Best Spices for Turkey: Herbs, Aromatics, Timing

A whole roast turkey doesn’t need a long spice list: a few herbs plus garlic, onion, salt and pepper. Two herb-roasted turkey recipes, one from America’s Test Kitchen and one from the University of Florida’s extension service, both build on sage, thyme and rosemary, and both get the herbs onto the bird, under the skin too, before it goes in the oven. The trick with sage and rosemary is restraint: they’re strong herbs that turn unpleasant when overdone. Below are a couple of less usual choices (allspice, bay) and the USDA’s simple rules for a safely done bird.

At a glance

Seasoning	Job on the bird	Notes
Sage	The signature turkey and stuffing herb	In both recipes and in poultry seasoning¹²³
Thyme	Savory, sharp herbal base	Thyme leads McCormick Culinary’s poultry seasoning³
Rosemary	Piney, resinous note	Strong; use a light hand⁴
Parsley	Fresh, green bulk in a herb paste or a finish	1 1/4 cups in ATK’s paste¹
Garlic and onion or shallot	Savory aromatics	Garlic in both recipes¹²
Black pepper and salt	Seasoning	Both recipes; ATK also brines¹²
Allspice	Warm, clove-like note	Not in either recipe; a jerk-style option⁵⁶
Bay leaf	Background note in gravy and broth	Remove before serving⁷⁸

Two herb-roasted turkey recipes

	America’s Test Kitchen, Herbed Roast Turkey¹	UF/IFAS Extension, Herby Turkey²
Herbs	Fresh: 1 1/4 cups parsley, 4 tsp thyme, 2 tsp sage, 1 1/2 tsp rosemary	1/4 cup minced fresh rosemary, thyme, sage, marjoram and oregano, plus 20 sprigs
Aromatics	1 shallot, 2 garlic cloves, 3/4 tsp lemon zest	Apple, lemon and onion, quartered, with 2 to 3 smashed garlic cloves
Salt and pepper	Brined first (2 cups table salt in the brine); 3/4 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper in the paste	1 Tbsp kosher salt, 2 tsp black pepper
Fat and binder	1/4 cup olive oil, 1 tsp Dijon mustard	2 Tbsp avocado oil
Where it goes	Under the breast skin, in pockets in the breast, in the cavity, then on the skin	Rubbed all over, including under the skin; aromatics and sprigs in the cavity
Oven	400°F	475°F, then 350°F
Done when	Breast 165°F; thigh 170 to 175°F	Thigh and breast 165°F

These are the publishers’ own recipes, not a house standard. ATK’s 170 to 175°F for the thigh is above the safety minimum, and FSIS notes that cooks may choose higher temperatures for personal preference.⁹

The core seasonings and what each one does

Sage

Sage is the herb most tied to turkey and stuffing. It’s in both recipes above and in McCormick Culinary’s poultry seasoning. It’s also easy to overdo. The University of Delaware’s extension guide warns that too much sage can taste extremely objectionable,⁴ and ATK’s paste uses only 2 teaspoons of sage against 1 1/4 cups of parsley.¹ You’ll often read that sage “cuts through” fatty dark meat, but we didn’t find a source for that. See cooking with sage and too much sage.

Thyme

Thyme has a sharp, savory taste. It’s a hearty herb to add early in cooking,¹⁰ and it’s the first-listed, largest ingredient in McCormick Culinary’s poultry seasoning.³ See cooking with thyme.

Rosemary

Rosemary has a pungent, slightly bitter taste and a warm, piny scent. The University of Delaware lists it with sage among the strong herbs that turn objectionable when overdone,⁴ so use it sparingly.

You may have heard that rosemary should go in late. The sources say otherwise. America’s Test Kitchen treats it as a hearty herb to add early,¹⁰ and both turkey recipes rub it onto the raw bird before roasting.¹² Fresh and dried both work. The University of Delaware’s general rule is that 3/4 to 1 teaspoon of dried crumbled herb equals 2 to 3 teaspoons of fresh.⁴ See cooking with rosemary and dried vs. fresh rosemary.

Parsley

Flat-leaf parsley has a stronger flavor than the curly type. It can do two jobs on a turkey. As a finish, it’s a delicate herb that the LSU AgCenter says to add a minute or two before the end of cooking.¹¹ As bulk in a herb paste, it goes on before roasting; ATK’s paste uses 1 1/4 cups.¹ See flat-leaf vs. Italian parsley.

Garlic and onion

Garlic is in both recipes, minced into ATK’s paste and smashed into the cavity in the Florida recipe. ATK uses a shallot for its onion note, and the Florida recipe tucks a quartered onion into the cavity. Neither recipe uses onion powder or garlic powder, but both work in a dry rub. See onion powder and garlic powder.

A herb butter or garlic oil under the skin is another option. If you make garlic oil ahead, keep it cold. UC Agriculture and Natural Resources says not to store garlic in oil at room temperature, and to refrigerate it for no more than 4 days.¹²

Allspice

Allspice is named for a flavor like a mix of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. Neither turkey recipe above uses it. It belongs to Jamaican jerk, where pimento (allspice) and fresh thyme are essential, and the whole berries go into meat broths and gravies. For a jerk-style turkey, start with a small amount in a dry rub alongside thyme, black pepper and chile. See jerk seasoning.

Bay leaf

Bay suits the liquid parts of a turkey dinner more than the roasting bird. Food Network’s classic turkey gravy simmers the broth with herb sprigs and a bay leaf,⁸ and J. Kenji López-Alt says bay brings out the meaty flavors of beef and chicken. The flavor is herbal, bitter and slightly piney, so go light. Take the leaves out before serving; López-Alt compares eating one to eating a fish bone.⁷ See turkey gravy spices and too much bay leaf.

Poultry seasoning: the one-jar version

McCormick Culinary’s poultry seasoning combines thyme, sage, marjoram, rosemary, black pepper and nutmeg,³ so one jar covers most of the herbs above. See poultry seasoning and good stuffing spices.

Roasting safely

Oven: FSIS says to roast at no lower than 325°F.¹³
Doneness: 165°F, checked in the innermost part of the thigh and wing and the thickest part of the breast.¹³ FSIS sets 165°F for all poultry, including stuffing.⁹
Stuffing: FSIS advises cooking stuffing separately for optimal safety and uniform doneness.¹⁴
Rest: let the turkey stand 20 minutes before carving.¹³
No rinsing: FSIS doesn’t recommend washing raw poultry before cooking.¹⁵

“Herbed Roast Turkey”, America’s Test Kitchen, 2007. americastestkitchen.com · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸
“Herby Turkey”, UF/IFAS Extension, University of Florida. sfyl.ifas.ufl.edu · Reference work ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵
“Poultry Seasoning, 12 oz”, McCormick Culinary. mccormick.com · Merchant ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
“Using Herbs and Spices”, University of Delaware Cooperative Extension, revised 2025. udel.edu · Reference work ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
“Allspice”, Encyclopaedia Britannica. britannica.com · Reference work ↩
Vaughn Stafford Gray, “A Brief History of Jamaican Jerk”, Smithsonian Magazine, 2020. smithsonianmag.com · Publication ↩
David Leite with J. Kenji López-Alt, “Bay leaves are an optional ingredient”, The Splendid Table. splendidtable.org · Publication ↩ ↩²
“Classic Turkey Gravy”, Food Network Kitchen. foodnetwork.com · Publication ↩ ↩²
“Safe Minimum Internal Temperature Chart”, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, updated 2025. fsis.usda.gov · Regulator ↩ ↩²
Liz Bomze, “Our Guide to Fresh Herbs”, America’s Test Kitchen, 2019. americastestkitchen.com · Publication ↩ ↩²
“Flavorful Herbs”, LSU AgCenter. lsuagcenter.com · Reference work ↩
Linda J. Harris, “Garlic: Safe Methods to Store, Preserve, and Enjoy”, UC ANR Publication 8568, 2016. ccfruitandnuts.ucanr.edu · Reference work ↩
“Let’s Talk Turkey: A Consumer Guide to Safely Roasting a Turkey”, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. fsis.usda.gov · Regulator ↩ ↩² ↩³
“Stuffing and Food Safety”, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. fsis.usda.gov · Regulator ↩
“Washing Food: Does it Promote Food Safety?”, USDA FSIS. fsis.usda.gov · Regulator ↩

Also drawn on

Rosemary (revised by Anoushka Pant, updated 4 Sep 2026), Encyclopaedia Britannica. britannica.com
Petroselinum crispum (PROSEA), I.B. Ipor & L.P.A. Oyen, Plant Resources of South-East Asia, via Pl@ntUse. uses.plantnet-project.org
Pimenta dioica (PROSEA), D. Sulistiarini, Plant Resources of South-East Asia, via Pl@ntUse. uses.plantnet-project.org
What Is a Bay Leaf, Exactly? (Andrew Coletti, 2023), Atlas Obscura. atlasobscura.com

Good Spices for Turkey: The Herbs, Aromatics and Blends That Work, and When to Add Them