Leftover Turkey Soup Recipe

When your turkey carcass is nearly picked clean, and there is nothing left but the bones, you can use the left overs to make a delicious turkey soup. This recipe takes virtually no skills as cook, since it is as easy as boiling up some water on the stove, and cutting up a few vegetables. You will also need a large stock pot and a strainer.

The key to any good soup is the flavor of the broth, and a traditional turkey broth is very easy to make. Here are the steps for a traditional turkey broth:

1. Take your turkey carcass and remove as much meat as you can, and set the meat aside. You can use the meat you set aside, plus any other meat you have left over, when you are ready to make the soup.

2. Place the leftover turkey carcass in a large stock pot. If it does not fit, you may need to break up the bones. Cover the bones completely with water. You may fill the pot as deep as you like, depending the the amount of broth you wish to make. Remember that you can always make plenty of extra broth and freeze for use in the future. You can add more flavor to the broth by placing one or two pieces of celery along with an onion.

3. Bring the pot of water with the carcass to boiling, and then turn down the heat so that it is simmer. Let it simmer for 3 or 4 hours. If you find that there is fat or foam floating along the top, you can skim it off. By this time, you can flavor with a pinch or two of salt and pepper.

4. After several hours of simmering, remove the bones and any vegetables that were added. You may wish to run your broth through a strainer.

Now your broth is ready to use for the soup. Take the portion of broth out that you wish to use for your soup, usually about a quart or two of liquid. Add a cup of diced celery, a cup of diced onions, and a cup of diced carrots. And don't forget to add any additional turkey that you picked off the carcass. Let these cook on low heat in the broth for about an hour. You can add whatever seasonings that you prefer. You can add poultry seasoning, sage, thyme, marjoram, or a bouillion cube. My favorite is to include several slices of ginger root. If you have any cooked rice on hand, then you can add this just before serving the soup, so that it does not soak up too much broth. Serve piping hot.