Preheat oven to 325 F (160 C). Remove giblets and neck from turkey, reserve for gravy. Rinse turkey with cold running water and blot dry with paper towels. Turkey's neck and giblets are to be reserved for gravy (basic turkey gravy or turkey giblet gravy) .
Combine rosemary, thyme, sage, garlic and lemon peel. Take your hand and run it between the skin and the meat of the breast, creating an envelope. Insert the herbs in this space. As the turkey roasts, the herbs will infuse the meat with flavor. Fold the skin of the neck and fasten it to the back with the help of skewers. Rub turkey thoroughly with salt and pepper and place it in a rack in a large shallow pan, breast side up.
Melt the butter and white wine. Brush the turkey with the wine and butter mixture. Loosely cover with aluminum foil to prevent over browning .
For uniform results, it is recommended to cook stuffing outside the bird.
Place the turkey in the oven.
Approximate Turkey Cooking Time:
UNSTUFFED:
8 to 12 pounds 2 3/4 to 3 hours
12 to 14 pounds 3 to 3 3/4 hours
14 to 18 pounds 3 3/4 to 4 1/4 hours
18 to 20 pounds 4 1/4 to 4 1/2 hours
20 to 24 pounds 4 1/2 to 5 hours
STUFFED:
8 to 12 pounds 3 to 3 1/2 hours
12 to 14 pounds 3 1/2 to 4 hours
14 to 18 pounds 4 to 4 1/4 hours
18 to 20 pounds 4 1/4 to 4 3/4 hours
20 to 24 pounds 4 3/4 to 5 1/4 hours
After the first hour, baste the turkey with the juice, butter and wine mixture at the bottom of the roasting pan.
About 15 minutes before the turkey is done, remove the foil and turn the oven to 450 degrees F (230 C).
Turkey is done with drumsticks are easy to move up and down.
