My “Do Nothing” Turkey Recipe Again, Plus My “Add Nothing” Gravy

My “Do Nothing” Turkey Recipe Again
Plus “Add Nothing” Turkey Gravy

Back by popular demand again, and to make it easier to find on this site – here is my “Do Nothing” Turkey Recipe. The recipe results in a perfectly cooked bird year after year. I bought my turkey at Costco (as opposed to Whole Foods) for 99 cents a pound. For 2024 everyone said it was the juiciest bird ever!

And while we’re at it, I’m including my super-easy recipe for natural turkey gravy. Nothing is added to the delicious pan dripping stock but flour and cornstarch. And every home cook knows that the gravy is a pain to make at the end, just before service…but this method is truly a breeze!

Just like the “Stuffing Everyone Loves,” the “Add Nothing” Gravy Recipe is homey and simple, just like you remember from your childhood. With no white wine, no cognac or sherry, no herbs, no garlic, no giblets –  it is a smooth, tasty authentic turkey gravy with never any lumps that appeals to young and old.

“Do Nothing” Turkey Recipe

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Remove neck and giblets from bird (use these for stuffing recipe here).

Rinse bird with cold water and pat dry with paper towels.

Rub interior with softened butter, salt and pepper.

Loosely stuff the cavities with roughly chopped onions, carrots, and celery.

Place bird on a roasting rack in the roasting pan, breast side up.

Rub the entire outside of the bird with lots of softened butter, salt and pepper.

Put more roughly chopped onions, carrots and celery in the bottom of the roasting pan with about 3 – 4 cups of turkey bone broth (preferable) or chicken stock, depending on size of the pan.

Roast at 325°F. Leave the bird alone, don’t baste, don’t cover, just “do nothing” and then marvel at the beautiful bird when it reaches 165° to 170° internal temperature.

Use a remote thermometer to monitor the temperature. Poke the bird in several places to make sure the temperature nowhere is below 165° before leaving the oven. That will mean that in some places, the temperature will be above 165°, that’s OK.

Remove that beauty from the oven and let it rest at least 20 minutes before removing to a cutting board.

Note: Cook turkey on lowest rack in oven with bottom heat only. For my Wolf range I use the “bake” setting as opposed to the “roast” setting. This gives perfect bronzed skin while cooking the turkey thoroughly, without needing to cover the bird with aluminum foil. “Bake” heat is coming from the bottom, “roast” heat is coming from the top and will cook the skin too fast.

Pictured is this year’s champion weighing in @ 21.54 lbs. for $21.32. Ta da! 🦃

“Add Nothing” Gravy Recipe

Make gravy with the juices from the roasting pan. Strain the juices into a pot set with a fine mesh sieve. Discard the solids. Pour the juices into a gravy separator and let settle. Depending on the size of the gravy separator, may have to repeat. There should be about 4 – 5 cups of jus and fat.

Combine 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup cornstarch, and 1 cup of cold water in a jar. Shake vigorously to dissolve completely.

Pour separated juices from the separator into a clean, medium sized pot. Leaving most but not all of the fat behind. Bring juices to a boil.

Add flour slurry a little at a time, whisking constantly. Boil and stir until gravy is at the perfect consistency. Since the bird was seasoned with plenty salt and pepper, the gravy usually doesn’t need any more seasoning. That’s it. 👍

Happy Holidays!