Sunnys Butterflied Roast Turkey With Easy Orange Spice Rub Recipes

Steps:

• For the brine: Combine the sage, thyme, lemon, salt, peppercorns and 1 1/2 gallons water in a large pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cook until the salt is dissolved and the water is fragrant. Turn off the heat and let cool completely.
• Place the turkey in a roasting bag, large plastic bag or bowl large enough to fit it with still more space to give. Pour in the brining liquid and seal or cover. If there's not enough room for all of the liquid in the brine, be sure to at least include the herbs, lemon and peppercorns. Refrigerate at least overnight or up to 3 days. When ready to cook, remove from the refrigerator and discard all of the brining liquid and solids.
• For the turkey: Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Place the turkey cavity-side down on a wire rack resting in a roasting/baking dish and allow to sit on the countertop for about 2 hours to come to room temperature.
• Using kitchen shears or a knife, cut the backbone of the turkey out and break the breastbone to open up and flatten the bird by gently pressing down with the skin-side up. Flip over and pat dry. Using your finger, gently release the skin from the muscle of the turkey and insert the butter pieces between the skin and meat all over the bird. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle the skin with salt and pepper.
• Preheat the grill to 400 degrees F.
• Place the turkey over direct heat skin-side down. Lower the heat to 350 degrees F and close the lid of the grill. Cook until the turkey releases from the grates and reveals grill marks, about 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the glaze: Heat the olive oil and black pepper together in a large nonstick pan over medium heat. Steep over medium heat until the oil smells and tastes like pepper, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the honey, Worcestershire sauce, lemon zest and lemon juice to the same pan. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to simmer and slightly reduce. Remove from the heat and rest until it tightens a bit, about 2 minutes.
• Flip the turkey and glaze the skin with the lemon pepper glaze. Close the lid of the grill and continue to cook, glazing every 30 minutes, until an internal-read thermometer inserted in the thigh reads 160 degrees F, 1 to 2 hours. Remove the turkey form the grill and let rest at room temperature tented with aluminum foil for 30 minutes before carving.

Steps:

• Three days before roasting the turkey, make the brine.
• For the brine: In a large pot on medium-high heat, add 6 quarts (24 cups) water and the salt, peppercorns, sage, thyme and lemon. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and simmer until the salt is dissolved and the water is fragrant. Turn off the heat and let cool.
• Put the turkey in a brining bag, large plastic bag or a bowl large enough to fit it with still more space to give. Pour in the cooled brining liquid and seal or cover. If there's not enough room for all of the liquid in the brine, be sure to at least include the herbs, lemon and peppercorns in with the turkey for brining. Refrigerate for 3 days.
• When ready to cook, remove the turkey from the refrigerator and discard all of the brining liquid and solids. Pat the turkey dry with paper towels.
• For the rub: In a medium bowl, mix the pumpkin pie spice, paprika, salt, cumin and pepper. Rub the mixture on all sides of the turkey and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Leave at room temperature for 2 hours. (If you have an extra day in your planning, leave it in the refrigerator overnight uncovered. This will help dry the skin more, then when ready to fry, remove from the refrigerator and let rest at room temperature for 2 hours.)
• Fill the fryer with vegetable or canola oil and heat to 350 degrees F according to the manufacturer's instructions (see Cook's Note).
• Cook the bird for approximately 3 minutes per pound and then add an additional 5 minutes onto the cooking time. A 15-pound bird will take about 50 minutes. (Check the cooking times on your fryer; cook according to instructions and fry for the correct time according to weight.) Remove to a paper towel-lined platter and allow to rest for at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour so the juices can redistribute, then carve.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Pat turkey dry with paper towel and place it on a rack in a roasting pan. In a small bowl or on a clean cutting board, mash the butter together with the orange zest, sage, garlic, salt and pepper to create a paste. Lift the turkey's skin at the neck and gently use your hand to separate skin from breast meat. Rub about half of the compound butter under the skin, covering the breast meat. Rub the rest of the butter over the skin of the turkey and season with a little more salt and pepper.
• Fold the wings of the turkey under the bird, and tie its legs together with butcher's twine. Pour the wine and orange juice into the roasting pan, scatter the sage leaves over the liquid and carefully slide the pan into the oven.
• Roast for about 2 to 3 hours, basting bird every 30 minutes with drippings. Start checking the bird 1 hour and 45 minutes into cooking, and tent it with foil if skin is turning too dark. Cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh without touching bone registers 165 degrees. Transfer to a cutting board or platter and allow to rest at least 30 minutes before carving.