Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: All the flavors just meld together and are all intensified by the rich gravy.
Texture: Tender, juicy, and moist.
Ease: The easiest way to prepare a Thanksgiving turkey.
Pros: Doesn’t take up valuable oven space on Thanksgiving, and is SO juicy and tender. Plus, it’s perfect for serving a smaller group, so it’s ideal for Friendsgiving celebrations.
Cons: Absolutely none!
Would I make this again? Definitely.
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This Thanksgiving turkey recipe has so many things going for it. Not only is it some of the most tender and moist turkey breast I’ve ever tasted (I’m usually a dark meat girl) but it’s so ridiculously easy to make.
Everything goes right into the slow cooker, so you can move on to the rest of your Thanksgiving recipes. No brining, no marinating, and no basting required for this crockpot turkey breast.
Best of all, no taking up precious space in your oven! That means you don’t have to plan and strategize your side dishes around that slow-roasting bird, taking away a lot of the holiday cooking stress.
This Slow Cooker Turkey Breast recipe is especially great if you’re cooking for a smaller group, so it’s perfect if you have a smaller crowd for Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving.
I LOVE using my slow cooker for recipes like this because I can use the thermometer probe and program the slow cooker to automatically turn to the “warm” mode once it reaches the internal temperature of 160°F. No babysitting, and no worrying about overcooking.
Every slow cooker heats differently, and the size of your turkey will also impact the time it takes to cook, so keep this in mind as you program your crockpot. Err on the side of caution and start with a shorter cook time, because you can always remove the lid and stick an instant-read thermometer inside the meat to test for doneness. If the meat thermometer shows it’s not done yet, simply keep cooking.
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Slow Cooker Turkey Breast
Ingredients for Crock Pot Turkey:
- Onion
- Bone-in turkey breast with skin
- Low-sodium chicken broth
- Bay leaves
- Seasonings: salt, garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme, dried rosemary, dried sage, and black pepper
- Plus cornstarch, to help thicken the delicious and easy turkey gravy!
Tips for a Juicy, Tender Turkey Breast:
- I always take poultry out of the slow cooker or oven once it reaches 160°F because the temperature will continue to rise as it rests. This helps ensure juicy and tender turkey breast.
- Cook the turkey breast side down and rest it breast side down, so all the juices accumulate in the breast meat.
What to Serve with Thanksgiving Turkey:
- Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- Soft Pretzel Stuffing
- Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts
- Sweet Potato Casserole
- Ultimate Macaroni & Cheese
How Can I Use Up Leftover Turkey Breast?
These recipes make great use of any leftovers:
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Ingredients
- 1 large onion, quartered
- 1 (5 to 7 pound) bone-in whole turkey breast with skin
- 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more for the gravy
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 1 tablespoon dried sage
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place the onion, turkey breast (breast side down), broth, and bay leaves in a 6-quart slow cooker. Sprinkle with the salt, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, rosemary, and sage.
- Cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours, or until the internal temperature reaches 160°F.
- Carefully transfer the turkey to a carving board and loosely tent with foil while preparing the gravy.
- Strain the liquid in the slow cooker into a saucepan. Let it settle for five minutes then skim the fat from the surface. Bring the gravy to a simmer and cook for 8 minutes, stirring often, until slightly thickened. In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water and stir into the gravy. Simmer for another 2 minutes, stirring, until thickened completely. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
- Remove the skin and discard before carving the turkey into slices. Serve alongside warm gravy.
Notes
This post was recently updated with new photos by Patty Kraikittikun-Phuong.
I used this recipe for our Thanksgiving turkey this year as I wanted to make it in a slow cooker. I have to say that this was SO DELICIOUS! Moist & Juicy and everyone loved it! Even my son who never compliments how good anything is besides tacos…said it was amazing. Thank you for sharing it! This will become one of our go to turkey meals
The turkey breast I bought says to cook it frozen (freezer to oven). Should I thaw the turkey breast for the slow cooker or can I just plop it there frozen? I’m so excited to try the recipe…either way! Thanks!
Hmm I would be cautious about using a frozen breast in the slow cooker – that could create a food safety issue since it would be sitting in the “food danger zone” temperature range for so long and you definitely don’t want to make your guests sick. Plus it would probably take twice as long to cook so I’d say thaw it first! Happy Thanksgiving!
You may have bought a specially packaged turkey breast that is already prepared to bake fairly quickly from its frozen state. I have bought these before as half turkeys and it was easy to bake as the package instructed. I noticed the turkey breast only one earlier this week—it is 44 ounces of boneless turkey breast and goes from frozen to the oven and is meant to be a quicker meal than roasting a larger turkey. I would check with the company that created this product—the one I saw in our local area was Jenni-O–to see if it would work in the crockpot.
Can I put it in the oven or even under the broiler to get it golden after it is done in the crockpot?
I would use the broiler!
HA! Nevermind!! I misread the ingredients!! You did say Bone-in!! 🙂
Would the cooking time be different if I used a bone-in turkey breast? I just bought one today, didn’t realize it had a bone!
I love this recipe for its simplicity. Thank you.
This is great, it looks so moist and delicious!!!
I LOVE that you did this in the slow cooker! Genius!
Tessa what a wonderful idea. I’m not much of a turkey fan, but do prefer breast over a whole turkey. I’m a pretty novice cooker so can you explain what breast side down means if the whole thing is a breast? Sorry for the silly question. Love your blog and your videos.
Hi Angela, thanks so much! Once you see the whole bone-in turkey breast you’ll see what I mean. There’s a breast side and then there’s more of a backbone cavity side.
This is perfect timing! We’re hosting a VERY small Thanksgiving dinner at our place this year, and I knew I wanted to make a turkey breast instead of a whole turkey…and now I know what recipe I’m using! 🙂
This looks so easy and yummy! We are traveling out of town for Thanksgiving, so we won’t really get any leftovers. This would be perfect to make a little mini feast for my family of three when we get back! I can’t get too much Thanksgiving food! Haha!
I literally JUST got a set it and forget it slow cooker, and have been figuring out what to make first. I obviously love turkey (because everyone does right?) so this is such a FAB idea!! Pinned!