How to prepare herb turkey breast for a diet
Enjoy a succulent herb turkey breast, perfectly seasoned with a blend of garlic, fresh herbs, and lemon for a delicious and healthy meal.
Ingredients
- One head of garlic
- One tablespoon of olive oil
- One tablespoon of freshly chopped herbs such as parsley thyme, and/or sage, with additional whole sprigs for garnish, or one teaspoon of dried herbs if fresh are unavailable
- Half a teaspoon of salt
- A quarter teaspoon of ground black pepper
- One lemon sliced
- One turkey breast half bone-in, weighing approximately 3.5 to 4 pounds
- One cup of water with additional amounts as needed
Instructions
- Preparation of the Oven and Garlic: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Begin by removing the excess papery skin from the garlic head without detaching the cloves. Slice off the top of the head to expose the tops of the cloves. Position the garlic on a sheet of aluminum foil, drizzle it with olive oil, and securely wrap the foil around it. Roast in the preheated oven until the garlic turns golden brown and soft, approximately 45 minutes. Once cooled, squeeze the cloves and any residual oil into a small mixing bowl.
- Creating the Herb Paste: To the bowl containing the roasted garlic, add the chopped or dried herbs, salt, and pepper. Using a fork, mash the ingredients together until a cohesive paste is formed.
- Preparation of the Roasting Pan: Arrange the slices of lemon and sprigs of herbs, if using, in the base of a 9x13-inch roasting or baking pan.
- Seasoning the Turkey: Gently loosen the skin on the turkey breast and evenly distribute all but one teaspoon of the prepared garlic herb paste beneath it, massaging the paste into the meat for deeper flavor penetration. Apply the remaining paste on the underside of the turkey breast's skin.
- Roasting the Turkey: Place the seasoned turkey breast in the prepared pan and add one cup of water. Transfer to the oven to roast, periodically checking every 30 minutes. Should the pan appear dry, incrementally add water, half a cup at a time, until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the breast (ensuring not to touch the bone) reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit, approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes to 1 hour and 45 minutes.
- Resting and Serving: Remove the turkey breast from the oven and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before carving. This resting period ensures the juices are reabsorbed and the meat remains moist. Prior to serving, discard the skin if preferred and skim any excess fat from the pan drippings. Optionally, the drippings can be drizzled over the carved turkey to enhance flavor.