Herb & Mustard Crusted Turkey Legs

Whole roasted turkeys just aren’t really a thing here in Australia.

We don’t typically celebrate Thanksgiving and running an oven for hours and hours on Christmas Day, when it is traditionally very hot, isn’t my idea if fun. However, I love turkey and often find these turkey drumsticks fresh at the supermarket at a reasonable price.

My children are adults now and there are a lot of meals that are just my husband and myself, so being able to scale a meal up or down easily is great — especially at a time of year when we all have so much on our plates already. Each turkey leg is a generous serve for one person, so calculate it up or down to suit yourself. This low-carb recipe is for two people.

Why use turkey legs instead of a whole turkey? If you're only cooking for two, three or four people, baking the whole bird may be an overkill. This keto recipe uses only turkey drumsticks which are easy to portion out and scale up or down if needed.

The grain-free mustard and herbs can be altered to suit your personal tastes too, although I think this is a particularly delicious combination. This is a tasty festive keto dinner recipe for your holiday table. Enjoy!

Step-by-step

1. Preheat your oven to 180 °C/ 355 °F (fan assisted), or 200 °C/ 400 °F (conventional). Pat your drumsticks dry and season with salt and pepper on all sides. Two drumsticks will weigh about 750 g (1.7 lb) which will yield about 50% meat, enough for 2 generous servings.

   

2. Place the softened butter in a small bowl and all the seasonings, mixing well to combine.

   

3. Apply about half of the butter under the turkey skin by lifting it gently. Apply the remaining the butter in a layer on top of the drumsticks and over the sides as far as you can go.

4. Place the drumsticks on a rack positioned over a baking tray to allow for airflow around the meat.

   

5. Cook for 20 minutes and then reduce the heat to 155 °C/ 310 °F (fan assisted), or 175 °C/ 350 °F (conventional). Roast for a further 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the size of your leg.

   

6. Remove from the oven and baste with the melted butter and juices at least two to three times during cooking to get a lovely crispy crust.

7. The internal temperature should reach 75 °C/ 165 °F or the juices should run clear to know that the turkey is fully cooked. Turkey can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 5 days.

   

Recipe

Herb & Mustard Crusted Turkey Legs

★★★★★4.5 (25 ratings)

Juicy and succulent turkey drumsticks with crispy skin baked in butter, mustard and herbs. A tasty festive ...

Hands on

15m

Overall

1h 30m

Servings

2

1.8 g

Net carbs

38.4 g

Protein

36.2 g

Fat

483

kcal

1 serving2 servings3 servings4 servings5 servings6 servings7 servings8 servings9 servings10 servings11 servings12 servings

US + metricMetricUS

PrintPinRate

Ingredients makes 2 servings

• 2 turkey drumsticks (750 g/ 1.7 lb) - will yield about 50% meat
• sea salt and pepper, to season
• ¹/₂ stick softened unsalted butter (57 g/ 2 oz)
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard (15 ml)
• ¹/₂ tsp dried rosemary
• ¹/₂ tsp dried thyme
• ¹/₂ tsp garlic powder
• ¹/₂ tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp onion powder

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 180 °C/ 355 °F (fan assisted), or 200 °C/ 400 °F (conventional). Pat your drumsticks dry and season with salt and pepper on all sides. Two drumsticks will weigh about 750 g (1.7 lb) which will yield about 50% meat, enough for 2 generous servings.

2. Place the softened butter in a small bowl and all the seasonings, mixing well to combine.

3. Apply about half of the butter under the turkey skin by lifting it gently. Apply the remaining the butter in a layer on top of the drumsticks and over the sides as far as you can go.

4. Place the drumsticks on a rack positioned over a baking tray to allow for airflow around the meat.

5. Cook for 20 minutes and then reduce the heat to 155 °C/ 310 °F (fan assisted), or 175 °C/ 350 °F (conventional). Roast for a further 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the size of your leg.

6. Remove from the oven and baste with the melted butter and juices at least two to three times during cooking to get a lovely crispy crust.

7. The internal temperature should reach 75 °C/ 165 °F or the juices should run clear to know that the turkey is fully cooked. Turkey can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Nutrition per serving, about 140 g/ 5 oz cooked meat and skin

Carbs 1%Protein 32%Fat 67% of calories

Net carbs

1.8 g

Total carbs

2.9 g

Fiber

1.1 g

Sugars

0.3 g

Protein

38.4 g

Fat

36.2 g

Saturated fat

17.9 g

Calories

483 kcal

Sodium

834 mg · 36.3% RDA

Magnesium

49 mg · 12.1% RDA

Potassium

452 mg · 22.6% EMR

Nutrition by ingredient

Per about 140 g/ 5 oz cooked meat and skin	Net carbs	Protein	Fat	kcal
Turkey, retail parts, drumstick, meat and skin, raw	0 g	37.4 g	12.8 g	264
Salt, sea salt	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Pepper, black, spices	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	1
Butter, unsalted, grass-fed	0 g	0.2 g	22.9 g	203
Dijon mustard	0.1 g	0.3 g	0.3 g	5
Rosemary, dried	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	1
Thyme, dried	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	1
Garlic powder, spices	0.5 g	0.1 g	0 g	3
Paprika, smoked (spices)	0.1 g	0.1 g	0.1 g	2
Onion powder, spices	0.8 g	0.1 g	0 g	4
Total	1.8 g	38.4 g	36.2 g	483

Serving size about 140 g/ 5 oz cooked meat and skin

• Gluten free
• Egg free
• Nut free
• Pork free
• Avocado free
• Coconut free
• Fish free
• Beef free