A slow-cooked turkey leg with tender meat and crispy skin, I can't think of a tastier and easier turkey leg recipe for a comforting meal.
This is my favorite way of cooking turkey legs: slow-roasted turkey legs in the oven until the meat falls off the bone and the skin is crispy. A vegetable sauce made with the vegetables cooked together with the turkey and some oven potato wedges with chili sauce or rosemary mashed potatoes.
This a beautiful and delicious turkey leg recipe suitable for a feast. Yet so easy to make, you could make it on a regular basis. Preparing the turkey leg for roasting takes less than 15 minutes. OK, it takes quite a while to cook in the oven, but there is nothing you have to do during this time except take care of the other dishes you want to serve.
Featured comment:
David: This is a most amazing way of cooking turkey, Iโve never tasted anything like it. I cooked mine for four hours, and suspect leaving it longer would be fine. The meat is so moist and tasty, nearly as good as the best-pulled pork Iโve had.
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Turkey Leg Recipe
My family loves turkey, and I have many turkey leg recipes in my repertoire, such as baked turkey drumsticks or other oven-cooked turkey legs.
Many other recipes use the breast of the turkey, such as this Dutch Oven Turkey Breast or Turkey Roulades, recipes for Baked Turkey Wings, or recipes using the neck, for instance, turkey stock or turkey bone broth for soups, and many more.
You could also make some wings, such as Air Fryer Turkey Wings or Slow Cooker Turkey Wings.
How to slow-cooked turkey in the oven?
I like cooking meat in the oven at a low temperature. The danger of overcooking the meat when slow cooking is low, and the work involved is minimal; you just need to know exactly when you want to eat and take care to put the meat in the oven soon enough.
Step-by-step
- Prepare the meat: Clean and dry it. Cut it around the joint, if necessary, just to be able to push it a little and fit it in the cooking dish. If your Dutch oven (or similar pot) is large enough, you don't have to do that.
- Season: Rub with the mustard and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in the Dutch oven or cast iron oven dish.
- To assemble the dish, place the vegetables and bay leaves in the pot. Pour the stock around, taking care not to wash away the mustard.
- Slow-cook in the oven: Place the dish in the cold oven and turn the temperature to 150ยฐC/ 300ยฐF. Cook for 3 ยฝ to 4 hours until the skin is crisp and the meat very tender.
- Check from time to time to make sure that the skin doesn't get too dark. If that starts to happen, place a piece of aluminum foil very loosely on top of the pot; just place it on top without pressing it or trying to close the pot.
- Rest the leg: Remove the turkey leg from the pot and place it on a warm plate. Cover it loosely with aluminum foil and let it rest while you make the sauce.
Make the sauce
- You will need onions, carrots, parsley root, or celeriac to make the sauce.
- The parsley root or celeriac can be replaced with a couple of celery sticks, but I find celeriac much better for this purpose; it adds a celery taste and, unlike celery sticks, contributes to making the sauce creamier.
- You will also need garlic, red bell pepper, bay leaves, and some good quality chicken stock; I always use my homemade chicken stock, the one used to make Romanian chicken soup with dumplings.
- After removing the meat from the dish, puree the vegetables with an immersion blender. If necessary, adjust the taste with salt and pepper.
Good to know!
According to USDA (the link opens in a new tab), washing poultry will only spread the bacteria in your sink and working surfaces. Only heat will destroy the bacteria anyway.
You can't really overcook the meat using this turkey leg recipe. Slow-cooking turkey legs is a straightforward, forgiving method; not much can go wrong. Ensure the meat is cooked before serving; undercooked poultry meat is not an option.
How to store and reheat turkey leg?
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Freeze in a freezer container for up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator and reheat before serving.
Reheat the meat in the oven or microwave and the sauce in the microwave or on the stovetop.
You can also refrigerate or freeze the leftover meat separated from the sauce. You can use these leftovers for making Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry.
Oven Slow-Cooked Turkey Leg
Equipment
- Large Dutch oven
Ingredients
- 1 large whole turkey leg of about 3.7 lbs/ 1.7 kg, Note 1
- 2 heaped tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 medium onions
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 medium parsley root or 1 piece of celeriac, about the same amount as the carrot
- 1 small red bell pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- ยฝ cup chicken stock 125 ml
- fine sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Season: Pat dry the turkey leg. Cut it around the joint, if necessary. If your Dutch oven (or similar pot) is large enough, you don't have to do that. Rub the leg with the mustard and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the turkey in the Dutch oven or cast iron oven dish.1 large whole turkey leg + 2 heaped tablespoons Dijon mustard + fine sea salt and black pepper
- Assemble the dish: Quarter the onions and chop all the vegetables into large pieces. Peel, but leave the garlic cloves whole. Place them and the bay leaves in the pot around the turkey leg. Pour in the chicken stock, taking care not to wash away the mustard. Just pour around the leg.2 medium onions + 3 garlic cloves + 1 medium carrot + 1 medium parsley root + 1 small red bell pepper + 2 bay leaves + ยฝ cup chicken stock/ 125 ml
- Roast: Place the pot in the cold oven and turn the temperature to 300ยฐF/ 150ยฐC. Cook for 3 ยฝ to 4 hours until the skin is crisp and the meat very tender.
- Check from time to time to ensure that the skin doesn't get too dark. If that starts to happen, place a piece of aluminum foil very loosely on top of the pot, just place it on top without pressing it or trying to close the pot.
- Rest: Remove the turkey leg from the pot and place it on a warmed plate, cover it loosely with aluminum foil and let rest while you make the sauce.
- Gravy: Blend the vegetables with the immersion blender in the pot and adjust the taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with potatoes and vegetables.
Sergio says
Adina, your recipe sounds amaizing and I'm going to try it for about 18 guests. I'm thinking about 12 kg of legs. How long would you think it takes at 300 Fahrenheit. Many thanks for the recipe is just what I was looking for.
Adina says
Hi Sergio. That's very difficult to say from afar. The cooking time indicated in the recipe is for a 1.7 kg piece; if yours is the same, the cooking time should remain as it is. If yours are smaller, they might be ready sooner. The safest way, especially if the legs are significantly smaller, is to cook one or two before the big event.
David says
This is a most amazing way of cooking turkey, Iโve never tasted anything like it. I cooked mine for four hours, and suspect leaving it longer would be fine. The meat is so moist and tasty, nearly as good as the best pulled pork Iโve had.
I put potatoes, leaks, onions and carrots under the leg and it all tasted amazing. And turkey leg is so cheap.
Adina says
Hi David. Thank you so much for the feedback and rating. I am so happy you liked the recipe.
Helene says
I love a meal you can prepare in 15 minutes and leave in the oven to do its magic. Pure comfort food. Thanks Helene
Adina says
Thank you, Helene.