At Drake & Morgan, we believe every moment, big or small, deserves to sparkle. And when it comes to Christmas, that’s a philosophy we double down on. There’s nothing quite like gathering around the table with loved ones, the star of the show—a perfectly roasted turkey—stealing the spotlight.  Robert Mitchell, our Executive Chef Director shares his secrets.

The ‘perfect’ roast turkey:

I like massaging the bird with a bit of a dry rub and then letting it chill in the fridge for a day, this is like a dry brine, and it gives you a juicy & actually delicious turkey and works by the salt pulling out the liquid trapped in the turkey meat, creating some salty turkey juices that soak back into the bird while it’s in the fridge.

To dry brine your turkey, pat all over with paper towels and then give the bird an all over massage with the mix, including inside, and leave it to work its magic for at least 12 hours in the fridge. My mix is pretty simple with just good sea salt, black pepper and a little light brown sugar to help the skin crisp up like it’s been glazed.

Everything tastes better with butter, right? I think so, and in this case, it really helps keep the turkey moist and delicious. Get a stick of unsalted butter and work it into the entire surface, the cavity and under the skin, loosening the skin off can be a bit messy but getting some of the butter under there especially around the breast meat is well worth the effort.

I’m not a fan of basting, and I know it’s against convention, but we’ve just spent the last day brining the skin to try and get it crispy so basting it in the hot cooking juices will just make it soggy, I prefer to sit the bird on a trivet of seasonal veggies and onions and they can capture this juice and make up a stunning gravy afterwards.

Cooking times will vary depending on the size of turkey you have; your oven should be at 180c and then depending on weight make sure you are cooked through so the juices run clear when pricked on the thigh. A meat thermometer is incredibly helpful here and you’ll want the internal temperature to be between 68-70c (it will keep rising once removed from the oven).

Now it’s all about rest, not just for you having spent the last few hours preparing the meal but also your turkey needs a good rest too! Once removed from the oven for a 4-6kg bird you can rest for an hour anything bigger at least an hour and a half. Why? The muscles tighten while cooking, so letting the bird rest gives them time to relax and the juices back in, don’t worry about it going cold, a turkey is like your winter duvet at retaining heat, just keep an eye on any marauding dogs who may fancy jumping up and having a nibble!