Roast turkey

Tender roast turkey - a healthier way to cook this classic roast meat.

Serves

Prep

30 minutes

Cook

3 hours + 30 minutes resting

Nutritional Information:

Each 174g serving contains (excludes serving suggestion)

Ingredients

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C/gas 8. Cook your turkey at this temperature for the first 30 mins and then lower the oven temperature to 190°C/gas 5.

Stuff the turkey's cavity with the lemon, onion quarters, garlic, bay leaves and thyme.

Put the turkey into a large roasting tin. Lay the bacon across the turkey breast (see chefs tips), then cover it with foil.

Cook for at least 3 hours, removing the foil for the last 30 minutes of cooking time so that the bacon and skin can brown.

Check the turkey is cooked, then remove from the oven, cover loosely with the foil and leave to one side to rest for 30 minutes before carving.

Recipe tips

Different sized turkeys will require different cooking times. The cooking time will be approximately 30-35 mins per kg.
Your turkey should be moist and succulent. It's ready when the juices run clear. Test by plunging a fork into the deepest part of the thigh or breast. If using a thermometer, the internal cooked temperature will be 165°F/74°C.
To make a bacon weave: simply interweave the rashers of bacon on a piece of cling film, once you have a neat weave carefully place it on the turkey breast and remove the film.