My family isn’t huge on turkey, therefore we seldom require a large turkey for Thanksgiving. We enjoy turkey-related dishes such as stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and cranberry sauce, thus a turkey is still necessary. However, the smaller the better, as we always provide another major dish, such as a roast or Honey Baked Ham. Cooking a turkey breast is the ideal answer because it’s small enough to provide the turkey experience without having to deal with a whole bird.

What else is the ideal answer on a day when oven space is at a premium? Cooking it in the crockpot. It may appear insane, but it’s a set-it-and-forget-it strategy that consistently produces moist and juicy meat. So, whether you only need turkey for a few people, don’t have enough oven room for a 15-pounder, or simply don’t like turkey, this is the way to go.I was pleasantly impressed by how succulent, juicy, and flavorful the turkey meat turned out using this procedure.

There are advantages and disadvantages to this strategy, as with most things in life, but we will discuss them as we go. To begin, make a “shelf” in your slow cooker by slicing onions and garlic in half. This keeps the turkey from sitting in the broth you’ll be pouring into the bottom of the slow cooker (approximately a cup). (Chicken or veggie is OK.)Next, you’ll make a rub to season your turkey.

You can use your favorite seasoning blend if you want, but I find that a simple combination of garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, salt, and pepper works well here. You mix that with some olive oil before rubbing it all over the turkey. One disadvantage of slow cooking turkey is that the skin may not have enough time to crisp up, resulting in a dull appearance. The paprika helps to offset this while also adding some much-needed color.

So, even if you’re using a different seasoning blend, add some paprika for color.Coat the turkey, then lay it on your onion and garlic “shelf” with some fresh rosemary and thyme surrounding it. I used a boneless breast that weighed approximately three pounds for this recipe, but you could go a little larger and bone-in, just plan on cooking for longer. Check it every three hours on high or seven hours on low.You want to use temperature as your guide rather than time, so get your thermometer out early and start checking at the hour markers above.

Your turkey should reach 165°F, but if you wish to keep it warm for a long, turn the slow cooker off after it reaches 160°F, since it will continue to cook if left in a hot slow cooker. One disadvantage is that if you let it sit on warm once it reaches temperature, it will dry up, but you could argue the same thing about the oven approach as well. Just keep an eye on it and don’t let the temperature rise too much, and you’ll get moist, juicy turkey.

The only other disadvantage I see with this method is that the skin does not get as crunchy and wonderful as it does in the oven. But there is a solution for that! And that is to use your oven only a little. When the turkey is finished cooking, lay it on a wire rack over a baking sheet and broil in the oven until the skin is crisp. And it does so beautifully.You can still make gravy from the drippings. You still get deliciously moist turkey. It’s only a little more convenient and reasonable in size.