This leftover turkey soup recipe is a delicious and simple way to use up leftover turkey or rotisserie chicken! It is flavoured with onions, celery, carrots, bay leaves and parsley evoking the memories of homemade soups your granny used to make! It is also extremely speedy, wholesome and satisfying!
If you still have more leftover turkey in your fridge, give my Chicken and Dumpling Soup a try but use your leftover Thanksgiving turkey!
Every year I buy a small turkey for Thanksgiving to make sure I have as little leftovers as possible. My personal preference is for a small turkey as it cooks faster and doesn’t dry out as much.
No matter how small my turkey is, I still end up with leftovers. So this year I decided to finally share a few of my leftover turkey recipes. This simple and delicious turkey soup is top of the list since it’s so easy and requires barely any ingredients.
Turkey leftovers
It’s a bit of a shame that we end up just throwing turkey leftovers in the microwave and recreate a lesser version of our Thanksgiving meal. There is so much space to get creative and find all sorts of ways to make interesting and tasty meals from the leftover meat.
Any recipe that is made with chicken can also be made with turkey, so recipes for leftover chicken and turkey are pretty interchangeable.
While throwing extra turkey into a sandwich or salad may seem like the obvious approach, I don’t think it gets the best from the meat. To keep the turkey as moist as possible, I’m a big believer in cooking it into a pie, soup or stew.
This ensures tender turkey and infuses it with moisture while stretching leftovers out even further. To really take it the distance and beyond a single time of year, try freezing leftover turkey for as long as 6 months for later use (although quality will go down after three!).
Ingredients
I always start my soup base with three main vegetables. Onions, celery and carrots with a choice of herb and this time I went with fresh thyme. I still had some left from the big Thanksgiving dinner. You can use dried thyme just as successfully.
I also add bay leaves and a clove of garlic for an aromatic and delicious soup.
The recipe for this homemade turkey soup recipe is based in the traditional chicken noodle soup but I added a little twist. Besides homemade turkey stock I add leftover turkey pieces and instead of traditional egg noodles I throw in half a cup of giant couscous also known as Israeli couscous or pearl couscous.
Giant couscous is a perfect choice as it has the same taste as pasta, It looks great and it’s so fun to eat! If you can’t find it, regular noodles will work as well.
How to make it
When I say this soups is easy I am not exaggerating in the least! The method is very simple and it only takes about 30-35 minutes to make. The turkey is already cooked and the vegetables and couscous cook fast!
There are a few things I’d like to mention, which make this easy turkey soup recipe extra flavourful. I start by sautéing the vegetables in a mix of olive oil and butter. Do use butter! It adds incredible flavour.
I love using homemade stock that’s been made using leftover turkey carcass and aromatics. You can definitely use already made stock or a stock cube, including chicken stock. Not everything has to be homemade. I often opt for a stock cube myself.
Fresh herbs like thyme or rosemary and bay leaves also contribute to a beautiful aroma and a delicious broth.
Giant couscous only takes 10 minutes to cook just like any pasta, so I throw it in the broth after it just boils. I take the soup off the heat as soon as Israeli couscous is soft.
Sprinkling the turkey soup with some freshly chopped parsley or dill before serving is a real treat!
Serving suggestions
This hearty soup is delicious on its own or with a bread roll. However, if you are up for something more adventurous, try it with garlic cheesy rye toast.
All you have to do is to rub sliced rye, homemade sourdough or any bread of your choice with a clove of garlic sliced in half lengthwise. Sprinkle with your favourite grated cheese and broil in an oven or a toaster oven until melted and golden.
Recipe tips and notes
- I’ve suggested using Israeli (pearl) couscous as the starch in this soup, but pasta is another great option. Choose a short pasta shape such as orzo, macaroni or conchiglie, or even gnocchi!
- To keep it gluten free, use rice. White rice will work just fine but brown rice would add the most flavour and texture. Or try hearty wild rice for a nutty twist!
- To use up leftover roasted vegetables from your turkey dinner, dice to them to be the same size as the other vegetables and add them to your soup with approximately five minutes of cooking time left. This gives just enough time for them to be heated through.
- Even though this is a recipe designed for leftover turkey, the exact same recipe can be used for leftover roast chicken.
- If you don’t like the idea of a soup, how do you feel about a creamy stew, also using up any leftover turkey?
Storage and leftovers
Leftover soup can be kept in a fridge for 3-4 days or can be frozen for up to 3 months, both in an airtight container.
While the microwave is an option, the best way to reheat soup is in a saucepan on a stovetop. Keep the pan lid on to retain moisture and bring the soup to a rolling boil.
Leftovers should only be reheated once. So if you make a large amount to eat over a few days, only heat up what you plan to eat immediately. If freezing, it may be convenient to store in individual portions.
More Thanksgiving leftovers recipes
- Chicken Pot Pie with Roasted Vegetables (Use leftover turkey instead)
- Turkey Marsala Pot Pie
- Salmon Cakes (Use leftover mashed potatoes)
- Hearty Mulligatawny Soup (leftover turkey)
Leftover Turkey Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 onion or 2 shallots
- 1 carrot, large
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 clove garlic
- 4 sprigs thyme or ½ tsp dried thyme
- 1.5 litre /6 cups turkey or chicken stock
- 75 g / ½ cup giant/pearl couscous
- 250 g /2 cups cooked turkey or chicken
- 2 bay leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Saute chopped onion, celery, carrots and a clove of garlic with thyme leaves in oil and butter over low heat for 5 minutes. Add turkey or chicken stock, cooked turkey, bay leaves and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the giant couscous or noodles and cook for 10 minutes over medium heat until the couscous is tender. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.
Notes
- Homemade or ready made turkey or chicken stock is suitable.
- You can use noodles instead of Israeli couscous
Caroline Stone Ruppar says
I’m usually not a Fan of turkey soup but this was good. I replaced the couscous with a package of Near East Couscous with Garlic and Olive Oil, including the seasoning packet. After the recipe suggested cooking time, I put it in a slow cooker for several hours. It was awesome. The couscous became soft and made more like a stew than a soup.
Fran Bianchi says
This Turkey soup was so good! I cooked it in the crock pot on high for 1 hour and low for 5 hours. After 3 hours I added some frozen green beans and some frozen white corn and some leftover brown rice. I also added the juice of 1/2 a lemon. Delish! Thank you for another great easy recipe
Carol says
This soup is great! Used my left over Turkey from Thanksgiving and homemade Turkey broth. Followed the recipe exactly and it turned out great! Will make again.
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Thank you for your feedback, Carol. I am so pleased you enjoyed this soup.
Lillian Hamilton says
This was an absolutely delicious way to use leftover turkey. It’s a light, healthy meal after all the heavy Thanksgiving feasting.
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Thank you, Lilian. I always make a pot of soup when I feel like I need a break from heavy feasting! 🙂
Carmella Tuliszewski says
A really good, basic soup. I always make stock the day after Thanksgiving with our turkey carcass. And used it with this recipe. I subed orzo for the pearl pasta and added extra celery and carrots. Excellent!
Barbara says
Too much celery for me. I did not enjoy this soup.
DebS says
Unfortunately, I can’t have barley or couscous. What would the timing be if I used quinoa instead?
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Hi Deb quinoa takes about 15 minutes to cook.
Leigh N says
This soup was extremely yummy. My 5 & 9 year old both has seconds and said it was the best soup ever! I didn’t have giant cuscus so I put in egg noodles instead and definitely was a hit using up extra thanksgiving turkey!
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
So glad to hear it, Leigh!
Melissa says
I’m not a huge fan of traditional turkey so decided to try this recipe so that our left over turkey did not go to waste. Then recipe is soooo good! Bonus was that it was so easy as well. I will definitely be making this again.
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Thank you for the lovely review, Melissa!
Dagan S. Broad says
Just made this using brined turkey leftovers and it turned out amazing! The only other variation to the recipe was I used 3 1/2 cups of store bought chicken stock as we only had 3 1/2 cups from the Thanksgiving turkey stock we did in the crock pot. My mom says the final result is ‘the greatest turkey soup’ she has ever tasted, also swears by the brining of the turkey making a big difference in flavour. I can’t argue with mom. Thanks for the recipe!
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Thanks so much for sharing this with me, Dagan!
JenP says
This was so good. Even my fussy eater 12 year old liked it! The couscous nailed it down.
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Always happy to hear when my recipe is approved by a fussy kid!! Best feeling ever.
Gail Machado says
Made this soup tonight using leftover turkey I had made in the crockpot for sandwiches. It came out delicious! Will definitely double up the recipe next time. Thank you for the recipe!
vikalinka says
My pleasure, Gail! Yes, I love having a double batch in the fridge for lunches in the coming week. I feel so organised when I do!
Bill Wilger says
I just made this recipe and it was delicious. Perfect way to share leftover turkey.
vikalinka says
Thank you so much, Bill. I am so glad you enjoyed it!
Dani says
This is an amazing recipe! I made it for a potluck and everyone raved about it. I used the pearl (israeli) couscous for everyone else, but subbed rice/or cauli rice for mine since I am gluten free. I did not use thyme and of course used homemade stock.
vikalinka says
Thank you for much for your review, Dani! Homemade stock makes everything better, doesn’t it?!
Jenna Tanis says
Could I make this in my Instant Pot? I could saute the veggies and then set it all to pressure cook but I’m not sure how long to cook it for.
vikalinka says
Hi Jenna, I would cook it on high pressure for 5 minutes, then add the couscous or noodles and finish using the saute option.
Danielle Crail says
That is how I made it both times. I just saute all of my aromatics in the Instant Pot, then cook everything on High pressure (sans couscous) for about 10 minutes, quick release, stir in the couscous and just stick the lid back on to soak until cooked through. If you need it quicker, use the Saute function for about 10 minutes.
vikalinka says
Great tips, Danielle!
Lucy Parissi says
I love having turkey leftovers especially for recipes like this one! Seriously good and feels so much healthier than all the festive eats… YUM
vikalinka says
I am also someone who gets super excited about turkey leftovers! 🙂
Nancy says
The first time(after 50+ years of marriage) that I have ever made soup with a leftover turkey carcass. This was delicious! I did use leftover, but fresh, thyme and rosemary. Also used orzo. My family loved it. Thank you so much for a simple, fresh recipe.
vikalinka says
Thank you for such a lovely review, Nancy! I am beyond pleased you enjoyed this soup recipe!
Ann says
Yes , good idea ! My friend which he has no family really so he has dinner with us a lot of times he mentioned putting barley in my turkey soup ! When I go it make it
So today when I make this soup I will add barley
Would that work ?????
vikalinka says
Hi Ann, yes it will work but barley takes longer to cook than couscous, so I would adjust cooking time.
Renee says
Delicious! Just made with the small pieces of turkey remains. Followed most ingredients, but I didn’t have thyme and chose not to use bay leaf. Did use Chicken base instead of broth or stock. Also used Ditalini noodles. Had great flavor and I’ll definitely make again! Thank you for sharing!
vikalinka says
I am so pleased to hear it, Renee! It’s such a simple soup but it works as a whole!