This Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy is a wonderful option if you’re serving a smaller group for Thanksgiving or just don’t want to bother with roasting a whole turkey. It’s faster, easier, and absolutely delicious!
If you want to free up oven space, my Slow Cooker Turkey Breast with Gravy is a great choice!
I had a revelation in my kitchen, friends. And that revelation came in the form of a half turkey breast. I found them stocked at my local grocery store recently and I was magnetically drawn to the them. I snapped one up, took it home, and made this gorgeous Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy.
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- A turkey breast yields plenty of meat to serve a group of six or less.
- It’s a more budget-friendly choice than a whole turkey.
- If your group prefers white meat over dark meat, a turkey breast is the best choice.
- Instead of roasting two whole turkeys for a large group, adding an extra breast will ensure you’ll have plenty of leftovers.
- A smaller amount of turkey means you can include another entrée like Maple Glazed Spiral Ham or Roasted Beef Tenderloin on your menu.
Roasting a turkey breast at anytime of year is a great way to stock your fridge full of fresh, wholesome sliced turkey for lunches or easy dinners.
If you are concerned that a turkey breast won’t yield enough drippings to make gravy, put that worry away! You’ll have plenty of drippings to make perfect turkey gravy to go along with this easy Roasted Turkey Breast. Where there is turkey, there must be gravy.
Ingredients for Roasted Turkey Breast
- Turkey breast: Look for a 4 to 6 pound bone-in, skin on turkey breast. I used a half turkey breast here but you can use a whole breast, if desired. See below for more information on this cut.
- Aromatics: Onion (either red, yellow or white), celery and carrot.
- White wine: Choose a dry white wine like pinot gris or sauvignon blanc. You can substitute low sodium chicken or turkey broth if you’d prefer not to use alcohol.
- Butter herb rub: Softened butter, olive oil, Garlic powder, rubbed sage, dried thyme, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
The Best Turkey Breast for Roasting
Be sure to use a bone-in, skin on half or whole turkey breast for the most tender, juicy result. A whole turkey breast is two breasts that are still joined at the breastbone. Sometimes butchers will separate the two breasts and package them individually as a half breast, which is what you see pictured in this post. Either is going to work just fine for this recipe.
love the look of the half breast so if presentation is important to you, I think it’s the best choice. If you plan to slice the turkey before serving, this isn’t an important consideration.
If you prefer a half breast but only whole breasts are available, ask the butcher to slice it in half for you. If you don’t want to cook both, freeze one for later.
Ingredients for the Gravy
- Reserved turkey drippings
- Butter and all-purpose flour
- Chicken or turkey broth: Always go with low sodium so you can more easily control the saltiness of your gravy.
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Kitchen Bouquet Browning and Seasoning Sauce: This optional ingredient is not pictured here but I always add a couple of drops to add rich color to my gravies. A little goes a long way so add it sparingly.
How to Make Roasted Turkey Breast
- Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F. Combine the Butter Herb Rub ingredients in a small bowl.
- Use your fingers to gently push between the flesh and skin of the turkey breast to lift the skin slightly, being careful not to tear it. Spread about half of the butter mixture under the skin and then stretch the skin back over the top of the breast. Spread the remainder of the butter rub over the top of the skin.
- Place the onion, celery, and carrots in the center of a small roasting pan.
- Place the turkey, skin side up, over the top of the veggies. Pour the wine (or broth) into the pan around the turkey breast, transfer it to the preheated oven, and immediately reduce the heat to 325 degrees F. Roast for 1 ½ to 2 hours. Once the skin begins to brown and there is a good amount of drippings in the pan, baste the turkey breast a few times during the second half of the cooking time.
Kitchen Tip
Start checking the temperature of the turkey with an instant read thermometer after 1 ½ hours. Remove it from the oven when it reaches 165 degrees F in the thickest part of the breast.
Lightly tent the turkey with foil and allow it to rest for 15 to 20 minutes before slicing.
The Turkey Gravy
- Pour off all but about 3 tablespoons of the turkey drippings from the roasting pan and place the roasting pan on the stove over a burner set to medium heat. Remove and discard any large deposits of fat or skin from the bottom of the pan. If your roasting pan is not safe for stovetop cooking, transfer 3 tablespoons drippings to a medium saucepan and continue as directed.
- Add the butter and once it has melted, sprinkle in the flour and whisk the mixture to form a roux. Whisk and cook the roux until lightly browned, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Gradually pour in 2 cups of broth, using the whisk to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the roasting pan. Cook and stir with the whisk until thickened, adding as much of the additional broth as needed to thin the gravy to the desired consistency.
If you use a roasting pan that is both stove and oven-safe, you can prepare the gravy in the same pan. If not, you’ll need a medium saucepan to prepare the gravy.
Storage Tips
Refrigerate leftover turkey in an airtight container within 2 hours from the time it is removed from the oven. Leftover turkey should be used within 3 days.
FAQ and Valerie’s Tips
For the best result, safely and completely thaw your turkey breast in the refrigerator before beginning. Place the unopened turkey on a baking sheet and refrigerate for 36 to 48 hours, or until completely thawed. Once thawed, it should be roasted within 1 to 2 days at the most.
Unlike a whole turkey, you don’t need a rack to roast a turkey breast. Instead, just rest the turkey on a bed of aromatics like chunks of onion, carrots, and celery. This will slightly elevate the turkey from the bottom of the pan and also enhance the drippings for a more flavorful gravy.
The general rule of thumb is to allow ¾ pound turkey per person or more if you’d like leftovers. A 5 pound turkey breast will feed 4 to 6 people with plenty of leftovers.
Serving Suggestions
- Homemade Stovetop Stuffing (The stuffing pictured in this post!)
- Crock-Pot Stuffing
- Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes
- Broccoli Pearl Onion Casserole
- Honey Roasted Carrots and Brussels Sprouts
- Sweet Potato Rolls
Check out my entire collection of Thanksgiving recipes to plan your perfect feast!
Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 pound bone-in skin on turkey breast, half or whole (see Notes section below)
- 1 large onion, cut into 5 or 6 chunks
- 2 ribs celery, cut into a few pieces each
- 1 large carrot, scrubbed clean and chopped into 2-inch pieces
- 1 cup dry white wine, like pinot gris or sauvignon blanc or low sodium chicken broth
Butter Herb Rub
- ⅓ cup butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Turkey Gravy
- 3 tablespoons reserved turkey drippings
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ cups chicken or turkey broth divided
- Kitchen Bouquet browning sauce, optional and only as needed
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
For the Turkey Breast
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Combine the Butter Herb Rub ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
- Place the turkey breast on a cutting board and use your fingers to gently push between the flesh and skin to lift the skin slightly, being careful not to tear the skin. Spread about half of the butter mixture under the skin and then stretch the skin back over the turkey. If you want to ensure the skin will not shrink back too much while roasting, you can secure it with wooden toothpicks. Spread the remainder of the butter rub over the top of the skin.
- Place the onion, celery, and carrots in the center of a small roasting pan. Place the turkey, skin side up, over the top of the veggies. Pour the wine (or broth) into the pan around the turkey breast, transfer it to the preheated oven, and immediately reduce the heat to 325 degrees F. Roast for a total of 1 ½ to 2 hours. Once the skin begins to brown and there are a good amount of drippings in the pan, baste the turkey breast a few times through the remainder of the cooking time. After 1 ½ hours, check the temperature in the thickest part of the breast with an instant read thermometer and remove it from the oven when it reaches 165 degrees F. After removing it from the oven, lightly tent the turkey with foil, and allow it to rest for 15 to 20 minutes before transferring it to a cutting board.
For the Turkey Gravy
- If you used a roasting pan that is both stove and oven-safe, you can prepare the gravy in the same pan. If not, you'll need a medium saucepan to prepare the gravy.
- Pour off all but about 3 tablespoons of the turkey drippings from the roasting pan and place the roasting pan on the stove over a burner set to MEDIUM. Remove and discard any large deposits of fat or skin from the bottom of the pan. If your roasting pan is not safe for stovetop use, transfer the drippings to a medium saucepan and proceed as directed.
- Add the butter. Once the butter has melted, sprinkle in the flour and whisk to form a roux. Whisk and cook the roux until lightly browned, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour in 2 cups broth, using the whisk to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the roasting pan (if using). Cook and stir with the whisk until thickened, adding as much of the additional broth as needed to thin to desired consistency.
- If you would like a deeper color to the gravy, whisk in a very small amount of Kitchen Bouquet. Use it sparingly, adding just enough to attain the desired color.
- Taste and season with freshly ground black pepper and a touch of salt, if needed.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
More Turkey Recipes
Why not use all the drippings to make the gravy?
Hi Susan. The turkey breast cooks off quite a bit of grease so I like to use just enough of the drippings to add flavor to the gravy but add additional broth for a cleaner result.
This looks amazing! Thanks for the inspiration!
You got it!