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A Turkey Crown is a great alternative if you don’t want a whole bird for your Christmas or Thanksgiving centrepiece. This guide and recipe tells you all you need to know for perfectly cooked roast turkey, every time!
I love the main Roast Turkey recipe on the website and in my Christmas cookbook, but there are occasions where I find a Turkey Crown is a better option.
I use this version when cooking for a smaller group of people, or when my oven is overloaded.
You could also use it if you fancy roast turkey at any time of the year! It’s certainly simple enough.
Why you’ll love this Turkey Crown recipe
⭐️ Quicker, easier and cheaper turkey option
⭐️ Moist, delicious and works every time!
⭐️ Perfect for smaller groups
Turkey Crown vs Whole Turkey
Turkey Crown is the breast of the bird with the wings and legs removed. The meat is still on the bone which helps keep it juicy and it makes it a lovely centrepiece for smaller groups or those who much prefer the white meat of the turkey.
It’s also easier to carve, cooks quicker and takes up less space in the oven. It’s cheaper and while you might not get as many leftovers, there’s an argument that there’s also less waste.
Follow my No Stress Christmas Dinner Plan here for organising the rest of your meal!
Christmas Turkey Crown Ingredients
- Turkey crown – As a guide, to serve 6 you will need a turkey crown that weighs about 2.5kg, so buy one according to your party size.
- For the butter – Room temperature salted butter, fresh thyme and rosemary, lemon and orange zest, and plenty of sea salt and black pepper.
How to Cook a Turkey Crown
1. Put the herb butter ingredients in a bowl and mash together well, as per the full recipe below.
2. Pat the turkey dry with kitchen roll, then use a small sharp knife to gently part the skin from the breasts at the highest point. Using a clean hand, separate the skin from the meat.
3. Push about half of the herb butter under the skin of the turkey. You can use your hands on top of the skin to help push it down.
4. Spread the rest of the butter over the top of the skin. Cook according to the recipe below.
Cooking Temperature & Timing Guide
The British Poultry Council recommends cooking a turkey crown for 20 minutes per kg + 70 minutes for under 4kgs, and 20 minutes per kg + 90 minutes for crowns over 4kg.
You may find that the packaging on your turkey suggests a different oven temperature and cooking times. These are fine to follow, just make sure your turkey is cooked through before serving.
Temperature: I cook my crowns at 170℃ fan/190℃/Gas Mark 5/375F. Use your meat thermometer to gauge whether your turkey is cooked or not. Always check the thickest part of the meat. It will be ready when its temperature is recorded at either:
- At 65°C for 10 minutes
- At 70°C for 2 minutes
- At 75°C for 30 seconds
Top Tips
Flavoured butter
This is the secret to avoiding dry turkey. There are many weird and wonderful methods out there that people swear by for keeping that meat tender and moist, but we’re not bathing our turkey for a week here. A simple, flavoured compound butter mix made with herbs and zest, lathered underneath the skin before you cook it, is all that’s required.
Preparing in advance
Prep up to step 4 in the recipe up to 24 hours before you’re ready to cook the turkey. Cover and chill it overnight, then cook as normal in the morning. Remember that a fridge-cold turkey may take a little longer to cook than a room temperature one
Thawing a frozen turkey
Plan this WELL in advance! If you are cooking a frozen turkey crown, check the packet instructions beforehand, however most do need to be defrosted
According to official guidance from the Food Standards Agency, you should always defrost your turkey in a fridge rather than room temperature. You’ll need to put it in a container in case any liquid comes out to avoid cross-contamination (and a messy fridge!)
If you don’t have thawing instructions, allow about 10-12 hours per kg for a complete thaw.
Room temperature
Remove the turkey from the fridge and leave it at room temperature for about an hour before you’re going to cook it. This stops it from reacting and shrinking in the hot oven.
Get my Christmas cookbook!
This recipe is straight out of my ‘What’s For Christmas Dinner?’ book.
FAQs
When the turkey is cooked through do the following: Remove it from the oven but leave in its tray (lots of juice will come out). Put it on the side somewhere not too chilly in the kitchen. Keep the tin foil covering.
Pop a clean bath towel or a couple of clean tea towels on top of the tin foil to seal it and keep the heat in. Let it rest for about 20 – 30 minutes. When you’re ready to serve, pour the juices into your gravy (if you wish).
Make sure your turkey is steaming hot and cooked all the way through. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, cut into the thickest part of the meat, check that none of the meat is pink and that any juices run clear.
If you do have a thermometer, read above for ideal temperatures.
This is simply a way of coating the meat with its own juices every now and then to ensure it stays juicy. Spoon the liquid at the bottom of the oven tray every hour or so over the turkey.
There are so many ways to make leftovers from your turkey, but at this time of year I just love to keep it really simple and easy. My perfect go-to recipe is my Turkey Curry leftovers recipe.
Let me know how you got on and what you thought of these recipes. Please rate the recipe using the ⭐️ below.
Also I’d LOVE to see your cooking creations. If you’d like to share yours with me, you can tag me on Instagram (@tamingtwins).
Easy Roast Turkey Crown
Ingredients
- 2.5 kg Turkey crown, (See notes re weights and cooking time)
For the butter:
- 200 g Salted butter, At room temperature
- 20 g Fresh thyme leaves, Leaves removed from stalks and finely chopped
- 20 g Fresh rosemary, Leaves removed from stalks and finely chopped
- 1 Lemon, Zested
- 1 Orange, Zested
- Plenty of sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Remove the turkey from the fridge and set aside. Put the herb butter ingredients in a bowl and mash together well.
- Put the turkey into a well-lined roasting tin or a foil tray placed on a baking tray (to support it).
- Pat the turkey dry with kitchen roll, then use a small sharp knife to gently part the skin from the breasts at the highest point. Using a clean hand, separate the skin from the meat. Repeat on the other side of the bird too.
- Push about half of the herb butter under the skin of the turkey. You can use your hands on top of the skin to help push it down. Spread the rest of the butter over the top of the skin.
- When you're ready to cook, preheat the oven to 170℃ fan/190℃/Gas Mark 5/375F and cook according to the timings above (or on the turkey packaging), basing the cooking time on its weight. Baste half way through the cook time.
- When the turkey is cooked through, remove it from the oven but leave it in its tray (lots of juices will come out). Set aside somewhere not too chilly in the kitchen and keep it covered with foil.
- Pop a couple of clean tea towels on top of the foil to keep the heat in and let it rest for about 20 – 30 minutes.
- When you're ready to serve, pour the resting juices from the tray into your gravy (if you wish). Place the turkey on a platter and carve.
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Notes
- At 65°C for 10 minutes
- At 70°C for 2 minutes
- At 75°C for 30 seconds
