| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 2 hr 30 min |
| Prep: | 30 min |
| Cook: | 2 hr |
| Yield: | 6 to 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 turkey carcass, all meat removed
- 1 carrot, halved lengthwise, plus 1 carrot, minced
- 1 whole stalk celery, plus 1 stalk, minced
- 1 onion, halved, plus 1 onion, minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 cups dark turkey meat
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cups leftover cooked Thanksgiving side vegetables (Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, green beans)
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
- Mashed Potato Polpetti (Patties), for serving, recipe following
- 3 cups mashed potatoes
- Grey salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
- All-purpose flour, for dredging
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Leftover gravy, for serving
Instructions
- Put the chicken broth, turkey, carrot halves, celery stalk, onion halves and 1 bay leaf in a large stockpot. Bring to a boil and then simmer, about 1 1/2 hours.
- Dice the turkey meat. Make sure the meat pieces are no larger than the size of a soupspoon. (If preparing the soup the next day, be sure to store leftover turkey meat in an airtight container before placing it in the refrigerator. Top with 1 or 2 ladles full of broth to keep the meat moist.)
- Before straining the broth, remove the large bones and carcass with tongs. Strain the broth through a sieve covered with wet cheesecloth. Discard the solids. Transfer the broth to a bowl set in a bath of ice water, which will cool the broth quickly and help keep it fresher longer. This can be done the night before and stored in the refrigerator until the next day.
- In a large soup pot, heat the garlic in the olive oil over medium heat. Allow to brown slightly, about 3 minutes. Add the minced carrots, celery and onions. Sweat over medium-low heat until softened, 7 or 8 minutes.
- Dice the leftover Thanksgiving vegetables. Add the sage to the soup pot along with the turkey broth and the remaining bay leaf. Bring to a simmer. When simmering, add the Brussels sprouts, green beans and diced turkey meat to the soup. Bring it back up to a simmer. Finally, add the sweet potatoes to the center and gently push them down. Turn the heat off and cover. Allow to sit and steam, 5 to 7 minutes. Let simmer for 5 more minutes and serve with the Mashed Potato Polpetti.
- Re-season the potatoes with salt and pepper. Stir in the cheese. Take a mayonnaise or peanut butter lid and line with plastic wrap to use as a mold. Pack the potato mixture into the lid, unwrap it and place the patty on a baking sheet. You may refrigerate them covered with plastic wrap until the next day, or fry immediately.
- To cook, dredge the patties in flour. Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Just before frying, dredge the patties again with flour.
- Add the patties to the oil without crowding them (you may have to cook them in batches). Cook until the underside is golden brown, about 5 minutes. Flip and brown the other side. Remove from the skillet and drain on paper towels. Serve hot with leftover gravy. Makes 6 servings.
- From Food Network Kitchens; after further testing and to ensure the best results this recipe has been altered from what was in the actual episode.
Reviews
You can also use this carcass broth as a base for a beef stew & believe me everyone will wonder how it’s so tasty
The broth was delicious, this would tastes totally different depending on what your left-overs were……..I didn’t have much so doubled up on celery, onion and carrots, added pasta, overall very good soup.
This was a very easy and delicious recipe. What a great way to use holiday leftovers! I only had green beans to add to the dark meat turkey but it certainly did’t taste like anything was missing. I did not make the mashed potato patties.
The recipe is really good. Especially the use of leftover mashed potatoes.
This is a straightforward comfort food recipe. I modified it a bit as I did not have all the same ingredients. I used dry sage instead of fresh. I stored mine overnight in the fridge. I prefer soups the next day, so the flavors can mingle better. I served mine over cooked white rice. The whole family liked this recipe. The sage, bay leaf, salt and pepper, and garlic are key. I also made the potato patties. Again, the potato patties were a hit with my clan. It’s a great way to use leftover mashed potatoes. Easy. Directions are simple and clear. I placed my cooked patties on a wire baking rack seated in a foil-lined rectangular, metal baking pan. Then, I placed them in the oven at 250 degrees until we were ready to eat. This is a new family favorite. Thanks for these recipes.
I’m curious how this would work in a pressure cooker…
Can anyone assist?
Can anyone assist?
Loved it. I did not make the potato patties. Thanks Michael.
I didn’t make the polpetti so this review is just for the soup. I was looking for a recipe to use the carcass, b/c it seemed like such a waste to throw away. This recipe is excellent. I was worried that since our turkey was grilled it would add too strong of a flavor for 8 cups of chicken broth. So I decided to double the recipe and use 10 cups water, 6 cups of broth. It worked out perfectly. Personally for me it still a little strong but everyone else loved it. We didn’t have any sides leftover so I just bought 2 potatoes, 1 sweet potato, and some green beans. I also added quinoa. We also only had about 2 cups of turkey meat. But that broth made up for that. It was delicious.
My mom cooked this yesterday because their was so much turkey leftover and she did not want for it to waste, It was so delicious! I had about 3 bowls. A fantastic way to get rid of holiday leftovers
I can see where this soup will be different every year you make it depending on what you have on hand. I had leftover green beans cooked with ham and a red pepper so that added a nice flavor dimension. But my sweet potatoes this year were a mashed sweet potato/russet potato combination. I reluctantly added 2 scoops of them to the broth since I didn’t have the potato chunks. I wish I hadn’t. The broth was so good before I messed with it. I wish I would have left well enough alone. Not that it made it bad….just not as good as it had been. I threw in some quick cooking brown rice and a small bag of corn and a few frozen peas since I didn’t feel I had enough going on. All of those were a good healthy addition. This is a great idea for using up leftover Thanksgiving Day food. Hopefully, next year I’ll have the sweet potatoes to add the way they were meant to be added. Then I think it will be the perfect soup.