTS of leftovers.

*****Yes, I have checked the temperature of the turkey each time I have made it this way. It definitely reaches a safe temp. The temperature for the turkey to be done is 165 degrees. Personally, I do not like the texture of the meat at that temperature so I make sure mine is at 175 degrees, which it is using this method.  

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If you enjoyed this recipe you may also like…

Homemade Turkey Potpie

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