After the Thanksgiving dinner has been eaten and there is a turkey carcass with some meat left as well as some scraggly pieces of meat on the platter the question is often: What to do with the leftovers?
Turkey soup is a lot like chicken soup, made with a really big chicken. Roasted turkey is popular and often enjoyed during the cold months, from late fall to early spring. Coincidentally that is the time when we usually love to have some warm soup and chicken soup is one of the most popular to fend of winter colds and chills. So make a big batch of turkey soup with lots of vegetables to enjoy during the cold season.
People pay good money for stock and broth so make some turkey stock with the bones, it’s simple and the recipe is in the index here on freshtastebud.com .
Keep a few things in mind when you make stock from roasted turkey (as well as other roasted birds and meats), there is often seasoning and salt on and in the bones and especially skin. With turkey there is also brine to keep in mind. Make your stock without adding additional salt. I always make stock without adding salt to allow for reducing it down to concentrate it. This can be a problem if there is salt on the carcass, skin and meat. If you reduce it down it can become quite salty. 2 things that will help are: adding water and adding vegetables. Eventually you will get a rich and flavorful stock to use for soup.
Traditional turkey seasoning is sage, rosemary, thyme, marjoram and nutmeg. These can all be utilized in the soup. I like to use some of those herbs fresh as there are often some left which were used for garnish for the roasted turkey. Fresh herbs are best used at the end of cooking to allow the floral aroma to be appreciated.
Having a plan for the bones and leftovers makes everything much easier in utilizing it post holiday. You know when everyone has had dessert, plenty of wine and the couch looks particularly comfortable. Nobody want’s to go and face the horror scene that awaits in the kitchen.
Step 1: Plan to carve all the usable meat off the turkey right away. Pick off any larger scraps you can pull off the carcass and place the bones right in the pot that you will use for the stock. You can then make the stock during kitchen cleanup or put it in the fridge and make it the next day. 3 hours of cooking or so then strain the stock and discard the bones. Skim the fat off the stock or refrigerate and remove the fat when it solidifies.
Step 2: Chop up the vegetables you intend to use for the soup, saute them briefly in a soup pot to soften. Pour on the stock, add seasoning and cook until the vegetables are soft. Add the turkey and heat, taste the soup and adjust the seasoning and you are done. You can actually prepare the vegetables for the soup while preparing the holiday meal (or even if it is not a holiday meal) and be a step ahead.
Turkey soup
6
servings15
minutes30
minutes0
minutesA simple but wonderful soup to make after holidays utilizing leftover turkey and the turkey bones.
Ingredients
8 cups 8 turkey stock
2 Tbs 2 vegetable oil
2 cups 2 onions
1 cup 1 carrots
1 cup 1 celery
2 cups 2 potatoes
3 cloves 3 garlic
1 tsp 1 thyme
2 whole 2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp 1/2 sage
1/2 tsp 1/2 nutmeg
1 1/2 cups 1 1/2 cooked turkey meat
1* tsp 1* salt* (as needed depending on your stock)
1/4 tsp 1/4 pepper
Directions
- Wash, trim and peel the vegetables as needed. Crush the garlic and dice the rest of the vegetables medium dice, about 1 inch cubes. Dice the turkey medium dice as well. Measure out all your ingredients.
- Heat the oil on medium in a soup pot and cook the vegetables while stirring for 5 minutes to soften.
- Season with the dry spices and pour on the turkey stock. Bring to a boil and immediately lower to a simmer. Cook the soup for 30 minutes until the potatoes and carrots are cooked through.
- Mix in the the turkey meat and simmer 2 minutes. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning.
Equipment
- soup pot, cutting board, chefs knife, paring knife, peeler, large spoon, measuring cups and spoons
