Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Turkey
You know the saying, “everything’s better with bacon?” Well, it’s true, even for Thanksgiving turkey. Our mom has always roasted her Thanksgiving turkey with bacon on top to lock in the juiciness. We’re making our own twist on her recipe with these Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Turkey roll-ups. Turkey cutlets are rolled up with stuffing, wrapped in smoky bacon, and baked to perfection. They have all the holiday flavors you love—made easier and just as impressive.
The Secret to the Tastiest Turkey
We’ve always thought Thanksgiving turkey gets a bad reputation for being bland, because growing up, we always had turkey that was super tasty and moist. Our mom’s secret? Add bacon to the turkey when it roasts.
We took a page out of her book here and made individual bacon wrapped turkey rolls filled with stuffing. Make the stuffing first, then add it to turkey cutlets and wrap them with bacon. Sear them and bake them until the turkey is cooked through and the bacon is toasted. Slice them into the cutest Thanksgiving pinwheels and serve with your favorite gravy (or cranberry sauce, if that’s your thing).
These roll-ups are super tasty and perfect for anyone who loves the flavors of Thanksgiving but who doesn’t want to roast a whole bird. They’re much less time-consuming than the typical holiday turkey dish and just as flavorful. Plus, you can make these whenever you’re craving Thanksgiving food, regardless of whether or not you can find whole turkeys in your grocery store. That means you can have holiday flavors in the middle of the summer, if you want. We love the flexibility of it!
Ingredients in the Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Turkey Roll-Ups
As with any classic Thanksgiving meal, these roll-ups include turkey, stuffing, and lots of herb flavor.
Turkey Roll-Ups
- Turkey – you’ll need turkey breast cutlets for this recipe. If you can’t get them sliced thin, you’ll need to pound them thin with a meat mallet or other tool so that they’re easier to roll.
- Vegetables – we make our stuffing with diced onions and celery.
- Butter – butter adds a richness to the veggies in the stuffing.
- Poultry seasoning – poultry seasoning is a blend of thyme, sage, and other herbs and seasonings that add the classic flavor of stuffing to this dish.
- Boxed stuffing bread cubes only – we like to use boxed stuffing bread cubes (not the seasoning packets) for ease, but you can use homemade dried out bread cubes too.
- Chicken broth – chicken broth hydrates the bread cubes and helps make the stuffing flavorful. We recommend using your favorite tasty chicken broth here.
- Bacon – for best results, use thinner bacon, not thick cut. Thick cut will take too long to get cooked, increasing the risk of overcooking the turkey.
- Salt and pepper – make sure to salt and pepper your turkey cutlets on both sides before you start to make your roll-ups.
Additional Ingredients
- Gravy – these roll-ups are extra delicious with your favorite gravy. Use homemade turkey gravy or store bought.
- Your favorite sides – we like to serve these roll-ups with extra stuffing, our Green Bean Casserole with Cashew Cream, or mashed potatoes on the side. We also recommend making our persimmon salad as an appetizer.
How to Make the Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Turkey Roll-Ups
To make these roll-ups, first start by preheating your oven to 400°F.
Next, melt butter in a braiser or oven safe saute pan. Once the pan is hot, add the onions and celery. Season them with the poultry seasoning, and salt and pepper, to taste, and cook until they’re soft, about 8-10 minutes.
Add the chicken broth to the braiser or pan and bring the liquid to a boil.
Mix in the bread cubes and cover the pan for 8-10 minutes until the vegetables are softened and the mixture resembles stuffing. Move the stuffing to a bowl or plate to cool.
Place the turkey cutlets in between sheets of wax paper and pound them with a meat mallet or another pan to make them thinner and more uniform. This will help them cook more evenly.
Season both sides of each cutlet with salt and pepper.
Spread about ¼ to ½ cup of stuffing on top of each turkey cutlet into an even thin layer.
Roll up each cutlet away from you, then wrap with 2 to 3 strips of bacon.
Place the bacon wrapped turkey cutlets into the braiser and sear the bacon on all sides for 1 to 2 minutes. This will help the bacon start to cook and brown faster.
Bake the roll-ups for 15 minutes, then flip each one over and bake for another 5 minutes. Finally, broil for about 2 to 3 min to brown the bacon on top.
Slice the roll-ups into pinwheels or discs and serve them with homemade or store-bought gravy and your favorite sides or appetizers.
Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Turkey
Ingredients
- 2 pounds turkey breast cutlets
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 celery stalks, diced
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp poultry seasoning
- 12 oz boxed stuffing, bread cubes only (or can use dried out baguette)
- 3 ½ to 4 cups chicken broth
- 12-14 strips bacon, not thick cut
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Gravy, for topping (use your favorite homemade or store-bought)
- Your favorite sides
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Melt butter in a braiser or oven safe sauté pan, then add the onions and celery. Season with poultry seasoning and salt and pepper to taste and cook until soft, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add the broth and bring it to a boil.
- Mix in the bread cubes and cover the pan for 8-10 minutes until they’re softened. Move the stuffing to a bowl or plate to cool.
- Place turkey cutlets in between wax paper and pound with a meat mallet or another pan to make them thinner and more even.
- Salt and pepper both sides of each turkey cutlet.
- Spread about ¼ to ½ cup of stuffing on top of each turkey cutlet into an even thin layer.
- Roll up each cutlet away from you, then wrap with 2-3 strips of bacon.
- Place bacon wrapped turkey cutlets into the braiser and sear the bacon on all sides for 1-2 minutes per side.
- Bake for 15 minutes, then flip each roll-up over and bake another 5 minutes. Then broil for about 2-3 min to brown the bacon.
- Slice into pinwheels and serve with your favorite homemade or store-bought gravy and sides.
