How to roast a turkey crown? It could not be any easier. Follow a few simple steps contained within this post to ensure soft and juicy meat every time.
Turkey is a delicious meat when cooked properly, a lovely rich and tasty roast. Follow a few simple instructions and we will have you cooking moist and succulent turkey time and again.
Roast turkey is most often associated with Thanksgiving or Christmas lunch, where it takes centre stage on the dining room table. However, this bird is a delicious joint any time of the year and makes a great Sunday roast.
A turkey crown is a great joint to serve for smaller gatherings. A 2kg turkey crown will serve a minimum of 6 people. As well as being quick and simple to prepare, it will also fit easily into most ovens, with space leftover to roast potatoes and other vegetables.
Furthermore, with a turkey crown there is the added benefit of there not being quite so much in the way of leftovers!
How do you avoid dry turkey?
There are 3 steps to ensuring that you have moist and juicy slices of turkey, follow these and you will have delicious tasting meat every time.
- Turkey is a very lean meat with little fat so spread plenty butter (or olive oil if you prefer) over the turkey breast before cooking the bird. Baste the turkey with the cooking juices throughout the cook.
- Avoid overcooking the joint, cook only until cooked through and no longer. Overcooking will dry out this lean meat.
- Rest the joint for a minimum of 30-45 minutes to allow the juices to be absorbed back into the bird. This will give you juicy slices of meat once cut.
How to roast a turkey crown – recipe steps:
- Preheat the oven to 190C/170CFan.
- Remove the turkey crown from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature at least 30 minutes before cooking.
- Using your fingers gently lift away the skin from the breast meat to form pockets to hold the butter.
- Gently push the butter up into the pockets between the skin and the flesh of the bird.
- Season with salt and pepper and pack any herbs into the roasting tray.
- Roast the turkey in the oven for the right amount of time, depending on the size of the bird (see table below).
- Baste the turkey crown with the cooking juices throughout the cook.
- Once cooked remove the crown from the oven and allow to rest for a minimum of 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
How long to roast a turkey crown?
Turkey crown should be cooked at 190C/170CFan with cooking times varying depending on the size of the crown you are roasting.
Turkey crown roasting time:
| WEIGHT | TOTAL COOKING TIME |
| 1kg | 50 minutes |
| 2kg | 1 hour 40 minutes |
| 3kg | 2 hours 30 minutes |
| 4kg | 3 hours 20 minues |
Please note these are cooking times for a turkey crown and not a whole bird, which will vary!
How to check the turkey is cooked?
Roast turkey crown is cooked when it has an internal temperature of 74C. This is checked by inserting a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the roasting joint in the centre of the bird.
However, if you don’t have a meat thermometer you can check is by inserting a knife into the centre of the turkey. Remove the knife and the turkey juices should run clear. If the juices are still pink, the turkey is not cooked and requires to be popped back in the oven for a little longer.
Why do you rest turkey before slicing?
When cooking any joint of meat, it is important that you rest it before slicing and serving. When roasting a turkey crown you need to rest it for at least 30-45 minutes, however longer will do no harm at all.
Resting a turkey is essential if you want to ensure moist and tender meat. When rested, all the cooking juices will be absorbed back into the bird, leaving you with juicy slices of tender turkey breast.
What to serve with Roast Turkey Crown?
Our roast turkey crown taste amazing served with any vegetables, whether roasted, boiled or steamed. Although I confess that no roast dinner is quite complete without the addition of some roast potatoes.
Here are some recipe suggestions for serving alongside the turkey, along with those all important roast potatoes!
- The Best Roast Potatoes
- Easy Hasselback Potatoes with Thyme Butter
- Easy Sausagemeat Stuffing Balls
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon & Chestnuts
- Braised Red Cabbage
- Savoy Cabbage with Bacon & Apple
- Creamed Brussels Sprouts
Recipe substitutions and variations:
- Turkey crown is a great option for a smaller roasting joint and easier to prepare than a whole turkey. However, a whole bird can be cooked in exactly the same way, using the same additional ingredients. Just take care adapt the cooking times which differ greatly between a turkey crown and a whole bone-in bird.
- Butter is smeared on the turkey breast, just under the skin to help keep the meat soft and succulent. Baste the turkey with the cooking pan juices throughout the cook to ensure deliciously tender and juicy meat.
- Rosemary and sage leaves add lovely flavour to the turkey and elevates the flavour of any gravy made with the cooking juices. You could also add parsley or thyme leaves which would also add delicious flavour to the bird.
- Garlic can also be added to the roasting tray for an added punch of flavour. Simply cut a bulb in half and pop it in.
Useful hints and tips:
- Take the turkey out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking as allowing meat to come to room temperature results in your joint cooking more evenly.
- If using a frozen turkey breast take it out of the freezer the day before and defrost thoroughly before cooking.
- Once cooked, turkey meat will remain fresh if stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Once cooked and cooled, leftover turkey can be frozen and stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Leftover turkey is delicious used up along with any leftover gravy and roast vegetables in our Leftover Turkey Pie.
- For those with dairy allergies or following a dairy free diet, replace the butter with vegetable oil and drizzle over the skin of the turkey instead.
- Allergy advice: gluten free, egg free, soya free and nut free. For comprehensive and detailed allergy advice go to Allergy UK.
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Additional recipe suggestions:
If you like this recipe then try some of our other great recipes for a Sunday roast:
- Roast Pork Belly with Crispy Crackling
- Roast Leg of Pork with Bacon & Cranberries
- Pork Fillet wrapped in Bacon & Sage
- Pan Roasted Guinea Fowl with Chicken Jus
- Pan Roasted Chicken with Asparagus & Peas
Roast Turkey Crown
Ingredients
- 2 kg turkey crown
- 50 g butter (softened)
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 5 sage leaves
- salt & pepper (to season)
Instructions
- Remove the turkey crown from the fridge an hour before cooking to allow the meat to come to room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 190C/170CFan.
- Start by gently lifting the skin from the turkey breast, taking care not to tear the skin too much. Run a finger under the skin, pulling it away from the turkey flesh and forming a pocket.
- After making pockets on both sides of the turkey breast, gently push the the butter under the skin and work it so that it covers as much of the turkey breast as possible.
- Place the turkey crown in a roasting tray and season the skin well with salt and black pepper. Add the rosemary and sage leaves to the roasting dish to flavour the bird when basting.
- Cover loosely with a large piece of kitchen foil as this will stop the skin from browning too quickly before the meat is properly cooked.
- Place the tray in the oven preheated and roast for an hour with the foil on top. After one hour, remove the foil (place the foil aside for later), baste the turkey by spooning over the cooking juices from the base of the roasting tray and return to the oven.
- Continue to cook the turkey according the times calculated detailed in the post above or notes section in this recipe card. Cooking times depend on the size of the turkey crown. For a 2kg crown as above, continue to roast for 40-50 minutes. Baste the turkey crown again half ways through to keep the meat tender.
- The turkey is cooked when the juices run clear. Ideally check the internal temperature has reached 74C.
- Remove they turkey from the oven, cover loosely with the foil and allow to rest for at least 30 minutes before carving and serving.
- After resting, carve the turkey into slices and serve.
Notes
• Please note that the nutrition information provided above is approximate and meant as a guideline only •
This recipe has been shared to CookBlogShare, click on the link to find recipes by fellow food bloggers.
Jo Keohane
Thursday 28th of October 2021
Would you believe I've never done a turkey crown. This might be the year now. Thanks for a great recipe and simple explanation.
Lesley
Thursday 28th of October 2021
Thank you Jo. A whole turkey can be daunting if you've never cooked one before, but cooking a turkey crown is a great stepping stone.
Cat
Wednesday 27th of October 2021
What a great guide to cooking a delicious turkey crown. It looks so moist with tasty looking skin. Yum!
Lesley
Thursday 28th of October 2021
Thank you Cat, the skin has always to be crispy.
Marita
Wednesday 27th of October 2021
Oh, this looks delicious. I never dared to roast a turkey but your instructions look so simple, that I will have to give it a try.
Lesley
Thursday 28th of October 2021
Thank you Marita, if you've never cooked a whole bird before then a good place to start is a turkey crown.