Roast Turkey with Italian Ground Beef Stuffing

Craving a holiday turkey with a flavorful twist? This Italian Ground Beef Stuffing is made with a mouthwatering blend of lean ground beef, Italian herbs, parmesan, and red peppers, then slow-roasted inside a seasoned turkey until tender and juicy. It’s a savory showstopper that will make your feast unforgettable!

At my mother-in-law’s Thanksgiving table, her famous Italian ground beef stuffing is a must-have—it’s maybe even more of a hit than the turkey! This dish has become such a staple that no holiday feels complete without it. With this recipe, you get the best of both worlds: a perfectly roasted turkey and a flavorful beef option that keeps everyone coming back for seconds.

Roasted Turkey Ingredients

• A whole turkey – 12-15 lbs. Fresh is best but if you have a frozen turkey be sure to take it out a few days in advance and let thaw in the fridge completely.
• Olive Oil – This is used to baste the inside and outside of the turkey to help the skin get all nice and crispy.
• Garlic powder, ground sage, dried thyme, salt and pepper to coat the turkey inside and out to give it amazing flavor.
• Chicken Broth and White Wine – added to the bottom of the pan to add flavor to the turkey as it cooks and is basted and later is also the basis for gravy if you want it.

Ground Beef Stuffing Ingredients

• Lean ground beef – lean so it is not too fatty but also packs a lot of flavor.
• Onion and red pepper – add amazing flavor and a pop of color.
• Garlic, mint, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper – the seasoning that makes this stuffing sizzle.
• Eggs – the glue that holds it all together and as well adds some needed moisture.

How To Make Turkey with Ground Beef Stuffing

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Pat your turkey dry with paper towels and be sure to remove any bags of giblets and other goodies from the inside of your thawed turkey.
2. In a large bowl add the lean ground beef, minced garlic, chopped onions, red pepper, parmesan, mint, eggs, salt and pepper. Use your hands to mix it all together but don’t over mix or the stuffing will become tough.

3. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan with a grate on the bottom of the pan. This grate will allow the turkey juices to fall below into the bottom of the pan so you have juices to baste the turkey with and also to make gravy from.
4. To season the turkey add the garlic powder, ground sage, thyme, salt and pepper to a small bowl and mix.

5. Rub the olive oil over the inside and outside of the turkey making sure that the whole turkey, even underneath, is coated even the tips of the turkey wings so they get good and crispy.
6. Rub the outside and inside of the turkey with the seasoning mix to make sure the turkey is well coated.
7. Using your hands again, stuff the turkey with all of the ground beef mixture. Make sure to pack it tightly because in the end, this stuffing will come out of the turkey in a sort of meatloaf-like form so you want it to be solid. There is a lot of beef, so it is normal for some ground beef stuffing to stick out of the bird.
8. Once done, pour the chicken broth and wine around the turkey into the bottom of the pan but don’t pour these over top of the turkey or you will wash away all of the seasoning.
9. Roast the turkey for 4.5-5 hours uncovered or until the turkey is browned, and crispy and the internal temperature is 165°F at the thickest part of the turkey. Once the turkey has become crispy on the outside give it a baste every 45 minutes to an hour to give it more flavor and keep the turkey moist. Be sure to baste the beef that is sticking out too.

If the pan juices start to dry up add a cup or two of water to the bottom of the pan but do not pour over the turkey.

Since the turkey is stuffed with more meat the turkey will take longer than usual for a turkey this size and it is very important that the temperature is taken in a place where the thermometer can reach the centre of the turkey and stuffing.

Every oven is different but I tend to find that my turkey reaches the ultimate crispy and browning stage about 90 minutes to two hours into cooking. To keep the turkey from burning I tent my turkey with foil to allow it to keep cooking but stop any further browning.

10. About 20 minutes before the turkey is done remove the foil to give the skin another chance to crisp up again because the foil can cause a little steam to soften the skin and that would be a tragedy because the crispy skin and wings are the best part of the turkey in my opinion.
11. Once the turkey and ground beef is cooked through to 165°F, remove the turkey from the oven and once again tent it with foil. Let it sit for 15 minutes before slicing or removing the stuffing.

How To Remove The Beef Stuffing

The ground beef stuffing will be snug inside the turkey so you will need to use a large serving spoon and knife to help you remove it.

Use the serving spoon or knife to circle the outside of the stuffing to help loosen it from the inside of the turkey. Then use the spoon to coax the beef stuffing out without breaking it up.

You may need to cut the stuffing on the outside first and then remove the stuffing that remains inside the turkey.

Once the stuffing is out of the turkey use the knife to slice the beef stuffing recipe into slices like you would a meatloaf and serve.

storage and Freezing

Store any leftovers in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Reheat either by adding the beef stuffing recipe to a large pan with a little water and cover until the stuffing is heated through or microwave for a minute or two.

Making Turkey gravy

1. If you want to make gravy from the pan juices simply pour the leftover juices through a sieve into a medium-sized pot and bring to a boil.
2. In a small glass add a heaping tsp of cornstarch to a 1/4 cup of cold water and stir to make a slurry. Pour the slurry into the pot and stir.
3. Let the pan juices and slurry boil for a minute or two stirring frequently to thicken and season with salt and pepper as desired. If there is a layer of oil that forms on the gravy you can skim that off with a spoon and discard before serving.