Friday, December 26

11 Other Things to Do with Leftover Turkey

Besides reheating turkey and dressing for the next week, here are some ideas you can use to be a little more creative in finishing up the too-large turkey your family didn't eat on Christmas Day. Some of these ideas would work well with leftover ham or other meats as well.
  1. Turkey Vegetable Soup
  2. Saute a couple of carrots, a small onion, a few celery stalks, and a bell pepper (all diced) in butter or oil until softened. Add diced turkey and enough chicken or turkey broth to cover all the ingredients. Simmer 20 minutes to 1 hour. To make a cream soup, add a tablespoon or two of flour to the softened vegetables before adding broth and add a bit of cream to the soup at the end of cooking.

  3. Bone Broth
  4. Angela has an excellent broth-making tutorial on her food blog, Restricted Gourmet.

  5. Turkey Salad
  6. Simply add diced turkey to a green salad, or mix shredded turkey with a little mayonnaise, mustard, salt, pepper, celery, onion, apples, walnuts, or whatever you normally put in a chicken salad.

  7. Turkey Rice Casserole
  8. Make Wild Rice Casserole, substituting about a cup of diced or shredded turkey for the ground beef.

  9. Turkey Fried Rice
  10. Stir fry a couple cups of mixed vegetables: diced carrots, diced onions, peas, and a minced garlic clove or two. Add salt, pepper, and Chinese five spice powder or a dash each of cinnamon and ginger. Scramble two eggs (I usually do this in the center of the pan with all the vegetables--it doesn't matter if a few mix in, but you don't want egg-coated veggies). Add a handful of diced or shredded turkey and a few cups cooked rice. Sprinkle with soy sauce and let it all sizzle in the pan for a few minutes until heated through.

  11. "Pulled" Turkey
  12. Add a small diced onion and a few minced garlic cloves to a couple cups of shredded turkey (if turkey doesn't shred easily, let it simmer for 20 minutes in broth and cool before shredding). Cover with a cup of mustard; half a cup each brown sugar and vinegar; a tablespoon each butter, lemon juice, and paprika; and a teaspoon each salt, pepper, and cayenne. Mix well and serve on soft squishy sandwich buns.

  13. Turkey Pot Pie
  14. Using the Cream of Broccoli Soup recipe, substitute diced mixed vegetables (carrots, onions, peas, celery) for the broccoli. Make sure the soup is really thick before blending. Add a cup of diced or shredded turkey after blending the soup. Pour mixture into a double pastry crust and bake at 425°F for 30-40 minutes. Let cool another 10 minutes before serving.

  15. Creamed Turkey on Toast
  16. Make a white sauce using equal amounts melted butter and flour (about a quarter of a cup) with a dash each salt and pepper. Add a couple cups of milk, a cup of diced or shredded turkey, and a handful of cooked peas. Let boil one minute. Serve over toast, rice or biscuits.

  17. Molded Turkey Salad
  18. Let me preface this by saying I've never made a savory gelatin mold. But, if you're getting desperate to use up the turkey, this might be just what you're looking for.

    Dissolve a package of cranberry, orange or raspberry gelatin in 2 c boiling water. Stir in a teaspoon of salt and a quarter cup of broth. Let chill until gelatin begins to harden (1-2 hours in the refrigerator). Add a couple of celery stalks and a small onion (both minced or shredded) and two cups finely diced or shredded turkey. Return to refrigerator and let set completely (another 2-4 hours).

  19. Turkey Potstickers
  20. Blend together in food processor (or finely chop together) a cup of diced turkey, a couple of whole water chestnuts, a couple of mushrooms, a couple of green onions, and a teaspoon of soy sauce. Mix with one beaten egg. Drop by tablespoonfuls into wanton skins and press edges together with a fork to seal. Arrange a single layer of potstickers in a frying pan. Add a cup of water, cover, and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Drain any remaining water and add a couple of teaspoons of oil. Fry potstickers until golden and crispy on both sides.

  21. Turkey Sandiches
  22. Layer slices of turkey, cranberry sauce, lettuce, and fried onions between slices of your favorite sandwich bread.

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