Leftover Turkey Soup

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Leftover Turkey Soup is the delicious and nourishing result of Herb-Roasted Turkey and Homemade Turkey Broth. It’s flavored with fresh garlic and herbs, onions, and bay leaves. Throw in your favorite vegetables, or whatever is left in your pantry or crisper drawer, and enjoy this comforting dish! {Paleo}

Where does a food blogger, who grew up abhorring all things leftover, even begin with a recipe as satisfying as Leftover Turkey Soup? This soup keeps hunger at bay and flavors close to the palate. Furthermore, by the time you get to this recipe, the work has all been but done for you (and probably by you, as the case may be).

To make our Leftover Turkey Soup, we used the remains of Herb-Roasted Turkey and Homemade Turkey Broth, both of which you can make fairly easily. The turkey certainly requires more planning than the broth (unless your are short on glass storage jars). But even the turkey is manageable, and the leftovers are as good as when the holiday main dish is first served.

Spiriteds, there are so many ways to enjoy leftovers. And K-Hubs pointed out to me the key with leftovers is to not ignore them for too long. My childhood days of opening the Country Crock butter tub only to discover it didn’t contain butter are behind me. What was in that butter container? To this day, no one knows. But we’ll persevere and manage our leftovers with newly acquired aplomb.

And so we shall throw ourselves, rather figuratively, into this Leftover Turkey Soup, savoring all the flavors it bestows! 

Leftover Turkey Soup ingredients

• Turkey from Herb-Roasted Turkey (or other whole turkey recipe of choice). Enjoy as much as you want on the main day, and then refrigerate the leftover turkey in an airtight container until you’re ready for soup.
• Homemade Turkey Broth (from said Herb-Roasted turkey or other whole turkey of choice). This broth is one of my absolute favorites, and, yes, I use it in other recipes, including non-turkey recipes. But it’s a no-brainer here.
• Onion. Red, white, or yellow, it’s entirely up to you. Whatever you already have in your pantry will do just fine. This is a leftovers recipe, after all.
• Fresh garlic. And lots of it. Although, to be fair, your previously roasted turkey will have been well-seasoned, most likely. So add as many or as few as desired. I sliced mine, but you can press them, if you’d like.
• Bay leaves. To enhance the flavor. But if you don’t already have them on hand, then you can skip them.
• Fresh herbs. I finely chop the sage leaves. And I’m big on thyme and rosemary. For the thyme, I painstakingly remove the little leaves and add them to the soup. And for the rosemary, I add full sprigs and let the leaves naturally fall off while slow cooking. Honestly, you can do the same with the thyme sprigs. But it’s important to remember how many you added, and, therefore, how many to remove. Because those sprigs feel like a choking hazard just waiting to happen.
• Vegetables. Carrots, cauliflower, celery. Whatever strikes your fancy or qualifies as a leftover in your pantry or crisper drawer.
• Tapioca flour. Optional but highly suggested. Even a smidgeon of this flour will thicken your soup, and, as an added benefit, give it a slightly pearlized look. 
• Sea salt and pepper. To taste.

How to make Leftover Turkey Soup

1. Set a slow cooker to six hours. Then add the turkey broth and leftover turkey, along with onion, fresh garlic, bay leaves, fresh herbs, and vegetables. If desired, add one tablespoon of tapioca flour. If including cauliflower, add it during the latter half of the slow cooking process to prevent it from turning to mush. The same goes for celery.
2. When the cooking time is complete, remove the slow cooker lid to let the soup cool enough that it is safe to handle. Then remove the bay leaves and any stems from the herbs. Serve in deep bowls and add sea salt and pepper to taste.
3. Store leftovers in an airtight container for about two to three days.

More leftovers recipes

Instead of throwing out scraps, turn them into delicious leftovers! Creating gravies and broths are delicious ways to do just that!

• Gluten-Free Turkey Gravy
• Homemade Bone Broth
• Homemade Vegetable Broth

Spiriteds, I hope Leftover Turkey Soup and these leftovers sprinkled throughout this post nourish you. Stay well and stay wild. I’m glad you’re here. 🩷 

Leftover Turkey Soup

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Leftover Turkey Soup is the delicious and nourishing result of Herb-Roasted Turkey and Homemade Turkey Broth. It’s flavored with fresh garlic and herbs, onions, and bay leaves. Throw in your favorite vegetables, or whatever is left in your pantry or crisper drawer, and enjoy this comforting dish! {Paleo}

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 6 hours
• Total Time: 6 hours 15 minutes
• Yield: 6 servings 1x
• Category: Soups and Stews
• Method: Slow Cooker
• Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 2–3 cups leftover Herb-Roasted Turkey
• 2–3 cups Homemade Turkey Broth
• 1 onion, halved or quartered
• 4–6 cloves of fresh garlic, thinly sliced or pressed
• 2 bay leaves
• Fresh herbs, including sage, thyme, rosemary
• 1–2 cups chopped vegetables
• 1 tablespoon tapioca flour, optional
• Sea salt and coarse black pepper, to taste

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Instructions

1. Set a slow cooker to six hours. Then add the turkey broth and leftover turkey, along with onion, fresh garlic, bay leaves, fresh herbs, and vegetables. If desired, add one tablespoon of tapioca flour. If including cauliflower, add it during the latter half of the slow cooking process to prevent it from turning to mush. The same goes for celery.
2. When the cooking time is complete, remove the slow cooker lid to let the soup cool enough that it is safe to handle. Then remove the bay leaves and any stems from the herbs. Serve in deep bowls and add sea salt and pepper to taste.
3. Store leftovers in an airtight container for about two to three days.

Notes

• I don’t measure a specific amount of herbs in this recipe because I’m often using, you guessed it, leftovers from the whole turkey used as the base in this soup. Think a few loose handfuls. Nothing too scientific.