Best Thanksgiving Turkey Ever!

Browning of the turkey comes from rubbing the skin with duck fat

Okay, the title might be an exaggeration, but honestly, I just baked the best Thanksgiving Turkey I’ve ever baked. Granted, I’ve never liked turkey very much (it usually tastes like cardboard to me). But, I actually enjoyed this one so much that I couldn't resist picking small morsels off the pan with my fingers and popping them in my mouth. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 14-15 lb turkey (not brined)
• Herbes de Provence, equal parts:
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1 tbsp dried sage
• 1 tbsp savory
• 1 tbsp marjoram
• 1 tbsp fennel seeds
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 1 tbsp dried thyme
• 1 tbsp dried rosemary
• 7-8 teaspoons salt (or half a teaspoon of salt for every lb of turkey)
• 1/4 cup duck fat

Instructions:

1. On the day before Thanksgiving, dry rub the turkey with the herbes de Provence mixture and salt. Separate the skin of the turkey from the turkey meat. This helps to render the fat underneath the skin and helps crisp the skin. Mix a portion of the herbes de Provence with the salt so the salt looks well peppered and rub most of it beneath the skin of the turkey. Cover the turkey with Saran Wrap and place in the oven for 24 hours.
2. On Thanksgiving day, adjust the rack in the oven, and preheat to 400 degrees. While the oven is heating, rub the duck fat all over the turkey skin and salt a bit more. If you want, you can fill the cavity of the turkey with celery, and other leftover aromatics, although it is still unclear to me whether this does anything to flavor the turkey.
3. Put the turkey breast side up on a raised grill over a cookie sheet and insert in the 400 degree oven  for 1:15 or until the skin is slightly browned. Place a tent of aluminum foil over the turkey, and lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and cook for another 2 hours.
4. Check the turkey temperature 15 minutes before the timer. Remove the turkey when it is 165 degrees. When I checked the temperature, it was around 190 degrees -maybe my thermometer was not calibrated- surprisingly the meat was not overcooked.
5. Let the turkey rest for 30 minutes before carving.

Observation: what really makes this turkey better than any of the other turkeys I’ve made, I think,  was the dry brining, the herbes de Provence, and the duck fat. The duck fat smelled delectable as the turkey roasted, more so than any other Thanksgiving. Lesson learned: when it is necessary to boost flavor, such as when using naturally flavorless meats like turkey, use duck fat!

A short video of the Thanksgiving meal we made for two people, which for some reason, my husband insists on doing every year, even though we had already spent Thanksgiving at my cousin's house.