16 Christmas turkey recipes

Best Christmas turkey recipes

Perfect roast turkey

Impress your guests and learn how to cook the perfect turkey centrepiece this Christmas Day with our step-by-step guide, including how to make your turkey juicy and tender, and how to store your turkey.

Perfectly cooked turkey

Cooking Christmas turkey in a foil tent means it will steam in its own juices, resulting in tender meat. Take off the foil and turn up the oven at the end to get a crispy skin. Buy extra-large roasting foil for this and make sure you have a large enough roasting tin for the bird and serve with hot turkey gravy.

Check out our best ever Christmas trimmings recipes to go with your roast turkey...

Smoky maple glazed turkey joint

This recipe uses a dry brine which will give you extra-juicy meat and a lovely sweet and savoury maple glaze.

Turkey wellington

Wrapped in homemade stuffing, parma ham, an earthy mushroom mix and golden puff pastry, this turkey wellington (with rich gravy on the side) is so worth the effort and makes a stunning centrepiece.

Easy turkey gravy

Every good gravy starts with great stock. Our turkey gravy is packed with plenty of flavour to finish of your epic Christmas dinner If you want to make this ahead, you can leave out the giblets, freeze and defrost on the day.

Turkey crown recipes

Easy turkey crown

Make this sage and onion butter-basted turkey crown for a succulent centrepiece. The herb butter will keep the white turkey meat extra juicy and it can be on the table in just 2 hours for a fuss-free Christmas.

Turkey au vin

Cook your turkey legs and breast in a heady red wine sauce for a Christmassy take on coq au vin. Once it's in the oven, this effortless dish takes care of itself.

Stuffed turkey breast with maple bacon lattice

Try this stuffed turkey breast with easy bacon lattice for an impressive Christmas turkey centre piece. Making a bacon lattice is the kind of kitchen prep that looks a lot harder than it is. It’s worth taking a little time to put it together as it envelopes the stuffed turkey breast, keeping the meat moist and giving the joint a professional-looking finish.

Porchetta-style turkey

Ask the butcher for a boned turkey crown; that’s both breasts taken off the bone with the skin still connecting them and the wings taken off. A turkey crown can be prepped ahead, there’s no waste, it carves beautifully and it only takes two hours to cook, so it is the ultimate Christmas turkey roast!

Prosciutto-wrapped turkey

Looking for the perfect Christmas Day centrepiece? Make everyone happy with our prosciutto-wrapped Christmas turkey. We've made cooking Christmas turkey easy with this simple step-by-step recipe.

Italian-style Christmas turkey

This turkey crown with saffron butter comes with a crispy skin attaching the two breasts together. It’s easy to stuff and cook and even easier to carve. Perfect for a no-fuss Christmas turkey dinner.

Our twists on Christmas turkey recipes

Two-tray Christmas dinner

Christmas lunch doesn't have to be complicated. This recipe shows you how to cook everything on oven trays – the turkey, golden roasties, pigs in blankets and all the trimmings – in just two hours.

Jerk Christmas turkey with stuffing and gravy

Give your Christmas centrepiece a punch of spice with this alternative turkey recipe from Caribbean cooking duo Original Flava.

Maple and bourbon glazed turkey

Maple syrup and bourbon give a sweet but mature flavour, and a beautiful bronzed finish. And a few clementines for festive cheer, and you've got yourself a winning recipe.

Check out our best ever roast potatoes recipes too...

Bay and lemon turkey with buttery leek stuffing

Overnight dry brining in flavoured salt will concentrate flavours, give you juicier turkey meat and help the skin crisp up. When cooking Christmas turkey, start this the day before, and you'll be laughing come Christmas Day...

Roast turkey with chestnut stuffing

Start the turkey prep on Christmas Eve so it’s ready to go straight in the oven on Christmas Day. You could also get the chestnut and sage stuffing made up and cook it alongside the turkey for the last 40 minutes. Cooking the stuffing separately means you are in control of the cooking time, so you end up with a crisp top and sides, without drying out the centre.

Italian roast turkey

We have spruced up the classic roast turkey recipe with rosemary, bay leaves, garlic and white wine for an Italian twist on your Christmas turkey.

Looking for other Italian recipes? Click there for more exciting recipes...

Which is the best turkey to buy for Christmas?

When buying your turkey it’s important to think about who will be eating it. In the UK there are two distinct types of turkey to buy, and each will be suited to different tastes.

If your family prefers white meat, with a less gamey flavour, look for a white breed of turkey, also known as the Broad Breasted White. As its name suggests, this has a higher proportion of white breast meat to dark leg meat. This is the breed most commonly available from supermarkets in the UK, and is often less expensive than other breeds.

Alternatively, breeds such as Bronze and Norfolk Black are slower growing, with a much more gamey flavour as they are often hung for 14 days. Proportionately they have more leg to breast meat than white turkeys do, so are a better option for those looking for a more pronounced flavour.

If there’s only a few people to feed, consider buying a turkey crown (a whole turkey with the legs and wings removed) or a boneless breast joint.

Where is the best place to buy Christmas turkey?

It’s worth getting the best-quality meat that you can so, if the budget allows, go for a free range or organic bird. In most cases the turkey will have had a longer life with access to outdoor pasture, which will give its meat a superior flavour. As with chicken, a lower price can often mean lower standards of welfare.

Any good butcher or farm shop will be able to order in exactly the size/breed to suit your family and friends, and increasingly the supermarkets can, too. Good stockists include kellyturkeys.co.uk, pipersfarm.com or most large supermarkets.