The Simplest, Easiest Way to Cook a Turkey

Thirty minutes to an hour before roasting, take the turkey out of the refrigerator. Remove any packaging, plastic, pop-up thermometer, neck, and the bag of giblets if present (check in the body and neck cavitys). Pat the inside and outside of the turkey dry with paper towels. Set the turkey in a roasting rack set in a roasting pan to give the skin time to dry out.

Arrange an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven, remove any racks above it, and heat the oven to 450°F. Place 1 stick unsalted butter and 4 fresh herb sprigs in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat just until the butter is melted. Turn off the heat. Quarter 1 medium lemon if using.

If you brined your turkey or have a kosher or pre-salted turkey, skip this step. If your turkey is straight out of the package, rub it generously all over, including inside the cavity, with kosher salt and black pepper. Try to get some of the seasoning under the skin and directly onto the meat. We recommend leaving the turkey un-stuffed and un-trussed, both because it's easier and because the turkey will cook more evenly.

Arrange the turkey on the rack breast-side up. Take the herb sprigs out of the butter and place them inside the turkey. Stuff the lemon pieces inside the turkey. Brush the turkey all over with some of the butter.

Pour 2 cups low-sodium broth or water into the roasting pan. Tuck the wing tips underneath the turkey.

Place the turkey in the oven and immediately turn the heat down to 350°F. The rule of thumb for cooking a turkey is 13 minutes per pound, so a 15-pound unstuffed turkey is estimated to cook in about 3 1/4 hours. Plan on the 13-minute-per-pound rule, but start checking the temperature of your turkey about halfway through the scheduled cooking time to gauge how fast it's cooking.

Every 45 minutes, remove the turkey from the oven, close the oven door (don't let that heat out!), and brush the turkey all over with the remaining butter (melt it over low heat again if it’s solidified). If you run out of melted butter, baste with the pan juices instead.

Begin checking the turkey's temperature about halfway through the estimated cooking time. Check the temperature in three places: the breast, outer thigh, and inside thigh. In every case, the meat should be at least 165°F when the turkey has finished cooking. If any place is under that temperature, put the turkey back in the oven for another 20 minutes before checking again.

Shield the breast meat with a sheet of aluminum foil if needed to keep it from overcooking or if the skin is getting too dark.

Remove the turkey from the oven. Stick a wooden spoon into the cavity at the neck end of the turkey. Use it to lift that end of the turkey up so that the liquids inside the turkey cavity run out the opposite end into the pan. (These juices can used to make gravy.) Lower the turkey back onto the rack and remove the spoon.

Lift the whole turkey (still on the rack) and transfer it to a clean cutting board. Tent the turkey loosely with aluminum foil and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. This gives time for the meat to firm up and the juices to be re-absorbed into the muscle tissue, making the turkey easier to slice and taste juicier. It’s also a great time to make the gravy.

Transfer the turkey onto the cutting board and carve it: Remove the wings first, then the legs, then the breast meat. Once you have the meat off, you can cut the legs into thighs and drumsticks and cut the breast meat into individual slices. One final note! Once you've sat down at the table, don't forget about the turkey back on the counter. The leftover meat needs to be refrigerated within two hours of cooking, after which the risk of something nasty taking up residence starts to increase exponentially. Be safe!