Leftover Turkey Soup

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 25

Total Time: 40

Servings: servings

Calories: 452cal

Author: Ashley Fehr

Easy Leftover Turkey Soup is warm and comforting. With tender turkey, loads of vegetables, and a great mix of savory seasonings, it's the perfect way to feed the whole family during the busy holidays!

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Ingredients

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 large carrots (peeled and diced)
2 ribs celery (finely chopped)
1 medium onion (finely diced)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon paprika
3 cups homemade turkey stock (you can substitute with chicken broth as well)
1 ½ lbs Yukon gold potatoes (cut into 3/4" pieces)
2 cups leftover cooked turkey (chopped)

Thickened Milk

¼ cup salted butter
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 ½ cups milk (any kind)

Instructions

Add oil to a large dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add carrots, celery and onion and cook on medium heat, stirring often, until onions are translucent and vegetables are slightly softened.
Stir in garlic, salt, parsley, thyme, pepper and paprika and cook 1 minute.
Add stock and scrape the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to ensure any browned bits are removed.
Stir in potatoes. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make your roux and thicken your milk. In a large glass bowl or measuring cup, melt the butter in the microwave on high, 30-45 seconds at a time.
Stir in the flour until completely absorbed.
Whisk in the milk until smooth, using a scraper to get into the edges of the cup and ensure all of the flour has been whisked into the milk.
Microwave on high in 45 second intervals, whisking each time, until thickened. 4 times at 45 seconds was perfect for me. Be sure to keep an eye on it in the microwave as it will bubble up — you need to use a bowl or cup with lots of room left at the top.
When potatoes are tender, stir in the cooked turkey and the thickened milk. Heat through, adjust seasonings to taste and serve.

Video

Notes

Prep ahead:

This is a great soup to make ahead as it just gets better with time and the potatoes don't get mushy. You can make ahead and refrigerate up to 4 days, but I do not recommend freezing as the dairy and the potatoes can have a funny texture after freezing.

Ingredients and Substitutions:

Vegetables: carrots, celery and onion form the flavor base for many soup recipes and I don't recommend leaving them out. You can, however, add lots of vegetables in! Mushrooms, kale, spinach, peppers, green beans, frozen peas or corn -- whatever you need to use up.

Homemade Turkey Stock (recipe here): this will have the best flavor and is perfect after a holiday meal. If you do not have homemade stock, you can substitute with homemade chicken stock or chicken broth.

Make it gluten free: using a roux to thicken milk to thicken soup is one of my favorite ways, but you can also mix 2-3 tablespoons of corn starch with milk or cream and stir it into the soup at the end to thicken, making it gluten-free.

Potatoes v. Noodles: you can also make this a turkey noodle soup if you prefer, leaving out the potatoes but adding in 1-1.5 cups of uncooked pasta where you would add the potatoes.

Storage

Store: Store this dish in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Allow it to cool to room temperature before putting it in the fridge.

Nutrition