Easy Roast Turkey Breast

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoon sunsalted butter , softened
• 3/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 whole turkey breast (6 to 7 pound s), bone-in and skin-on, trimmed of excess fat and patted dry with paper towels (see note above)
• 1 cup water

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Mix butter, salt, and pepper in medium bowl with rubber spatula until thoroughly combined. Following illustration 1 below, carefully separate turkey skin from meat over breast; avoid breaking skin.
2. Following illustrations 2 and 3, work butter mixture under skin on both sides of breast and rub skin of turkey to evenly distribute butter over breast. Spray V rack with nonstick cooking spray and set inside large roasting pan. Place turkey in rack with skin side facing up; pour water into roasting pan.
3. How to Brine a Turkey Breast: Dissolve 1/2 cup of table salt (or 3/4 cup of kosher salt) in 4 quarts of cold water in a large container; submerge the turkey breast in brine, cover it with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for three to six hours. (Do not brine the turkey breast any longer, or it will be too salty.) Rinse the turkey breast under cold water and dry it thoroughly with paper towels.