Brown Sugar and Butter Roasted Turkey Breast

5 from 2 votes

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This brown sugar and butter roasted turkey breast is a game-changer. Oven roasted turkey breast is one of our favorite ways to include turkey in our Thanksgiving dinner, without having to worry about the difficulty of cooking or butchering a full bird. Sweet and savory, this moist turkey is packed with flavor.

The turkey is dry brined first, which helps pack in flavor and moisture, then rubbed with a brown sugar and butter mixture and roasted until crispy. Make sure you serve it alongside our Garlic Rosemary Turkey Gravy.

Brown Sugar and Butter Roasted Turkey Breast

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

This recipe is a different take on the usual Thanksgiving turkey. If you’re having a get together for a small crowd, a roasted turkey breast is a great option.

  • You can use the dripping from the turkey to make a delicious Garlic Rosemary Turkey Gravy.
  • The brown sugar and butter add richness and sweetness, which pairs really nicely with the turkey!
  • Cooking a turkey breast cooks way faster than whole bird, so if there is usually a lot of leftover turkey on Thanksgiving, this may be the best option to have turkey on the table, but you can also have time to make other items this way!

Recipe Ingredients

Whole Turkey Breast: We’re using skin-on, bone-in turkey breast for this recipe. Keeping that skin on and the bone in creates a very juicy turkey breast.

Butter: Since we’re brining our turkey breast, we like using unsalted butter here, that way we’re able to control the level of saltiness. Once we’re done brining with a salt and pepper mixture, we’ll add a butter mixture on our turkey breast with the unsalted butter not only so that our seasoning will have something to grab onto, but it’ll add a juicy, moist texture to our turkey.

Dark Brown Sugar: Adding some sweetness to our turkey, we’re using dark brown sugar. The molasses in our dark brown sugar adds a flavor profile to our turkey that helps balance out the brine and seasonings.

Smoked Paprika: Not only is the smokey flavor a great addition to our flavor profile here, but the red color in our paprika is going to add a nice color and vibrance to our turkey breast. You can use regular paprika here, too if you prefer, though!

Tips and Substitutions

  • If you want to sub out dark brown sugar, you can use granulated white sugar, or light brown sugar. You can also use ingredients like maple syrup to add the sweetness.
  • For a dairy-free option, you can omit the butter and use extra-virgin olive oil instead.
  • If you can’t get your hands on turkey breast, turkey legs would also be a great option here.
  • If you want to make a gravy with the drippings, we like to roast the turkey breast in a large cast iron or wide oven-safe skillet. This way, we can finish the gravy in the same pan!

How To Make Butter Roasted Turkey Breast

Brown Sugar and Butter Roasted Turkey Breast

Step 1: Place your turkey breast on a wire rack over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, skin side up. Season the turkey generously on all sides, and inside the skin, with kosher salt and black pepper. Transfer to the fridge, uncovered, skin side up, for 12 to 24 hours to dry brine.

Brown Sugar and Butter Roasted Turkey Breast

Step 2: When you’re ready to roast your turkey, take your brined turkey out of the fridge. Then leave it at room temperature, along with your butter, for at least 30 minutes. Or until your butter can be spreadable, but not too glossy, your butter should look matte. 

Roasted turkey

Step 3: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl mix your butter, brown sugar, paprika, salt, and pepper until completely combined. Spread your butter mixture with your hands all around the turkey in an even layer, inside the skin as well.

turkey that has gravy

Step 4: Transfer your prepared turkey breast, skin side up, to a large clean baking sheet lined with new parchment paper on a roasting pan. Roast for 1.5 to 2 hours, and the internal temperature of the thickest part of the breast reaches 165 degrees with a meat thermometer.

Step 5: Halfway through, baste any liquid with a baster or spoon on top of the skin, and rotate the baking sheet for even roasting. If you’re finding that your skin is over-browning, cover it with aluminum foil and finish cooking.

Step 6: When cooked through and tender, transfer to a cutting board carefully. Let your turkey rest for at least 15 minutes to allow the juices and flavor to stay intact. Carve and slice the turkey around the breast bone into sliced pieces and transfer to a platter.

Serve alongside (using this turkey’s pan drippings!) our Garlic Rosemary Turkey Gravy.

Brown Sugar and Butter Roasted Turkey Breast

Serving Recommendations

Be sure to check out our favorite side dishes and pairings below:

Roasted Turkey Breast FAQs

What are recipes I can make if I have leftover turkey?

Something we’ve been doing throughout our childhood is creating the “next day” turkey sandwich. We use all of our leftovers from the previous Thanksgiving dinner and combine all of them in our favorite bread. We even add things like cheese, fresh herbs, and anything else to elevate our sandwich. It’s a great way to make sure nothing goes to waste, and is honestly one of our favorite parts of Thanksgiving.

You can also make some turkey fried rice as well, which is something my Aunt does every year!

Should turkey breast be covered or uncovered when roasted?

It’s up to your preference! We like to roast uncovered to allow a golden crust to form, however, if it’s getting too browned, cover it towards the end of the cooking. This also depends on the size of your turkey breast. If it is on the bigger side, you should cover it, then finish it out uncovered to allow the juices to lock in if you’re cooking for much longer.

What temperature should a turkey breast be in the oven?

350 degrees F, about 20 minutes per pound.

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Sliced roasted turkey with rosemary and gravy in a white dish.
5 from 2 votes

Brown Sugar and Butter Roasted Turkey Breast

This brown sugar and butter roasted turkey breast is a game-changer. Oven roasted turkey breast is one of our favorite ways to roast turkey.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total: 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • Place your turkey breast on a wire rack over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, skin side up.
  • Dry with paper towels, if needed. Season the turkey generously on all sides, and inside the skin, with kosher salt and black pepper. Transfer to the fridge, uncovered, skin side up, for 12 to 24 hours to dry brine. It’s okay if some liquid has formed from brining.
  • When you’re ready to roast your turkey, take your brined turkey out of the fridge. Then leave it at room temperature, along with your butter, for at least 30 minutes. Or until your butter can be spreadable, but not too glossy, your butter should look matte.
  • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and position your oven rack on the lower level of the oven.
  • Next, in a small bowl mix your butter, brown sugar, paprika, salt, and pepper until completely combined. Spread your butter mixture with your hands all around the turkey in an even layer, inside the skin as well.
  • Next, transfer your prepared buttered turkey breast, skin side up, to a large clean baking sheet lined with new parchment paper or a roasting pan. If you want to make a gravy with the drippings, we like to roast the turkey breast in a large cast iron or wide oven-safe skillet. This way, we can finish the gravy in the same pan!
  • Roast for 1.5 to 2 hours (depending on your bird size), and the internal temperature of the thickest part of the breast reaches 165 degrees. Halfway through, baste any liquid with a baster or spoon on top of the skin, and rotate the baking sheet for even roasting. If you’re finding that your skin is over-browning, cover it with aluminum foil and finish cooking.
  • When cooked through and tender, transfer to a cutting board carefully. Let your turkey rest for at least 15 minutes to allow the juices and flavor to stay intact. Carve and slice the turkey around the breast bone into sliced pieces and transfer to a platter.
  • Serve alongside (using this turkey's pan drippings!) our Garlic Rosemary Turkey Gravy.

Notes

  • If you want to sub out dark brown sugar, you can use granulated white sugar, or light brown sugar. You can also use ingredients like maple syrup to add the sweetness.
  • For a dairy-free option, you can omit the butter and use extra-virgin olive oil instead.
  • If you can’t get your hands on turkey breast, turkey legs would also be a great option here.
  • If you want to make a gravy with the drippings, we like to roast the turkey breast in a large cast iron or wide oven-safe skillet. This way, we can finish the gravy in the same pan!

Nutrition

Calories: 13kcal, Carbohydrates: 3g, Protein: 0.1g, Fat: 0.1g, Saturated Fat: 0.01g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.04g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g, Sodium: 1mg, Potassium: 15mg, Fiber: 0.2g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 246IU, Vitamin C: 0.01mg, Calcium: 4mg, Iron: 0.1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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1 Comment

  1. 5 stars
    As we’re getting closer to Thanksgiving, I hope you love this recipe!! It’s a wonderful smaller-size turkey recipe, that I like to make faster (and juicier!) than a traditional full size bird. Not to mention the sweetness from the brown sugar. 🙂 Enjoy!