Bacon Basted Turkey

Our Test Kitchen is busy creating new recipes using bacon, because its popularity has gone through the roof. Well, we've come up with a great spin on traditional turkey with our Bacon Basted Turkey, which offers a blend of traditional and new.

Serves: 8

Cooking Time: 3 hr 40 min

Ingredients

• 1 (12- to 14-pound) turkey, thawed, if frozen
• 1 pound bacon
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups hot turkey gravy

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a large roasting pan with cooking spray. Remove neck and giblets from turkey and reserve them for another use or discard. Rinse turkey inside and out with cold water then pat dry and place in pan.
    
2. In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat until crisp; drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Pour bacon fat into a small bowl and add oil, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder and salt; mix well. 
    
3. Brush half the bacon-oil mixture on outside of turkey. Add enough water to roasting pan to fill it 1/4-inch deep. Cover turkey loosely with aluminum foil.
    
4. Roast turkey 3 hours, basting occasionally with bacon-oil mixture. Remove foil and roast about 30 more minutes, or until internal temperature of the thickest part of the thigh registers 180 degrees F. on a meat thermometer.
    
5. Meanwhile, crumble bacon coarsely and sprinkle half on turkey before serving. Stir remaining crumbled bacon into hot gravy, and serve.