Instructions

1. Make the herbed dry brine: combine the salt, pepper, herbs, bay leaves and lemon peel in a small bowl. (You can make this up to a week in advance.)
2. Dry-brine the turkey: place the turkey on a large cutting board and pat it completely dry. Remove the gizzards and neck from the inner cavity, then set aside. (Reserve them for your gravy!) Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil (or use your roasting pan, or a disposable foil roasting pan, which is what I use), then place the turkey on the baking sheet. Rub the herbed salt all over the turkey, and sprinkle some in the cavity. Gently loosen the skin on the breast using your fingertips, and sprinkle the salt directly on the breast meat. Place the turkey, uncovered, in the fridge for at least 24 and no more than 48 hours.
3. Make the herb butter: in a medium bowl, combine the shallots, lemon zest, fresh herbs, pepper and butter. (You can make this up to three days in advance.)
4. Six hours before you are ready to start roasting your turkey, remove it from the fridge. Let it come to room temperature (this will take an hour or two), then pat it dry. Transfer it to a cutting board. Preheat the oven to 325F.
5. Rub the herbed butter all over the outside of the turkey, and loosen the skin to rub the butter directly on the breast and leg meat (this should be easier since you already loosened the skin when dry-brining). Place the lemon halves, garlic and herbs in the main cavity of the turkey, then use kitchen twine to tie the legs together.
6. Make your vegetable trivet: arrange the carrots, celery and shallots in the bottom of your roasting pan so that they form a makeshift “roasting rack” (I just line them up in a row — nothing fancy).
7. Place the turkey breast-side down on your vegetable trivet. (That’s the “wrong” side up — you’ll flip the turkey later.)
8. Roast the turkey for 1 hour. Use tongs and a wooden spoon to carefully flip the turkey — I stick a utensil in the front and back cavities and kind of nudge it over. (There is really no graceful way to do this, and a 14-pound turkey is as big as I would go for something like this.) Increase the heat to 400F, then roast the turkey for an additional 60-75 minutes.
9. The turkey is done when the internal temperature reaches 165F. The skin should be bronzed and crisp, and if you stick a fork into the thickest part of the thigh, the juices should run clear. (But please please use a thermometer to confirm your turkey is done. And test the temperature in a few different spots, especially if your oven is a bit finicky.)
10. Remove the turkey from the oven and transfer to a serving platter. Tent with a piece of foil and let rest for 30-45 minutes, so that the juices can redistribute. (Use this time to heat up any side dishes and make your gravy.) Carve and serve!