Save yourself some money during the holidays by making a Honey Baked Turkey Breast at home! Moist turkey is cooked with butter and honey, then slathered with a sticky sweet and smoky glaze that’s broiled until it becomes a glorious sugary crust!
This is one of my Turkey recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
While I do love a good spiral-sliced ham or whole turkey on Thanksgiving and/or Christmas, sometimes you just don’t need that much food.
Or you’re looking for something that won’t take as long to cook.
And that’s where a boneless turkey breast comes in! It’s not a ton of food, and doesn’t take too long to cook, which is great for the big day!
In our family, for many holidays we would pick up a Honey Baked Ham or Turkey, and they are delicious!
But a roughly 3 lb. boneless turkey breast from Honey Baked will run you over $40 (at least here in the Midwest). That’s a 300% markup from what I can buy at my grocery store!
So why not save some serious cash this holiday, and make your own version at home?
What do I need to make this recipe?
- Turkey breast – this recipe was developed and tested with a boneless turkey breast. I use Butterball brand.
- Chicken broth – the chicken broth is added to the bottom of the pan, so any drippings don’t burn, as well as adding moisture as the breast cooks.
- Unsalted butter – you can use salted if that’s what you have on hand.
- Honey – even though Honey Baked Ham doesn’t use regular honey in their recipes, I love the extra flavor it adds.
- Granulated sugar – I know there’s a lot of sugar, but it’s what’s required to make that incredible crunchy glaze.
- Spices – for this recipe, this includes seasoned salt, onion powder, smoked paprika, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground ginger, ground cloves, and allspice.
How to make copycat honey baked turkey breast:
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Set up roasting pan. Since a turkey breast is much smaller than a full size turkey, a big roasting pan may be overkill. I typically use a 2 quart baking dish (either square or rectangular), and use my roasting rack that came with my Instant Pot.
- Brush. Add some chicken broth to the bottom of the pan, and brush with the butter and honey.
- Cover. Covering the pan loosely with foil helps ensure the turkey cooks evenly.
- Roast. The timing on this may vary, so I highly recommend using an internal thermometer to check for doneness.
- Dry glaze. Once you’ve combined the glaze ingredients, pat half of the mixture onto the turkey breast and broil.
- Wet glaze. Combine the rest of the glaze ingredients with some juices from the pan (or water), and bring to a boil. Then brush liberally onto turkey and broil again.
- Rest and slice.
Helpful Tip!
Even though it may seem odd to do so, I do recommend keeping the twine net on the boneless turkey breast. It’s perfectly okay to cook with it on, and it helps keep the roast together as it cooks. The twine gets removed during the last part of the roasting process.
Variations of this recipe
- Bourbon – Not traditional to a Honey Baked Turkey, but oh so delicious! Instead of using water or juices from the pan to make the glaze, try using some of your favorite bourbon.
- Juice – instead of all chicken broth in the roasting pan, you can use part broth, and part apple juice.
- Brown sugar – again, it’s not traditional, but if you like a little more molasses-y of a flavor, use packed light brown sugar instead of granulated.
- Spices – please feel free to tweak the spices in this recipe to your tastes.
- Alternate cooking method – I get it, during the holidays your oven space is probably at a premium (at least if it’s anything like my holiday!). But good news, this recipe can be made partially in the slow cooker or air fryer! Look for all the details down below the recipe in the “chef tips” section.
FAQ’s
I almost always use Butterball boneless turkey breast. No matter which brand you use, make sure it’s a turkey breast that doesn’t have additional flavors added (like cajun or herb).
It’s intended to be! Keep in mind though that this isn’t their exact recipe, nor a perfect copycat. It’s just a recipe that I feel is pretty darn close to how their turkey breast tastes.
Making turkey breast ahead of time
I’ve not made this entire turkey breast ahead of time, so I can’t guarantee the flavor and freshness if you make it that way.
However, you can combine all your dry glaze ingredients (sugar, seasoned salt, onion powder, smoked paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, paprika and allspice), and store in an airtight container.
Storage
Leftovers should be refrigerated in an airtight container and consumed within 4 days. They can also be frozen.
These leftovers are great on a sandwich too!
More Holiday Main Dish Recipes:
My Favorite Thermometer!
I love using this meat thermometer for making sure the meat is at 165 degrees! Easy for beginners & totally worth the $16 cost!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
Turkey
- 3 lb. boneless turkey breast roast I use Butterball brand
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 3 Tbsp honey
Crunchy sugar glaze
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp ground ginger
- 1/8 tsp ground cloves
- pinch allspice
Instructions
Prepare
- Preheat oven to 325°F and set oven rack to center position. Set out a baking dish (I use a 2 quart, but a 9×13" will also work), and an oven-safe wire rack (I use the roasting rack that came with my Instant Pot – it fits great in my 2 quart rectangular baking dish), or a roasting pan with a rack.
- Remove turkey breast roast from package, leaving the twine netting on (this holds the meat together as it cooks). Pat very dry with paper towels.
- Place turkey roast in the center of baking dish/roasting pan, on the rack. Pour enough chicken broth in the bottom of the roasting pan to fill it about 1/4 inch. **This keeps any drippings from burning.
Brush with honey butter
- Combine melted butter and honey, then slather over the turkey breast roast. Tent loosely with foil.
Roast turkey breast
- Roast the turkey breast for approximately 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours, or until an internal thermometer inserted into the turkey reaches 165°F.
- Check the turkey breast every 45 minutes or so, to see if any more chicken broth should be added.
- After turkey breast is cooked through, remove the twine netting.
Glaze and broil
- Combine sugar, seasoned salt, onion powder, smoked paprika ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground ginger, ground cloves, and allspice in a small bowl. Pat half of the sugar mixture over the top of the turkey.
- Preheat broiler to high, and ensure oven rack is still in the center position. **If the rack is too close to the heating element of the broiler, the turkey breast will burn.
- Broil for several minutes, until bubbly and caramelized, then remove from oven.
- To a small saucepan, add remaining sugar mixture. Add 3 Tbsp of either water or turkey juices from bottom of the roasting pan. Stir, and heat to a boil. Boil for about a minute, then remove from heat.
- Brush or pour glaze over the turkey, then broil again for a minute or two (careful… don't let it burn!).
Rest and serve
- Remove from oven and let turkey rest for 5-10 minutes.
- Slice into 1/8 – 1/4” slices and serve warm or cold and enjoy!
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- I’ve estimated this recipe will feed approximately 4 people, but as always, the exact serving size is up to you.
- When choosing a boneless turkey breast roast, make sure you select one that doesn’t have additional flavor added.
- For the best results, I highly recommend using an internal meat thermometer (clickable link) to check the internal temperature of the turkey breast. The cook time given is what it takes for me, but all ovens cook a little differently, and even things like how cold the turkey breast was before cooking can alter the total cook time.
- Insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the breast, and you’re looking for it to read 165°F.
Cooking boneless turkey breast in the slow cooker:
- Add about 2 cups of chicken broth in the bottom of a slow cooker insert, then top with either a wire cooking rack (that will fit in the insert), some wedges from a yellow onion, or some balled up pieces of aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- Add turkey breast on top of that, then slather with the butter and honey mixture.
- Cover and cook on low for approximately 3-4 hours, checking the internal temperature at the 3 hour mark (you’re looking for an internal temperature of at least 165°F).
- When finished cooking, remove from the slow cooker, place on a rimmed baking sheet or baking dish, and remove the twine netting.
- Preheat your broiler on HIGH (or low, it will just take longer), and adjust the oven rack to the center position.
- Broil as directed above.
- When turkey breast has a nice golden brown color, remove from the oven and let rest for about 5-10 minutes, then slice and serve.
Making turkey breast in the air fryer:
- While I haven’t tested this recipe specifically in an air fryer, I’m pretty confident that the following instructions from another turkey breast recipe of mine should work well for this recipe. So if you go forward with the air fryer, use caution as this is untested.
- Preheat air fryer to 360°F. Slather with the butter and honey mixture.
- Once preheated, add turkey breast to air fryer and air fry for about 1 hour, turning and basting every 15 minutes or so.
- Turkey breast is done when the internal temperature is at least 165°F.
- When finished cooking, remove from the slow cooker, place on a rimmed baking sheet or baking dish, and remove the twine netting.
- Preheat your broiler on HIGH (or low, it will just take longer), and adjust the oven rack to the center position.
- Broil as directed above.
- When turkey breast has a nice golden brown color, remove from the oven and let rest for about 5-10 minutes, then slice and serve.
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Ashley F says
This was AMAZING! Cooked mine in the slow cooker and it was so tender, juicy and flavorful. My kiddos love Honeybaked turkey breasts, and all agreed this was better! Definitely a keeper! Sadly, didn’t get any pictures before it was demolished. Thanks for posting!