Butter Turkey Curry
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Looking for an irresistibly delicious turkey curry recipe? Every year after our Thanksgiving feast, we save the leftover turkey for this recipe. It’s become a tradition in my kitchen, and my family LOVES the flavor!
Alanah says, “Love love love, I’ve made this so many times it’s easy and very tasty, my whole family loves it xx ★★★★★”
Put your hand up if you LOVE butter chicken! I thought you might. That’s why I made us this butter turkey curry. This curry with turkey is a staple in my house whenever we have leftovers from Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Whether you’re seeking a lighter protein for a comforting curry or aiming to make the most of your Thanksgiving leftovers, this dish is the perfect solution. I love that I can turn leftovers into a completely different meal.
Why you’re going to love butter turkey curry
Whether you’re looking for a way to give leftover turkey a new taste, or after leaner way to enjoy a warming curry, there are many reasons to love this turkey curry. This is why my family loves it:
- Comfort: The curry sauce in this recipe is based off my butter chicken recipe that I’ve been making for YEARS – it’s the most delicious, rich, and creamy butter chicken sauce! So good you’ll want to eat it by the spoonful. At your kitchen counter.
- Use up leftovers: Eating Christmas or Thanksgiving leftovers can feel monotonous at times, but this turkey curry recipe makes it feel brand new. It’s a leftovers recipe for people who don’t like leftovers!
- Lean protein: The bigger pieces of pulled turkey make this so much better than a ground turkey curry!
- Easy peasy: It’s a breeze to whip this curry up! Like many curry recipes, it’s quite forgiving and you can adjust the spice blend according to your tastes.
- Crowd-pleaser: Everyone will love this! My daughter gives two thumbs up, so it’s safe to say it’s also kid-approved.
Tips for the perfect turkey curry
Whipping up this turkey curry recipe is simple, and it only takes a total time of 35 minutes. Despite the ease, there are a few tricks to keep in mind to make preparation a breeze.
- Caramelized onions: Brown the onions well. They add the most amazing flavor and contribute to the sweetness of the curry, so don’t rush this step.
- Toast the spices: First, while the onions are cooking, put all the spices in a small bowl to make it easier to add them to the pan once the onions are brown. Once you’ve added the spices, give them a minute to toast up, releasing their aroma. This will help add aroma and a deeper flavor. Do the same with the garlic and ginger.
- Smooth it out: My recipe calls for the use of a blender. While I prefer to use fewer appliances where possible, the creamy texture that results is totally worth busting out the blender. You could also use an immersion blender.
- Almond butter: One thing that’s unique about my recipe is the use of almond butter. I love this as it adds a rich and creamy texture and a nutty undertone, which melds perfectly into the curry. This also means you can use less cream to keep it lighter!
- Cook the rice: If you’re serving this with rice, you can start the rice first. It will finish cooking before the butter chicken is ready, but you can remove it from the heat and set it aside until everything else is done.
What to serve with turkey curry
Like all curries, I love enjoying my turkey curry with a garnish of cilantro sprinkled on top, a squeeze of lime juice, naan bread on the side, and a steaming bowl of basmati rice – or cauliflower rice for a lighter option.
If you want to make some sides to make it a spread, this roasted tandoori cauliflower pairs perfectly. Other veggies that go well on the side include creamy cucumber salad, or sauteed asparagus.
Butter Turkey Curry Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 2 medium yellow onions (roughly chopped)
- 3 tablespoons chopped ginger
- 6 cloves garlic (crushed)
- 28 ounce can of crushed or diced tomatoes
- 1 lb cooked turkey (shredded)
- ¼ cup cream, yogurt, or coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons almond butter
- 2-4 tablespoons coconut sugar
- Sea salt (to taste)
The Spices
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ to 1 teaspoon chili powder (depending on how spicy you like your curry)
- seeds from 4 cardamom pods
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and let it cook until it is well browned, about 10 minutes. While the onion is cooking, place all the spices into a small bowl.2 tablespoons cooking oil, 2 medium yellow onions, 1 tablespoon garam masala, 1 teaspoon ground turmeric, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ¼ to 1 teaspoon chili powder, seeds from 4 cardamom pods
- Add the ginger, garlic, and spices to the pot and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and a half cup of water to the pot and scrape the bottom of the pot to remove any stuck on bits. Let the pot simmer, partially covered to reduce splatters, for 15 minutes.3 tablespoons chopped ginger, 6 cloves garlic, 28 ounce can of crushed or diced tomatoes
- Carefully transfer to a blender and blend on high until smooth. Return the curry to the pot, add turkey, cream (or yogurt or coconut milk), almond butter, and sugar and heat through. Season to taste with sea salt.1 lb cooked turkey, ¼ cup cream, yogurt, or coconut milk, 2 tablespoons almond butter, 2-4 tablespoons coconut sugar
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Notes
Nutrition
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Love this! We just had Canadian Thanksgiving and wanted to use our leftovers up! It is very forgiving. I added raw cashews instead of almond butter. Tossed in some canned chickpeas, leftover carrots and corn from our dinner. Tasty!
I’m so glad you loved it! What a smart way to use Thanksgiving leftovers — the swaps you made sound delicious and hearty!
Hi there. Did you use green or black cardamom, or does it matter?
We use green cardamom. It’s smaller and has a slightly stronger flavor. 🙂
I didn’t have garam masala, so I just used yellow curry powder. I’m also not one to measure ingredients, so it wasn’t exact…but this combination of ingredients is so yummy!
This curry is really delicious
my family loved it
cooking it again tonight , easy to follow
Thankyou xxx
This is really good and easy to make. Just making again!
I didn’t have almond butter so used ground almonds and butter! also added a little heavy cream. Lovely recipe this is now firmly in my Christmas leftover favourites.
This was such a delicious way to use up leftover turkey. Such a moreish flavour, i will definitely be making again. I didn’t have almond butter so used ground almonds and coconut cream instead of coconut milk. I also topped it with lots of fresh coriander and a squeeze of lime to freshen it up a bit. Can’t wait til next years leftovers.
Really enjoyed this ….. delicious. I added a full can of coconut milk, 3 table spoons of sugar and balanced the sweetness with a good sprinkle of salt. Yum.
I doubled the measurements as I had a kilo of leftover turkey! I added red lentils, butternut squash and spinach and subbed sugar with mango chutney. Winner Winner Turkey dinner x
What would you recommend if you don’t have any almond butter at home?
The almond butter adds richness to the dish without having to add a ton of cream. You could use another nut butter like cashew or tahini. I would stay away from peanut as it would dramatically change the flavor. Or you simply add more cream. 🙂
This was a delicious way to change up that leftover Christmas turkey. We all really enjoyed it. I served it with steamed basmati rice and pappadams and sprinkled some cashews and chopped parsley on top. (I would have used coriander if I’d had some). It’s a winner!
The butter turkey curry was outstanding even without the almond butter. Leftover Thanksgiving turkey became a scarce commodity after using it for this dish. I threw in a few fistfuls of baby spinach and served it with rice. The blender step is more mess than necessary because a wand blender accomplishes the same thing with no mess. Sign me up for your leftover turkey!
Can the sauce be frozen please. So it can be made in advance ?
Yes it can! It freezes very well. 🙂