Spatchco*ck Turkey Recipe - Juicy Meat & Crispy Skin (2024)

FAQs

What is the trick to crispy skin-on turkey? ›

A good cheffy move with almost any big skin-on low-and-slow roast is to start it at high heat before dropping its temperature. This creates the contrast between hot and warm you need to get that skin to immediately start browning and crisping. We're talking 425 degrees for 30 minutes before turning it down to 325.

Transfer your bird to the direct side (directly over the coals) to allow the skin to crisp up and cook until the internal temperature of the breast reaches 165°F. If you want to roast it in the oven, we recommend setting your oven at 400°F or higher based on the recipe.

In fact, I use it literally every single time I cook skin-on chicken, turkey, duck, or goose. That trick is a sprinkling of baking powder, and it'll get you the crispiest, crackliest bites of fatty, salty skin imaginable, whether you're cooking just one thigh, a plate of wings, or an entire bird.

Crispy Turkey Skin Method: Start on High Heat, Finish on Low

The Themoworks blog advises cooking at 450°F for the first hour and then reducing the temperature to 325°F for the remainder of the cook time. FoodieCrush says to roast at 425°F for 45 minutes and then at 325°F until the turkey is done.

Baking soda works similarly to salt, in that it helps draw moisture to the surface of the chicken. This then quickly evaporates, leading to a drier- thinner skin ― that's much more likely to crisp up. Baking soda and salt go great together in a dry brine because of the drying and crispifying (yep) effects they combine.

Once you've carefully dried off the skin, the next step you can take to guarantee perfectly crispy turkey skin is to rub it with a fat, like butter or oil. Oil will yield a crispier skin than butter because butter is at least 20 percent water, while oil contains no water.

We recommend roasting turkey at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 13 minutes per pound for an unstuffed turkey. We've done the math for you — check out the chart below to determine both turkey cook times and estimated servings (with leftovers!).

🦃 Baking Soda is a key ingredient for extra crispy turkey.

To achieve a perfectly golden, juicy turkey, let the bird spend time both covered and uncovered in the oven. We recommend covering your bird for most of the cooking time to prevent it from drying out; then, during the last 30 minutes or so of cooking, remove the cover so the skin crisps in the hot oven.

Quick Tip: If you love crispy turkey skin, you may be tempted to broil the bird under high heat. Rodney Friedank says that this step isn't necessary: "A 12-20 pound bird should have no problem delivering a golden brown crisp skin simply because of the long oven time, even at 325 F."

How do you crisp turkey skin after bag? ›

However, for crispier results, let the turkey cook on the roasting rack for the last 15 minutes of roasting time. Take the turkey out of the bag by carefully slitting the skin and lifting it out of its cooking liquid, then place it, uncovered, on the rack.

But covering the bird in foil you are encouraging steam to form, resulting in soggy skin. Roasting low & slow uncovered means the bird will cook thoroughly and skin will crisp — just be sure to time accordingly. This tip also applies to after it is cooked and resting before serving.