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How to Cook a Free-range Turkey

Carolyn Gratzer Cope

Cooking a free-range turkey and decorating the platter beautifully can be way easier than you think. Here's how to do it with minimal fuss and maximum results.

Let’s get started!

Turkey protips

01 Start with a good-quality bird that's not too big

02 Leave the "stuffing" on the side

03 Use a compound butter

04 Keep the trussing simple

05 For the platter: use fall colors

06 Create a feeling of abundance

Yellow Heart
Yellow Heart
Yellow Heart
Yellow Heart
Yellow Heart
Yellow Heart

Make the compound butter

01

Mix softened butter with seasonings.

Separate skin 

02

Use your fingers to separate the skin gently from the breast meat.

Spread the butter

03

Tuck compound butter between skin and meat, and spread the rest outside.

Tuck in seasonings

04

Tuck herbs, lemon halves and onion halves into cavity.

Roast

05

Roast until perfectly done. Click through to the full recipe for details.

Layer fruits & herbs

06

Learn to decorate a beautiful, abundant platter with ease by layering fruits, nuts, and herbs.

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