Rest the turkey 30 minutes before you touch it. Then work in this order: legs and thighs, wings, then lift each breast off the rib cage whole and slice it across the grain on the board. Use a long, sharp knife and a carving fork, and carve in the kitchen, not at the table.
Whatever you cooked, it all gets carved the same way. See every method in our Thanksgiving turkey recipes, or the oven-roasted turkey this guide was shot with.
Table of Contents
🎥 Watch: How to Carve a Turkey
🔪 Best Turkey Carving Knife
The right tools can make all the difference when carving a turkey. Typically, you need a carving knife, a carving fork, and some type of cutting board to cut up the turkey. The fork holds the turkey meat in place as you slice with the knife, and the cutting board helps stabilize everything. You can use a regular cutting board or a large carving board if you’re feeling fancy!
We love a classic sharp chef’s knife when carving a roast turkey. A long electric knife is a great tool for carving a turkey as well, if you have one. If using an eclectic knife, we recommend only using it when you get to slicing the breasts of the side of the breast bone. Check out our favorite knives and tools on our shop page.
⏲️ How Long to Rest a Turkey Before Carving
Let your turkey rest for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Letting the turkey rest allows those juices to settle and redistribute so they don’t leak out when slicing up the turkey. It also makes handling the cooked turkey easier.
📝 Best Way to Carve a Turkey (Step by Step)
We follow the same order, whether carving a traditional Thanksgiving turkey or a Spatchcock turkey.
Set up a carving station with a large cutting board and a sharp carving knife and fork. If your knife isn’t sharp, make sure to sharpen the blade of the knife before continuing. This helps with smooth cuts that don’t saw the meat, pulling and breaking it apart.
If you trussed your turkey before cooking it, you’ll need to remove the string as well by cutting them with scissors or a knife.
This is the order for a whole bird that came out of the oven intact. A flattened bird has no upright rib cage, so the breasts lift off in one motion: see how to spatchcock a turkey for the cut that gets you there.
Step 1: Remove the Legs and Thighs
- Pull the leg away from the body so the skin between thigh and breast goes tight, and cut through that skin with the tip of the knife.
- Keep pulling until the thigh joint pops out of its socket. You will feel it give.
- Cut through the exposed joint to free the whole leg and thigh in one piece. Repeat on the other side.
Step 2: Remove the Wings
- Pull the wing away from the body to find the shoulder joint.
- Cut down through the skin and around the joint with the tip of the knife.
- Twist and cut through the joint to release the wing. Set it on the platter and repeat.
Step 3: Carve the Breast
- Make a horizontal cut at the base of the breast, running in toward the rib cage. This stop cut keeps your slices even later.
- Starting at the top of the breastbone, cut straight down along one side of it, keeping the blade against the bone.
- Follow the curve of the rib cage down, easing the breast away with your free hand as it releases, until the whole lobe comes off in one piece.
- Lay the breast flat on the board and slice across the grain, about half an inch thick. Repeat on the other side.
Finally, divide the carved turkey into light meat and dark meat and serve with a side of simply turkey gravy or giblet gravy and all of your favorite Thanksgiving side dishes.
After the meal, take the time to pick as much meat from the turkey carcass as possible and store it for leftover turkey recipes. Use the bones to make homemade turkey stock or leftover turkey soup.
💡 Meat Nerd Tips
- Thirty minutes of rest, minimum. A turkey holds heat far longer than people expect. Cutting early dumps the juice onto the board instead of leaving it in the meat.
- Take the breast off whole, then slice it. Carving downward on the bird gives ragged slices of different thicknesses. Off the bone and flat on the board, every slice comes out the same.
- Always slice across the grain. Look at the direction the fibers run and cut perpendicular to them. It matters more than the knife.
- Long and thin beats big and heavy. A carving knife goes through the breast in one pass. A serrated knife tears the fibers. Sharpen it the morning of.
- Carve in the kitchen. Better light, better height, no audience, and you can plate it properly.
- Warm the platter. Five minutes in a low oven keeps carved turkey from going lukewarm before the sides get passed.
- Hold it with stock, not foil alone. If you must carve ahead, lay the slices in a shallow dish, spoon warm stock over them and cover.
- The frame goes in a pot the same night. It makes better stock than anything you can buy.
🧊 How to Store Leftover Turkey
Store any leftover turkey meat in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Freeze for up to 4 months.
To reheat, use a microwave or oven.
Oven Method
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Gently simmer some chicken broth.
- Place turkey slices in a baking dish.
- Place a kitchen towel over the baking dish.
- Pour the chicken broth over the towel until slightly damp.
- Wrap the entire thing in aluminum foil.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until reheated.
Microwave Method
- Lay turkey slices in a small baking dish or microwave-safe dish.
- Dampen a paper towel with water or chicken broth.
- Lay the paper towel over the dish.
- Heat in 30-second increments until heated.
Take your leftovers and make a delicious hot brown sandwich or Leftover Turkey Sandwich!
🔗 More Turkey Guides
- Thanksgiving turkey recipes: every method in one place.
- How to spatchcock a turkey: the cut that makes carving easier.
- Turkey gravy: what to pour over the platter.
- Turkey carcass soup: what to do with the frame.
Quick Summary
Rest the turkey 30 minutes. Remove both legs and thighs at the joint, take off the wings, then carve each breast off the rib cage in one piece and slice across the grain on the board. Use a long sharp knife and a carving fork, and carve in the kitchen.
How to Carve Turkey (Full Guide)
Recommended Equipment
- 1 sharp knife traditional chef's knife or carving knife or electric knife
- 1 carving fork
Ingredients
- 1 Whole Turkey smoked, grilled or roasted
Instructions
REMOVE THE TURKEY LEGS AND THIGHS
- Carving your turkey starts with carefully cutting through the leg joint and thigh meat to detach both. Use a sharp knife, apply firm pressure, then gently pull them away from the body with the leg.
- The entire leg and thigh will come off easily, with a few shallow cuts with the tip of your knife to separate. Repeat this on the other leg and thigh.
- Use a little pressure on the joint to detach the leg piece from the thigh. Set aside the dark meat.
DETACH WINGS
- Before you start carving the turkey breasts, remove the wings from its body.
- Gently tug the turkey wings away and use a sharp knife to cut carefully around where they meet with both skin and meat so that they can be effectively detached at their joint.
- Once done, lay these aside on your serving platter – doing this is not only for convenience but also enhances how it looks once arranged neatly. With those legs, thighs, and wings removed entirely or partially as needed, all that’s left to carve is the breast meat!
SLICE THE TURKEY BREASTS
- Now, it’s time to charge the breast from the rib cage. Start by making horizontal incisions from the bottom of the breast towards the breastbone.
- Then, carve down along the side of the breastbone, starting from its peak and slicing downward. Then, utilize your knife while gently pulling with your hand to smoothly detach the entire breast.
- Then, repeat on the second side. Be careful not to break the wishbone so you can save it for later.
- Then, slice each breast for the dinner table by laying them flat on the cutting board and slicing them into thin ¼” strips against the grain.
- Finally, divide the carved turkey into light meat and dark meat and serve with a side of simply turkey gravy or giblet gravy and all of your favorite Thanksgiving side dishes.
Video
Notes
- How to Dry Brine a Turkey
- How to Spatchcock a Turkey
- How to Truss a Turkey
- How Long to Cook a Turkey Per Pound
- The Best Wood for Smoking Turkey
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❓ Carving a Turkey FAQs
Rest your perfectly cooked turkey for at least 30 minutes before carving it.
Make some delicious Leftover Turkey Soup or Instant Pot Turkey Stock!
Once removed from the oven, the turkey will remain warm for about an hour. Let the turkey rest for 30 minutes before carving. Once carved, cover with aluminum foil to keep the turkey meat warm.
Absolutely! Just remove the stuffing and place it in a dish before carving your turkey.
Nope! You can use a large knife and a regular fork to carve your turkey!
Start by removing the legs and wings, cutting through the joints. Then, slice along the breastbone and use the electric knife for smooth, even cuts.
Carving a spatchcock turkey is easier since the bird is flattened. Follow the same steps for removing legs and wings, but the breast is simpler to slice.
Cut through the joint to separate the leg from the body, then divide the drumstick from the thigh. Slice the meat off the bone or serve whole.
Carve in the kitchen. The table is the wrong height, the light is worse, and an audience makes you rush the one step that rewards patience. Carve it on a board, arrange the slices on a warm platter, and bring that out.
Up to about an hour. Carve it, lay the slices in a shallow dish, spoon over a few tablespoons of warm stock or gravy, cover tightly with foil and hold in a 200°F oven. Past an hour the texture starts to go, so time it to the sides.
Usually the bird was not rested long enough, or you are slicing with the grain instead of across it. Take the whole breast off the rib cage first, lay it flat, then slice across the grain with a sharp, non-serrated knife.
The wings go on the platter. The back, the rib cage and anything else with bone goes straight into a stockpot the same night. Do not throw the frame away: it is the most valuable thing left after dinner.
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