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South American Spatchcock Butterflied Turkey sitting on a baking rack.
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4.50 from 2 votes

South American Spatchcock Butterflied Turkey

South American inspired spatchcock butterflied turkey that cooks in under an hour and 20 minutes! It doesn't get easier than this!
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 20 minutes
Course: dinner, How to, Main Course
Cuisine: Latin, Latin Fusion
Keyword: butterflied turkey, easy turkey recipe, fast turkey recipe, latin turkey, leftover thanksgiving turkey taquitos, quick turkey recipe, south american turkey, spatchcock turkey, thanksgiving, thanksgiving oven roasted turkey, thanksgiving recipe, thanksgiving recipes, turkey recipe
Servings: 6 people

Ingredients

  • 1 whole turkey this recipe uses 10 to 11 lb turkey
  • 1/2 cup butter softened
  • 1 tbs garlic powder
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp annatto
  • 2 tbs dried cilantro or semi-dried by Gourmet Garden

Instructions

Butterfly the turkey

  • Clean out the giblets from inside the turkey and rinse out well.
  • Cut any excess fat or skin. I use a sharp kitchen shear.
  • Lay the turkey breast side down. Remove the spine by cutting along the sides of the spine. You may need to use a bit of strength to get it done. Please be careful.
    Tip: keep the spine to make some turkey broth!
  • Place turkey breast side up and press down with force on the breast bone to flatten the chicken as much as possible.
  • Place turkey on baking sheet with a wire rack. The drippings you can use to make gravy!

Season the turkey

  • If cooking the turkey right after seasoning, heat oven to 325º degrees.
  • Soften butter in the microwave for about 10 to 15 seconds. Stir to distribute heat.
  • Add garlic powder, sea salt, black pepper, oregano, paprika, cumin, annatto, and cilantro to the butter and mix well.
  • Slather all over the turkey and under the skin in the breast area. This will make sure that the breasts are full of flavor.

Cooking the turkey

  • Cook turkey for 1 hour. Turn the baking pan around after 30 minutes to make sure there is even cooking.
  • Once done. Let it rest for 15 minutes before carving.

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