Champagne-Basted Turkey

Name: Champagne-Basted Turkey
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 20 min
Yield: 16 servings (1-2/3 cups gravy).
Ingredients: 1/4 cup butter, softened; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon celery salt; 3/4 teaspoon pepper; 1 turkey (14 to 16 pounds); Fresh sage and parsley sprigs, optional; 2 medium onions, chopped; 1-1/2 cups minced fresh parsley; 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram; 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme; 2 cups champagne or other sparkling wine; 1 cup condensed beef consomme, undiluted; 1 tablespoon butter; 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

I've made this turkey every Thanksgiving for the past 15 years. We all love it. The secret is to use lots of fresh parsley on top and inside and to keep basting. That creates a tender, delightful turkey. —Sharon Hawk, Edwardsville, Illinois

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon celery salt
3/4 teaspoon pepper
1 turkey (14 to 16 pounds)
Fresh sage and parsley sprigs, optional
2 medium onions, chopped
1-1/2 cups minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 cups champagne or other sparkling wine
1 cup condensed beef consomme, undiluted
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 325°. Mix first four ingredients. Place turkey on a rack in a roasting pan, breast side up; pat dry. Rub butter mixture over outside and inside of turkey. If desired, place sage and parsley sprigs in cavity. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together.
Roast, uncovered, 30 minutes. Toss onions with parsley, marjoram and thyme; add to roasting pan. Pour in champagne and consomme. Roast, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175°, 2-1/2-3 hours, basting occasionally with pan juices. (Cover loosely with foil if turkey browns too quickly.)
Remove turkey from oven; tent with foil. Let stand 20 minutes before carving.
Meanwhile, strain pan juices into a bowl. In a small saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour until smooth; gradually add strained juices. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, 1-2 minutes. Serve with turkey.

Nutrition Facts

8 ounces cooked turkey and 1-1/2 tablespoons gravy: 518 calories, 25g fat (9g saturated fat), 224mg cholesterol, 522mg sodium, 3g carbohydrate (1g sugars, 1g fiber), 64g protein.

Originally published as Champagne-Basted Turkey in Taste of Home October/November 2010

Reviews

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Average Rating:

Fran

Nov 29, 2016

The Champagne gave the turkey a very fizzy taste - I did not like this recipe.
cwbuff2

Dec 9, 2014

The gravy was the best I've ever tasted, as others have said. The only thing I'd change is to double or triple the butter and flour for the gravy - mine didn't thicken enough with only 1 tablespoon each. I will definitely do this recipe again next Thanksgiving!
annamossburg

Nov 26, 2014

I made this last year and plan to do it again this year. I added a cut lemon, carrots and celery inside the bird for extra flavor. It was awesome.
Kittybabytime

Feb 5, 2014

I've made this several times now. The meat stays nice and moist. It's very very fragrant when cooking. The broth makes an amazing gravy! The only thing I omit is the parsley. It tends to burn when it's stuck on the turkey after basting it.
Ruffshse

Nov 28, 2012

i gave a friend this recipe to try,which she made for thanksgiving,as i also made,and both of our turkeys came out great,except the onions burnt so we could not make the gravy.could u please give me some help on why the onions burnt so the next i make this the onions will not burns thanks
Ruffshse

Nov 28, 2012

i gave a friend this recipe to try,which she made for thanksgiving,as i also made,and both of our turkeys came out great .except for one thing the onions burnt so we could not make the gravy,can u please give me some help on why they burn so that this does not happen again thanks
nmburns

Nov 17, 2012

No one will let me make anything else for Thanksgiving! I've made it 3 years in a row so far.
suemom41

Oct 21, 2012

This is our new holiday turkey. Very moist and tasteful!
np7333

Jan 2, 2012

Rather dry. Try putting more butter or basting juices under the skin.
MzBlue

Dec 7, 2011

Our turkey came out so moist and tasted wonderful. We will definitely be serving this for many Thanksgivings to come.