Roast Spatchcocked Turkey

It is now November and that means it's turkey time! Turkey's are on sale at just about every grocery store you go to. My Nanny found a turkey BOGO and so she gave me one to fix. Having never cooked a turkey before, I was a little nervous. I don't really have a great track record when it comes to roasting poultry. For some reason, I just can't seem to get it all the way done. My Martha Stewart magazine came in the mail a couple weeks ago and I found a recipe for a roast spatchcocked turkey that proclaimed one can cook a 12lb turkey in just over an hour. Sounded good to me!

Pre-heat oven to 450

After removing the bird from the plastic that it was wrapped in, I took out the giblets (yuck) and the neck (double yuck). Wash the turkey in cool water inside and out then pat dry with paper towels.

Place the bird breast side down and cut along both sides of the backbone to remove it. This is easier said, than done. I just did not have the hand strength to cut with my kitchen shears, so I enlisted Mark to help.

After removing the backbone, flip the turkey over and break both sides of the breast bone to make it lay flat. Again, our counter is too high for me to put enough weight on it to break the bone so I had Mark do that part too. I'm only 5'2 (if that) so I would have had to get a step stool out for me to be able to do it myself, and I don't have a step stool. Thank goodness for big, strong husbands!

In a bowl mix together some oil, salt, pepper, Old Bay seasoning and some garlic powder. Martha's recipe only called for salt and pepper, but I felt the need to make it my own and add a some more flavor to the mix.

Place the turkey on the biggest cookie sheet (with a lip) that you have. I could use a bigger one, but I did the best i could with what I had.



Rub the bird down with the oil/spice mixture.

Tuck the wing tips under and put it in the oven for 45 mins.

After 45 mins, baste the turkey with the juices in the pan, then rotate the pan 180 degrees and cook for another 25 mins or when your meat thermometer reads 160.

Remove the turkey from the oven and let it rest before carving.

To carve, cut off the wings and legs. Cut the drumstick from the thigh. Remove both breasts from the bone. OK, so I didn't take any pictures of this process because my hands were covered in turkey juice.

Slice the breast into pieces and serve!

I just heated up some green beans and made some cornbread stuffing from a box. I know, I know, not really what you want to hear from the Southern Foodette, but after a long weekend at the camp, I was too tired to cook from scratch. I do plan on making some cornbread stuffing soon!



I have to say that the turkey turned out GREAT! It was juicy and the skin was nice and crunchy and the spices were awesome! We will be eating turkey all week. I ate one of the wings as a midnight snack last night with some hot sauce. Soooooo gooooood!

Try it out! This is a great way to speed up Thanksgiving dinner and it is easy enough to do during the week. I'm going to try a chicken next. You could use this same process for any kind of poultry or game bird.