Siskiyou Cooks + Chefs: Turkey soup is a hearty leftover dish

Traditional Thanksgiving dinner in our house is turkey and all the fixings, dressing, cranberry jelly, mashed potatoes, baked sweet potatoes, roasted Brussel sprouts, mushroom gravy and turkey gravy. If not for leftovers it would be too much work for 20 minutes of eating. Leftovers can be made into turkey tacos, casseroles, sandwiches and soup. I usually make at least one meal that is simply all the dishes heated up. Then it is time for turkey soup. Plan ahead by saving vegetable bits you aren’t using, like the celery roots, carrot bottoms and onion skins and ends.
Turkey Stock is made by extracting the flavor and nutrients from turkey bones, vegetables and herbs. To make chicken stock just freeze the bones until you have enough to fill a stock pot.
Ingredients
Turkey carcass – remove the meat and crack the bones
Onion – chopped including the skin and ends
Carrot – 2 or 3 chopped
Celery - 4 to 6 stalks chopped
Rough chop any vegetable scraps you have from you meal prep including onion with skins, celery tops and bottoms, potato skins, Brussel sprout leaves, mushroom stems and carrots
Bay leaves - 3 or 4 leaves
Sage – 6” stalk of fresh or 2 tbsp dried
Rosemary – 2 - 5” stalks or 2 tbsp dried
Directions - Place all ingredients in a stock pot or Dutch oven and cover with water. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Cook for 4 to 5 hours. Stir occasionally. Turn off the heat and let the stock cool for about 30 to 45 minutes. Pour the stock through a strainer, return to a clean pot and refrigerate. Once the fat gels you can skim it off the top. Taste before adjusting the salt and pepper.
Turkey Soup – This is a basic recipe. Feel free to add any vegetables you like. Kale, cabbage and Brussel sprouts will add a green richness to the soup. Cubed sweet potatoes, acorn or butternut squash add sweetness. Add a teaspoon or two of Chinese five spice and lemon grass for an Asian twist. A can of diced tomatoes and oregano are inspired by Italian flavors. I tossed in the left over gravy into this soup.
Ingredients
1 tbsp oil or turkey fat
Onion – 1 medium chopped
Celery – 4 stalks chopped
Carrots – 3 stalks sliced
Garlic – 3 cloves minces
1 tsp dried or 1 tbsp fresh each – Sage, thyme and rosemary
Vermicelli noodle or 2 cubed potatoes or 1 cup cooked white, brown or cauliflower rice
Turkey stock – 8 cups – you can use homemade or 2 boxes of store bought. Chicken broth works, too.
Turkey – 1 to 2 cups shredded or cubed
Directions - Sauté onions, carrots and celery until translucent. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add turkey stock and bring to a boil. Add your starch and cook until noodles or potatoes are tender or rice is warmed. Turn the burner to low, add the turkey and warm for 20 to 30 minutes.
Lauri Sturdivant is interested in how our friends and families gather around a table sharing meals and telling stories. In this column she shares recipes and stories from people in Siskiyou County, and restaurant reviews from her travels. Read full interviews, find recipes and reviews at TheBillPlate.com.