Elevate your Thanksgiving feast with our homemade turkey rub recipe. This blend of aromatic herbs and spices will infuse your turkey with an irresistible flavor and create a mouthwatering crust. With just a few simple ingredients, you can take your holiday centerpiece to a whole new level of deliciousness.

jar of turkey dry rub spilling onto surface

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email & I’ll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!

This homemade turkey rub is a blend of herbs, spices, and seasonings that are applied to a turkey before roasting or grilling. A homemade spice rub is a fantastic way to add flavor, aroma, and a delightful crust to your turkey.

No need to buy a premade poultry seasoning when you can easily make your own in just minutes with a few pantry staples you probably already have on hand! This recipe is perfect for your Thanksgiving turkey but also works well with chicken, beef, and pork.

Whether making a roasted turkey for Thanksgiving alongside classic sides like candied yams, green bean casserole, and homemade turkey gravy or simply roasting a turkey breast for a casual weeknight meal, this homemade turkey rub is the best way to flavor your turkey meat.

I suggest either you wet brine turkey or using a turkey injection to add flavor to the inside of the turkey and using this easy 5-minute turkey rub on the outside for the perfect turkey every time-juicy turkey on the inside and crispy skin on the outside.

Ingredients

You only need a few simple ingredients for this recipe which you probably already have in your spice drawer.

paprika
coarse salt
black pepper
dried thyme
dried rosemary
garlic powder
onion powder

Step by step

Simply mix the seasonings together and store in an airtight container until you are ready to season your meat.

Dry turkey with paper towels, then place on a rack in a roasting pan. Rub the seasoning all over the entire turkey. You can rub it directly onto the skin, under the skin of the turkey for a more intense flavor infusion, or even mix it with melted butter or olive oil and apply it as a paste.

Allow the turkey to rest 30 minutes to an hour before baking to let the seasonings penetrate, this is called dry brining. You can apply the dry brine up to 24 hours in advance for maximum flavor.

Tips for best results

This recipe should cover a 12-15 pound turkey, for a larger turkey you will want to double it. I usually make a big batch of the spice mix and use it year-round for pork tenderloin, roasted chicken, or even steak.
If you want to use fresh rosemary and thyme rather than dried herbs, triple the amount called for in the recipe.
This dry rub recipe calls for coarse salt, not table salt. Use a larger-grained salt like kosher salt. If you only have table salt, use half the amount called for.

Flavor variations

I love this seasoning mixture as is but you can experiment with it and make it your own, that’s the fun of homemade rubs!

sugar: add a tablespoon of light or dark brown sugar for a sweeter rub variation, you can also make it a sweet wet rub by adding honey or maple syrup
paprika: the paprika mainly adds a deep rusty color to the turkey skin, you may omit it for a more golden look. You can also use smoked paprika if you prefer.
spices: experiment with adding savory flavors like cayenne pepper, mustard powder, or chili powder
herbs: add a little bit of dried parsley, basil, marjoram, savory or oregano

If you try this recipe please comment and rate it below, I love hearing from you!