Easy boneless skinless turkey breast in the oven: This delicious roast turkey breast recipe is perfectly sized for a smaller Thanksgiving or Christmas gathering.
This boneless skinless turkey breast recipe is the perfect healthier, leaner version of a delicious holiday dinner. Serve the roast with a light and easy-to-make gravy.
Advantages of roasting a boneless skinless turkey breast
- Perfect for a small family: If a whole bird is too much for your family, roasting just parts of it is the ideal solution. You could also learn How to Cook Turkey Drumsticks or How to Cook Turkey Leg if you are looking for dark meat recipes.
- Healthier: The white meat of the breast is the leanest part of the bird, and if you remove the skin is even leaner. No need for calorie counting.
- Juicy meat: When roasted by itself, a breast is more succulent than when roasting an entire turkey.
- Easy and quick: The roast will only need about 50 minutes in the oven.
- Gravy included: The breast is served with a simple homemade sauce.
Recipe ingredients
There are only one main ingredient and a few other simple ingredients for seasoning the meat and making the gravy.
- Boneless skinless turkey breast: It can be fresh or frozen. If frozen, thaw it in the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature before cooking.
- You will need about 2 lb/ 1 kg boneless skinless turkey breast to serve four people.
- Vegetable oil for rubbing and searing the meat.
- Seasoning: Poultry seasoning of your choice, fine sea salt or Kosher salt, and ground black pepper.
- Gravy: Two tablespoons butter, one small onion, tomato paste, chicken stock, and all-purpose flour.
Step-by-step instructions
You will need a cast-iron skillet or another oven-safe heavy-bottomed pan (Amazon affiliate link). If you don’t have an oven-safe pan, sear the meat in a regular pan, then transfer it to a roasting pan.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C.
- Season: Dry the meat with paper towels and rub it with one tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle it with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning, and rub well to coat (1).
- Sear: Heat another tablespoon of oil in the cast-iron skillet on high heat. Sear on all sides, about 2 minutes per side, until lightly golden all over (2).
- Roast: Transfer the cast-iron skillet to the oven and roast the boneless skinless turkey breast for about 50 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast reads 160°F/71°C. Start checking after 45 minutes already, in case your oven runs high.
- Rest: Remove the skillet from the oven, cover it loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for about 10-15 minutes. During this time, the internal temperature will reach 165°F/74°C.
In the meantime, make the gravy.
- In a small saucepan, saute the finely chopped onion in two tablespoons of melted butter. Cook it gently for about 5 minutes or until soft and lightly golden brown (3).
- Add tomato paste and stir well for about 1 minute. Add flour and whisk well for another minute (4).
- Slowly add the chicken broth, whisking continuously (5).
- Simmer on low heat for about 5 minutes until the gravy thickens (6).
- Adjust the taste with salt and pepper.
- Slice the meat on a cutting board and serve immediately with the sauce.
Expert Tips
- The best way of ensuring that the breast is cooked through without being overcooked and dry is to use an instant-read thermometer (Amazon affiliate link).
- The cooking time should be about 50 minutes, but it also depends on the oven and the thickness of the piece. Start checking the internal temperature after 45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven just before it reaches the safe internal temperature. During the resting time, the internal temperature will rise to 165°F/74°C (USDA recommended), and the meat will be juicy and delicious.
- There will not be any pan juices to make the gravy, but you can still make a delicious sauce using chicken stock, turkey bone broth or stock.
Recipe FAQ
The general rule of thumb is about 25 minutes per pound (450 g) at 325°F/ 160°C. Remove it shortly before it reaches the safe internal temperature of 165°F/74°C. During the resting time, the internal temperature will rise slightly, and the roasted turkey breast will be perfectly cooked.
You can season it and refrigerate it for up to 24 hours. But you should not bake it ahead of time; it will become dry when you reheat it.
Refrigerate the leftovers in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Freeze them in an airtight container for up to 3 months and defrost them in the fridge.
Reheat: You can reheat the slices in the oven, microwave, or pan, but they will dry after reheating. That’s why we almost always have the leftovers cold in a sandwich, wrap, or salad.
How to serve?
Serve the boneless turkey breast roast as the main dish with any of your favorite sides. How about making a festive dinner with Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes, Cranberry Sauce, and French-Style Green Beans?
You can also serve it with Crispy Garlic Smashed Potatoes, Air Fryer Baked Potatoes, Sweet Potato Dauphinoise, Sauteed Sweet Potatoes, Simple Buttered Rice with Garlic, or Green Bean Casserole without Soup.
Use the leftovers to make sandwiches, wraps, quesadillas, enchiladas, salads, Leftover Turkey Fricassee, or this Cream of Turkey Soup.
More turkey recipes
Boneless Skinless Turkey Breast in the Oven
Equipment
- Cast iron skillet or another oven-safe pan, Note 1
Ingredients
Turkey breast:
- 2 lbs boneless skinless turkey breast 1 kg
- 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning Note 2
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt or Kosher
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil divided
Gravy:
- 1 small onion
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chicken stock 250 ml
- fine sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
Turkey breast:
- Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C.
- Season: Rub the turkey breast with one tablespoon of the oil. Sprinkle it with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning, and rub well to coat.
- Sear: Heat the second tablespoon of oil in the cast-iron skillet on high heat. Sear the turkey breast on all sides, about 2 minutes per side, until lightly golden all over.
- Roast: Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for about 50 minutes or until an instant read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast reads 160°F/71°C. Start checking after 45 minutes already, in case your oven runs high.
- Rest: Remove the skillet from the oven, cover it loosely with foil and let rest for about 10-15 minutes. During this time, the internal temperature will reach 165°F/74°C.
- Make the gravy while the meat rests.
Gravy:
- Sauté onion: Chop the onion finely. Melt two tablespoons of butter in a small saucepan. Cook the onion gently for about 5 minutes or until soft and lightly golden brown.
- Add tomato paste and stir well for about 1 minute. Add flour and whisk well for another minute.
- Slowly add the chicken stock, whisking continuously.
- Simmer the gravy on low heat for about 5 minutes or until it thickens to your liking.
- Adjust the taste with salt and pepper.
Notes
- You will need a cast-iron skillet or another oven-safe heavy-bottomed pan. If you don’t have an oven-safe pan, sear the turkey breast in a regular pan, then transfer it to a roasting pan.
- Check for salt. If the seasoning already contains salt, reduce the amount of salt required by the recipe. The seasoning I used doesn’t contain salt.
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