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This perfectly herby roast turkey breast is the perfect moist and flavorful alternative to a whole turkey!
Y’all, this herb-roasted turkey breast is delicious. In fact, it’s *so* delicious that I want to make it all year round. Roasting a whole bird is an undertaking – let’s be honest. However, you can usually find bone-in, skin-on turkey breast at most butcher counters, they cook up much faster than whole turkeys, are considerably simpler to carve up, and make the very best leftovers. Because the turkey breast assumes flavor really well, this herb garden flavor combination really makes it incredibly delicious.
The finished herb-roasted turkey breast is moist on the inside, crispy on the outside, and bursting with bright flavor, plus, this recipe is as healthy as healthy gets! Let’s get to it!
Herb-Roasted Turkey Breast Ingredients
You’ll need a turkey breast, plus a few ingredients to make the fresh, flavorful herb rub. Here’s what you’ll need to add to your grocery list:
- Turkey Breast – to start, you’ll need a bone-in, skin-on turkey breast (4-5 pounds should do!), and you’ll need to make sure that it’s completely thawed.
- Butter – to make the herb rub, you’ll need 3 tablespoons of melted butter (bacon fat or ghee work great here too!),…
- Garlic – …2 cloves of minced garlic,…
- Fresh Herbs – …2 tablespoons of fresh rosemary, 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme, 6 fresh sage leaves,…
- Lemon Zest – …1 tablespoon of lemon zest (the zest from 1 lemon),…
- Lemon Juice – …2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice (the juice from 1 lemon),…
- Salt + Pepper – …1 teaspoon of sea salt, and a ½ teaspoon of ground black pepper…YUM!
How to Roast a Turkey Breast
This recipe is super easy, takes very little hands-on time, and yields a REALLY delicious end product! Here’s how you’ll whip up a roast turkey breast:
- Prep – to prep your turkey breast, pat it dry with paper towels.
- Combine the Herb Rub Ingredients – in a small bowl, whisk the melted cooking fat (butter, ghee, or bacon fat) with the garlic, sage, rosemary, thyme, lemon zest, lemon juice, sea salt, and pepper to combine.Â
- Massage the Turkey with the Herb Rub – once combined, massage the butter mixture over the entire turkey breast.
- Bake – place turkey breast-side down on a rack in a roasting pan with the top-facing portion covered loosely with aluminum foil. Bake at 325°F for 1 hour.
- Flip + Bake – after the first hour of baking, remove the turkey from the oven and carefully flip it over so that it is now breast-side up. Then, turn the oven up to 400°F (the high heat helps the skin of the turkey breast to get nice and crispy) and return the turkey to the oven, uncovered, for an additional 30 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 165 degrees F.Â
- Let the Turkey Rest – when the turkey is at temperature, remove it from the oven and let it rest on the counter covered loosely with a foil sheet for 15 minutes before carving on a cutting board.
- Slice, serve (topped with gravy if you wish!), and enjoy!
How much turkey breast do I need per person?
If you’re cooking for others, it’s important that you have enough food for everyone (especially the protein, as it’s typically the star of the show). When it comes to bone-in turkey breasts, you’ll want to make sure that you’ve got about 1¼ pounds (24 ounces) of raw bone-in turkey breasts per person. Most turkey breasts are between 4-8 pounds, so if you’re cooking for just a few people, you’ll want to stick to a smaller, 4-ish pound breast, and if you’re cooking for more (say 6 or so guests), you’ll want to stick to a larger, 8-ish pound turkey breast.
We hope this delicious roast turkey breast recipe makes an appearance on your holiday (or any day!) dinner table!
Thanksgiving Menu Ideas to Serve with Roast Turkey Breast
- Easy Creamy Mashed Potatoes
- Simple Sauteed Green Beans
- Oven Roasted Green Beans
- Easy Oven-Baked Mac and Cheese (Dump-and-Bake Recipe!)
- Harvest Salad with Kale & Butternut Squash
- Bacon Cranberry Cornbread Stuffing
- Roasted Pomegranate Brussels Sprouts Slaw
Ingredients
- 1, 4-5 pound bone-in turkey breast thawed
- 3 tablespoons melted butter bacon fat, or ghee
- 6 fresh sage leaves
- 2 cloves garlic omit for low-FODMAP
- 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest from one lemon
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice from one lemon
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper omit for AI
Instructions
- Pat the turkey breast dry with paper towels.
- Whisk the melted cooking fat with the sage, rosemary, thyme, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sea salt to combine. Massage the herb rub over the entire turkey breast.
- Place the turkey breast-side down on a rack in a roasting pan with the top-facing portion covered loosely with foil. Bake at 325 F for one hour.
- Remove from oven and carefully flip over so that it is now breast-side up. Turn oven up to 400 F and return the turkey, uncovered, for an additional 30 minutes.
- Remove from oven and place a meat thermometer in the thickest portion of the breast. When the breast reads 165 F, it’s finished. If it’s under-temperature, return to the oven until it reads high enough.
- When the turkey is at temperature, let it rest on the counter covered loosely with a foil sheet for 15 minutes before carving.
- Slice, serve, and enjoy!
Nutrition Information
Recipe Notes
- Give the turkey breast about 2 days to thaw completely in the refrigerator.
- Baking the turkey breast-side down for the majority of its time in the oven helps keep the breast meat moist and tender.
- If your turkey starts to brown too quickly when it’s breast-side up, just cover with a loose sheet of foil.
- If the bottom of your roasting pan starts to smoke, just add a few tablespoons of cooking fat.
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