Best Tarragon Lemon Turkey Breast Recipes

LEMON AND HERB ROASTED THANKSGIVING TURKEY

Steps:

• For the turkey: Twenty-four hours before cooking your turkey, liberally season the inside and outside of the bird with salt and pepper. Using a mini chopper or mortar and pestle, grind the oregano, parsley, tarragon, sumac, thyme, shallots and lemon zest together with some salt and pepper; the salt will help draw the moisture and flavor from the mixture. Add the olive oil to form a paste. Spread the herb mixture all around the inside and outside of the turkey. Refrigerate the turkey, uncovered to dry the skin, for 24 hours.
• For the roasting: Remove the turkey from the fridge 90 minutes before roasting and allow it to come to room temperature.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Season the turkey again with salt and pepper. Put the parsley and thyme sprigs in the cavity with the lemon and shallot halves.
• Put the carrots, celery and onions in the bottom of a roasting pan fitted with a roasting rack. Add a cup of water or stock to the bottom of the pan. Add the turkey to the rack and roast, adding a little more water or stock to the pan if necessary to prevent the drippings from burning, for 30 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F and continue to roast, basting the turkey with the pan drippings every 30 minutes, until the thickest part of the leg registers an internal temperature of 155 degrees F, another 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Allow the bird to rest, tented with foil, for at least 1 hour before carving. The temperature will rise to about 165 degrees F during resting.
• Pour the pan drippings into a saucepan, set the pan over medium-high heat and cook until reduced by one-half, about 10 minutes. Stir in the butter until melted. Pour the reduced turkey drippings over the carved turkey just before serving.

TARRAGON TURKEY

Steps:

• In a very large casserole, roasting pan or plastic tub, combine honey, vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, salt and dried tarragon. Add onion, garlic, lemon and five quarts of water. Submerge rolled turkey breast in mixture, adding 1 to 2 more quarts as needed to cover breast with liquid. Refrigerate overnight, preferably for 24 hours.
• Remove turkey from brine, and place on a rack for 30 minutes to drain and come to room temperature. Meanwhile, heat oven to 400 degrees. In a saucepan combine olive oil and fresh tarragon, and place over medium-low heat until oil begins to sizzle. Remove from heat, and allow to sit for 10 minutes.
• Transfer tarragon from oil to a clean roasting pan. Pat turkey dry with paper towels, and place on top of tarragon. Pour oil over turkey, and rub by hand until meat is completely covered with oil. Roast for two hours. No basting is necessary.
• Remove pan from oven. Transfer turkey to a sheet of foil, and allow it to cool for 20 minutes. Remove, and discard strings, wrap turkey in foil, and refrigerate until chilled, at least one hour. To serve, cut into slices.

ROAST TURKEY WITH TARRAGON-SHALLOT BUTTER

Steps:

• Let the turkey sit at room temperature for about 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Remove the packet of neck and giblets from the turkey and set aside. Cut away any fatty pieces near the cavity or neck and discard. Pat the turkey dry inside and out with paper towels and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper inside and out.
• Combine the butter, tarragon, lemon juice, shallot, 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a medium bowl with a rubber spatula. Loosen the skin over the turkey breast and push half of the butter mixture under the skin and over the breast meat. Rub the skin with the rest of the butter mixture. Stuff the cavity with the parsley and lemons. Tie the legs together with twine. Tuck the wings under the body and put the turkey breast-side up on a rack in a roasting pan.
• Roast until the turkey begins to turn golden, about 25 minutes. Loosely tent the breast with foil, then reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Continue roasting, basting with pan drippings every 30 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thigh joint reaches about 155 degrees F. Remove the foil and continue roasting until it reaches 165 degrees F, about 30 minutes longer. Transfer the turkey and rack to a cutting board and let rest about 30 minutes.
• Discard the parsley and lemons from the cavity before carving.

LEMON-HERB TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• In a blender, combine the lemon juice, oil, soy sauce, parsley, onions, garlic, mustard and seasonings; cover and process until smooth. Pour 1 cup marinade into a 2-gal. resealable plastic bag; add turkey. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Cover and refrigerate remaining marinade for basting. , Line the bottom of a large shallow roasting pan with foil. Drain and discard marinade; place turkey on a rack in prepared pan. , Bake, uncovered, at 325° for 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until a thermometer reads 170°, basting every 30 minutes with reserved marinade. (Cover loosely with foil if turkey browns too quickly.) Cover and let stand for 15 minutes before carving.,

LEMON-HERBED TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Loosen skin from turkey with fingers, leaving skin attached along bottom edges. In a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon oil, garlic and seasonings. Spread under turkey skin. , In a small bowl, combine remaining lemon juice and oil; set aside. , Place turkey on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 2-1/2 to 3 hours or until a thermometer reads 170°; basting every 15-20 minutes with lemon mixture. Let stand for 10 minutes. Discard skin before carving.

LEMON TARRAGON CHICKEN

Steps:

• Prepare sauce by adding the following to food processor: 2 strips lemon peel (remove with vegetable peeler or zester) and juice of lemon (2 TBSP), garlic, parsley, green onions, tarragon, wine, cornstarch, and sugar. Process 20 seconds until well blended.
• Season both sides of chicken with salt and pepper. Preheat large sauté pan on medium-high 2-3 minutes.
• Place oil in pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken, and cook 2-3 minutes on each side.
• Pulse sauce one more time, then pour over chicken. Cover, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer 6-8 minutes, turning occasionally, until internal temp reaches 170°F.
• Serve sauce over chicken.