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My son’s preschool teacher shared her super simple method for preparing a big turkey dinner for a crowd that requires almost no work – I’ve tweaked a few ingredients to make the all-time easiest turkey dinner you could ever imagine with a flavor that is out of this world!
Shredded turkey that is juicy and packed with flavor, cooked in gravy and served alongside mashed potatoes or even in a dinner roll – we serve this at Friendsgiving, as a new baby meal train dish, or for neighbor meals!
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At Sweet C’s, I add lots of tips in all of my recipes – because I am a home cook without any formal training, and I find I am more confident making dishes when I understand why it works, and what each ingredient means to the flavor of a recipe – my goal is for even the most beginner home cook to feel empowered in the kitchen.
I want each reader to walk away with a solid knowledge of each recipe, with all of the tips I’ve gathered from extensive testing of each recipe. I also answer questions my friends and family have asked about my recipes, to help everyone better understand the processes we use – and why!
Table of contents
Shredded Turkey in Gravy
I can not claim credit for this marvel – I unabashedly got the idea from my kids’ preschool teacher (who is possibly one of my favorite people on earth) who brings shredded turkey in a big crockpot full of gravy every year for the Preschool Thanksgiving. I’ve looked forward to her turkey year after year, and have thought about sneaking in again even though my kids have outgrown her class.
My slow cooker turkey in gravy is a touch different since it’s all in one package- making it perfect to serve over mashed potatoes, rice, stuffing, and in deliciously moist and juicy sandwiches!
This is also perfect for big potluck holiday dinners, because it won’t dry out. The leftovers also freeze well – simply toss back in a slow cooker and let cook until piping hot! We use our Turkey Gravy Recipe, or store-bought gravy for this recipe.
How Make Slow Cooker Turkey In Gravy
To make this recipe, you will need:
- Turkey breast. Wer’re going to slow cook a turkey breast in gravy, and then shred it and cook more for perfect, never-dry, juicy turkey that is hearty and rich.
- Celtic sea salt. Use a high quality salt whose flavor you like.
- Cracked pepper. I crack pepper freshly so the flavor is better – pepper that is ground before you use it often loses flavor, so try to crack it fresh just before using.
- Oregano. You can use fresh or dried oregano for this recipe to bring a woodsy, citrussy kick to your turkey that helps balance out the buttery gravy flavor and enhance the lightly sweet turkey meat.
- Cilantro. Cilantro has an herbal, light, earthy flavor that is great with turkey – but some people can’t eat cilantro because it tastes like soap to them! If you don’t like cilantro, you can swap for parsley, or skip it all together.
- Rosemary. Rosemary has a woody, pine-like flavor and amazing aroma that enhances turkey’s flavor and gives it more dimension.
- Paprika. Paprika brings out a smoky, lightly sweet flavor to turkey as well as a bit of a deeper red color to your gravy to make your dinner look as great as it tastes!
- Gravy. You can use canned gravy, packets of gravy made according to it’s directions, or make your own gravy – whatever you want to use works just fine for this recipe, as it will taste great! Honestly, I don’t love the flavor of gravy from a jar, but in this recipe, it works really well as it cooks with the turkey in the slow cooker.
- Prep. In a large crockpot, drizzle oil at the bottom to prevent sticking.Season turkey but rubbing herbs onto the skin. Roll up two sheets of aluminum foil into balls. Place the balls of foil on each side of the turkey, propping it up so the bony cavity is at the bottom and the fat is up top (this helps baste the bird in it’s own juices).
- Cook. Cover and cook on high two hours. Remove foil. Add one package (or packet’s worth) of gravy. Add cover back and cook another two hours.
- Shred. When turkey is 175 degrees internally, and a bright opaque white, remove skin and shred with forks. Remove bones and carcass from slow cooker.
- Simmer. Add additional gravy to slow cooker and let simmer on low until ready to be served.
- Serve! Great over mashed potatoes, in sandwiches, over rice, or on it’s own!
Slow Cooker Turkey In Gravy Recipe Tips and FAQs
This slow cooker turkey is great because it is so simple – it isn’t much work for a delicious dinner! This turkey in gravy recipe is perfect if you don’t have many guests coming over – it is simple, foolproof, and so delicious!
Plus you don’t need any previous cooking experience for a delicious homemade Thanksgiving dinner. We love the flavor of shredded turkey – it is loaded with gravy and amazing with mashed potatoes, brussels sprouts, soft dinner rolls, and cranberry salad!
This recipe uses a simple trick to shred turkey – a stand mixer!
We recommend shredding turkey breast by placing it in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment while steaming hot – start with a low speed to start breaking the meat apart, and work up to a medium speed.
It will only take about 30-40 seconds to shred turkey in stand mixer.
If you do not have a stand mixer, you can use forks to pull at the meat and shred it.
This trick also works with pulled pork, shredded chicken, and other pulled meats.
Turkey is fully cooked when a thermometer reads 180 degrees in the thigh and 170 in the breast.
We love cooking turkey in a slow cooker in gravy – it keeps the turkey moist, juicy, and delicious – no dry turkey breast meat!
For a family of four, get a turkey breast of around 2-3 pounds, uncooked.
When planning Thanksgiving dinner, we go off uncooked turkey weight to plan how much meat to serve per person, so you know how much to buy.
For a bone-in turkey breast, plan on 1 pound of uncooked turkey breast meat per person.
For boneless turkey breasts, plan on 1/2 pound of uncooked turkey breast per person.
You’ll want an extra pound, uncooked, for seconds or leftovers, depending on your guests.
If the gravy is too thin, you can mix a small amount of cornstarch with cold water to create a slurry, then stir it into the hot gravy. Simmer for a few minutes until it thickens.
Yes, you can substitute chicken breasts or even pork loin for the turkey. Adjust the cooking time accordingly based on the type and size of the meat.
What To Serve With Slow Cooker Turkey In Gravy
For some of our favorite sides to serve with this turkey, visit our The Best Easy No Knead Bread recipe, our Bacon Ranch Potato Salad Recipe, The Best Keto Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts Recipe, Easy Apple Sopapilla Cheesecake Recipe, and our Perfectly Broiled Lobster Tails Recipe!
To find more easy Thanksgiving side dishes, click here to see our complete Thanksgiving side dish recipe index here.
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Slow Cooker Turkey in Gravy
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 turkey breast – 12 lb
- 1 tbsp celtic sea salt
- 1 tbsp cracked pepper
- 1 tbsp oregano, fresh or dried
- 1 tbsp dried cilantro
- 1 tbsp rosemary, fresh or dried
- ยฝ tsp paprika
- 2 8-10 oz cartons ready-made gravy, or two packets of gravy, made per their instructions, divided.
Instructions
- In a large crockpot, drizzle oil at the bottom to prevent sticking.
- Season turkey but rubbing herbs onto the skin.
- Roll up two sheets of aluminum foil into balls.
- Place the balls of foil on each side of the turkey, propping it up so the bony cavity is at the bottom and the fat is up top (this helps baste the bird in it’s own juices).
- Cover and cook on high two hours.
- Remove foil.
- Add one package (or packet’s worth) of gravy.
- Add cover back and cook another two hours.
- When turkey is 175 degrees internally, and a bright opaque white, remove skin and shred with forks.
- Remove bones and carcass from slow cooker.
- Add additional gravy to slow cooker and let simmer on low until ready to be served.
- Great over mashed potatoes, in sandwiches, over rice, or on it’s own!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I want to make sure a 12 lb. Bone in Turkey breast and 6 qt. Slow cooker is correct. I had a bad experience in the past when a ham I was trying to cook did not fit the slow cooker. It was stressful. I donโt want to repeat that stressful situation.
I typically separate the turkey into pieces (breast, thighs, legs) to fit them into the slow cooker. If you want to be sure you can upgrade to an 8-quart or larger slow cooker, which could accommodate a whole turkey of that size.
How many pounds of turkey does your recipe call for?
A 12 pound turkey, but this recipe is pretty generous.
Degrees? Or I just cook on high? ..first time ever cooking turkey! Help
In the slow cooker, I just cook on high. You’ll know its done when the internal temperature is 160 degrees (it will carryover cook the final five degrees)
What gravy packets do you use?
Whichever is your favorite – they all work!
What should I do if my whole turkey doesnโt quite fit in my slow cooker? Any way to get same results by cutting it up first?
You can spatch cook it – I dont have directions down on site here but that will break it down to fit!
This looks wonderful!!