This quick and delicious leftover turkey soup is an easy, budget-friendly recipe using all Thanksgiving leftovers. Packed with veggies, turkey, and rice, this soup is true comfort food in under 30 minutes. Use the whole carcass for additional flavor, or not. Either way, you will love this warm and savory soup.
The Thanksgiving feast has come and gone, leaving behind a bounty of delicious leftovers But what to do with that leftover turkey carcass? Don’t toss it! Instead, transform it into a warm and comforting instant pot turkey carcass soup that will have you savoring the holiday spirit all week long
We’ve scoured the web and found two fantastic recipes that will help you make the most of your Thanksgiving leftovers. Both recipes are easy to follow and use the Instant Pot to create a flavorful and satisfying soup in no time.
Recipe 1: Pressure Cooker Day-After-Thanksgiving Turkey Carcass Soup from DadCooksDinner
This recipe from DadCooksDinner is a classic. It’s simple, straightforward, and packed with flavor. The pressure cooker helps to extract all the goodness from the turkey carcass, creating a rich and flavorful broth.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Leftover turkey carcass with clinging meat
- Onion, celery, and carrot
- Bay leaves, salt, and pepper
- Water
- Leftover turkey meat
- Butter, onion, celery, and carrot
- Thyme, salt, and pepper
- Cornstarch and water
- Egg noodles
- Parsley for garnish
Here’s how to make it:
- Break up the turkey carcass and add it to the pressure cooker with the onion, celery, carrot, bay leaves, salt, and pepper.
- Add water to cover the ingredients and pressure cook for 60 minutes (electric) or 50 minutes (stovetop).
- Let the pressure release naturally for 30 minutes, then remove the bones and vegetables.
- Strain the broth and reserve 2 quarts for the soup.
- Sauté the remaining onion, celery, and carrot in butter.
- Add the turkey broth, leftover turkey meat, corn starch slurry, and egg noodles.
- Simmer until the noodles are tender and season to taste.
- Garnish with parsley and enjoy!
Recipe 2: Easy Instant Pot Leftover Turkey Soup Recipe from What Great Grandma Ate
This recipe from What Great Grandma Ate is a bit more modern and uses a few additional ingredients to create a unique and flavorful soup. The addition of rice and lemon juice adds a touch of brightness and complexity to the dish.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Leftover turkey meat
- Leftover turkey carcass (optional)
- Ghee or cooking oil
- Onion, celery, and carrot
- Garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper
- Chicken broth or water
- White rice (optional)
- Lemon juice
- Fresh parsley for garnish
Here’s how to make it:
- Remove the turkey meat from the bones and dice it.
- Sauté the onion, celery, and carrot in ghee or oil until softened.
- Add the garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the turkey meat, turkey carcass (if using), chicken broth or water, rice (if using), salt, and pepper.
- Pressure cook on high for 10 minutes, then release the pressure naturally for 10 minutes.
- Remove the turkey carcass and bones.
- Add lemon juice and season to taste.
- Garnish with parsley and enjoy!
Tips and Tricks:
- For a richer flavor, use the leftover turkey carcass to make the broth.
- If you don’t have a turkey carcass, you can use chicken broth or water instead.
- Feel free to add other vegetables to the soup, such as green beans or potatoes.
- You can also add a splash of cream or coconut milk to the soup for a richer flavor.
- Leftover turkey carcass soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days or frozen for up to 4 months.
So there you have it! Two delicious and easy recipes for instant pot turkey carcass soup. With these recipes, you can easily transform your Thanksgiving leftovers into a warm and comforting meal that the whole family will enjoy. So grab your Instant Pot and get cooking!
Additional Resources:
- Pressure Cooker Day-After-Thanksgiving Turkey Carcass Soup from DadCooksDinner: https://www.dadcooksdinner.com/pressure-cooker-day-after-thanksgiving-turkey-carcass-soup/
- Easy Instant Pot Leftover Turkey Soup Recipe from What Great Grandma Ate: https://whatgreatgrandmaate.com/quick-leftover-turkey-soup-instant-pot/
- Instant Pot Turkey Soup Recipe from The Modern Proper: https://themodernproper.com/instant-pot-turkey-soup
- Instant Pot Leftover Turkey Soup Recipe from The Spruce Eats: https://www.thespruceeats.com/instant-pot-leftover-turkey-soup-recipe-435499
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Watch Instant Pot Turkey Soup Recipe Video
For a full list of ingredients, jump to the recipe card below.
After all the cooking you did over the holidays, you most likely have all the ingredients for this leftover turkey soup. It’s a simple and budget-friendly list of ingredients that come together to make the most delicious soup.
- Cooked Turkey Meat: This recipe works well with leftover chicken, rotisserie chicken, or cooked chicken breasts. You can use white, dark, or a combination of both types of meat!
- While it’s entirely optional, I strongly advise adding any leftover turkey carcass or bones. It will create a flavorful soup with leftover turkey carcass that is simply delicious. It also makes homemade turkey stock/turkey broth in the process!.
- Ghee: You can use any cooking oil you have on hand, but I personally love to cook with ghee. If you want to use ghee, you can either buy this brand, which is my favorite, or make your own.
- Vegetables: Diced onion, celery, carrots, and minced garlic; if desired, add green beans!
- Thyme: While I prefer the taste of fresh thyme, you can substitute 1/3 of a cup of dried thyme.
- Water can be substituted for the turkey carcass in chicken broth. The bones will add enough flavor to the water.
- White Rice: This is another optional ingredient. Simply leave this out if you are making soup for the Whole30 or Paleo diet. If preferred, you can also use brown rice or a blend of wild rice.
- New Herbs
- Lemon Juice: If you’re short on time, you can use a bottle of lemon juice, but fresh lemon juice is preferable.
Instant Pot Turkey Soup
- Chop the turkey meat after removing the bones to yield two cups. If available, save the bones to add to the soup.
- Set the Instant Pot pressure cooker to sauté and add your preferred cooking oil, such as ghee, to the pot.
- Stir-fry the onion, carrot, and celery for five minutes, or until the vegetables are soft.
- Add the thyme and garlic, and cook for one minute while stirring.
- After turning off the Instant Pot, add the rice, salt, pepper, chicken broth (or water if adding bones), any leftover turkey, and any leftover bones.
- Stir together, then secure the lid. Cook on HIGH pressure for 10 minutes. Let go of the pressure naturally for ten minutes after it beeps to stop. Manually release remaining pressure.
- Add the lemon juice and scrape out any bones or carcass from the turkey. Taste to add more salt if needed.