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This adobo turkey is marinated overnight and then rubbed with flavor-packed adobo butter. Then it’s roasted to perfection for a super juicy, flavorful Thanksgiving turkey.
Are you looking for a Thanksgiving turkey recipe that is different from the average holiday turkey?
Well, this adobo turkey is just what you need!
I made a homemade Mexican-style adobo sauce from dried chiles, vinegar, orange juice, fresh herbs, and dried spices.
This sauce is packed with flavor, mixed with butter, and slathered all over the turkey.
This whole turkey recipe would be great with my Chorizo Sheet Pan Stuffing, Mexican Corn Salad, or Grapefruit palomina.
Ingredients Needed
Adobo marinade:
- Dried pasilla chiles
- Dried ancho chiles
- Dried chipotle chiles
- Cloves garlic
- Apple cider vinegar
- Orange juice
- Olive oil
- Fresh oregano
- Dried thyme
- Cumin
- Cinnamon
- Allspice
- Cloves
Turkey ingredients:
- Whole turkey, giblets removed
- Kosher salt and pepper
- Garlic heads
- Clementines
Adobo butter:
- Butter
- Adobo sauce
What is adobo?
“Adobo” is a term used in various cuisines, but its meaning can vary depending on your location worldwide. There is adobo in Spanish, Filipino, Mexican, and Caribbean cuisine!
This recipe uses Mexican adobo, which includes dried chilies, vinegar, and spices. Adobo is a fundamental component of many Mexican dishes and is used to marinate or season meats, such as chicken or pork.
We’re going different, slathering it on a whole turkey and mixing it into butter!
FAQ’s
My Pro Tips
Whole turkey cooking tips
Thaw your turkey in the refrigerator, giving yourself 24 hours of thawing time for every 5 pounds of turkey. For a 14-pound turkey, you’ll need almost three full days.
Make sure to remove the giblets from the inside of your turkey cavity!
When you’re ready to cook your turkey, preheat your oven! This ensures that the turkey will cook evenly. This is very important for such a large piece of meat.
Set your turkey on the rack of the roasting dish. This will help the juices to drip down and give you extra crispy skin.
The most accurate way to cook your bird is with a meat thermometer. My favorite is an instant-read thermometer.
Let your turkey rest for at least 30 minutes before craving. This will help keep is super juicy!
More turkey recipes
Love this adobo butter turkey?
Why not try a few of my other delicious Thanksgiving dishes?!
- Need something a little smaller? Try my Air Fryer Turkey Breast.
- Wanna go totally unique? Try my Thanksgiving Turkey Meatloaf.
- Love all this garlic and maple? Try my Garlic Herb Maple Roast Turkey.
- Not traditional but delicious! Try my Herbed Mayonnaise Roast Turkey.
- Just want something easy and fast? Try my Sheet Pan Thanksgiving Dinner.
Adobo Butter Turkey
Equipment
Ingredients
For adobo:
- 4 dried pasilla chiles
- 3 dried ancho chiles
- 2 dried chipotle chiles
- 4 cloves garlic
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup orange juice
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
For turkey:
- 14 pound whole turkey, giblets removed
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup adobo sauce
- 4 cloves garlic, halved
- 6 whole clementines, halved
For adobo butter:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/4 cup adobo sauce
Instructions
For adobo:
- Gently slit the slide of each dried chile and remove the seeds and stem.
- Add chiles to a bowl and just top with boiling water. Let sit for 15 minutes to soften.
- Once soft, drain the chiles.
- Add all ingredients to a high-powered blender (I used my Vitamix) and blend until smooth. The mixture should be smooth, slightly thick, and very aromatic.
- Set aside 1/4 cup of the adobo sauce.
For marinating turkey:
- Remove your turkey from its packaging, remove the giblets, and pat the skin dry with paper towels.
- Add turkey to your roasting pan and sprinkle the inside and outside the turkey with kosher salt and black pepper.
- Rub adobo sauce all over the inside and outside of the turkey. Make sure to evenly cover all of the skin.
- Cover the turkey (either with your roasting pan lid or plastic wrap) and let side in the fridge overnight. I marinated my turkey for 12 hours.
For cooking turkey:
- After your 12 hours remove the turkey from the oven and let sit on the counter for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Take your adobo butter and rub it all over the turkey, inside and out.
- Stuff the cavity of the bird with garlic and clementines.
- Tie the legs of the bird if desired.
- Roast for about 3-1/2 hours OR until the bird reaches an internal temperature (when checked near the thigh) of 165 degrees F. It's about 13-15 minutes PER pound.
- Let the bird rest for at least 30 minutes before carving.
For adobo butter:
- In a mixer mix together butter and reserved 1/4 cup adobo sauce. Mix until smooth and combined.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gaaah that turkey looks like perfection! I’m all about non-traditional ways of spicing up the holidays, and am digging this adobo butter method you’ve got going on. Diestel turkey is definitely my all-time favorite…it truly is the best! Your photos are absolutely mouth-watering – a beautiful presentation of a beautiful bird!!
That is one awesome turkey!! I have done adobo on whole chickens, but this is just a great change for Thanksgiving!
Oh my goodness, that turkey is absolute perfection and that flavor profile…!!!
This turkey looks absolutely delicious and flavorful! Thanks for the great recipe idea 🙂
What an amazing turkey!! Looks perfect!!
What a beautiful bird. It looks completely delicious!
That is so great that you made your own adobo sauce. it out of the jar and never thought to make my own. This recipes is being bookmarked and pinned. I don’t wan’t to loose it.
What a gorgeous turkey, and I love the flavors!
What incredible flavors for a turkey! I want this at my Thanksgiving!
I know what turkey recipe I will be making this Thanksgiving!