Roasted Turkey Breast with Orange & Rosemary (Juicy!)

Succulent juicy, tender meat beneath golden brown crispy skin, this rosemary orange oven-roasted turkey breast is the perfect alternative to a whole turkey when preparing a meal for a smaller group. Holiday table worthy, but also a great chicken alternative on a busy weeknight.

If you need an easy and delicious whole bird recipe be sure to check out my Easy Garlic Thyme Roast Chicken with Cauliflower, and if you need a recipe that can feed 1 or 100, check out my Perfect Every Time Roasted Split Chicken Breast.

You don’t have to wait for the next holiday dinner to get your turkey fix. This easy roasted turkey breast is the best way to enjoy a delicious turkey dinner any night of the week. 

Cooking an entire turkey is very time-consuming and makes too much for a simple weeknight meal for a small family.  However, roasting a  Bone-in Turkey breast can make any Thursday feel like a special occasion and get dinner on the table a little quicker.   With its juicy meat, crispy skin, and impressive results, you might decide this use this method for your next Thanksgiving dinner. 

 

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

• The best way to get maximum flavor and juicy tender turkey with just a few easy steps, any night of the week. Because this is ‘bone in’ the meat stays juicier and picks up extra flavor as it roasts. 
• The best of both worlds:  You get the deeply satisfying rich flavor of a holiday-style roast in less than half the time.  Because you are only cooking the breast, it does not need to spend as much time in the oven.  
• Something saucy?  This recipe has you covered with a simple gravy made with the pan drippings and stock. 

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Bone-in Turkey Breast – Cooking the whole breast on the bone creates juicier, more evenly cooked, flavorful meat. You can find whole turkey breast at most grocery stores and often in the frozen section.
• Butter – this is the vehicle that delivers the spices and herbs through the bird, keeps things moist inside, and gets the skin super crispy. 
• Insanely Delicious Flavor Bombs – Orange zest, a little bit of sugar, fresh herbs (rosemary and thyme), salt and black pepper.

Detailed measurements and ingredients can be found within the recipe card at the end of this post.

Tools

• Instant-read meat thermometer
• Sharp knife
• Cutting board
• Roasting pan – Ideally you want to use a roasting pan with a rack insert, this will keep the bird elevated above the drippings, to prevent a soggy bottom. If you don’t have a roasting pan with a rack insert a baking dish will also work.

Expert Tips

• Take turkey out of the fridge about an hour before cooking, if your bird is super cold when you add the rub it will firm up (as seen in photo below) this is ok, but ideal is for the turkey to be closer to room temperature prior to cooking.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees – note: I tested this recipe a few times with different oven temperatures and found the ideal outcome was at 375 degrees.
• Make turkey rub – and cover turkey with rub including inside the birds cavity

• Roast in the oven for approximately 20 minutes per pound.
• Expert Tip! Use a meat thermometer! My favorite is “Meater” which is Bluetooth enabled, your phone will alert you when your bird is ready to come out of the oven – Oh technology!
• Approximately 40 minutes before the turkey is finished, add 1 cup of white wine to the pan.  This creates a magic steam and deglazing liquid releasing flavor intense moisture into the bird above. 
• Remove from the oven and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Let the turkey rest for 15 minutes. Wait for the internal temperature to rise to 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Slice and serve 

Optional Pan Gravy

• While turkey is resting, add 2 cups of chicken broth or stock to the roasting pan with 1 tbsp of arrowroot powder.  Return to the burner over love heat and whisk to emulsify the pan juices and stock into a slightly thickened gravy.  Transfer to a gravy server. 

Storage, Reheating, and Freezing

• STORAGE – Store in fridge for up to 3 days in an airtight container.  
• REHEATING – The ideal way to reheat, add a few slices of turkey to a skillet and cover in leftover gravy. Reheat gently. Reheating this way will prevent the turkey from drying out. Alternatively, you can gently reheat in the microwave or convection oven.
• FREEZING – May be frozen in an airtight container for 2 months 

Dietary Modifications

This recipe is gluten-free, keto-friendly, and low-fodmap friendly. To make it paleo and whole30 compliant swap ghee or olive oil for the butter

For similar tasty dishes, check out my healthy Thanksgiving recipes, healthy Christmas recipes and healthy fall recipes roundups!

If you’ve tried this recipe, don’t forget to rate and comment!

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