Easy Homemade Turkey Soup
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Making homemade turkey soup after your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner is super easy and a delicious way to use all the leftovers. This is the basic, easy homemade turkey soup recipe you remember your mom making. It's delicious!
If you're looking for a turkey soup with a twist, try our Thai coconut turkey soup and our turkey pot pie soup!
It's that time of year again, friends! Time to grab our soup pots and get ready to dig into a warm and delicious bowl of post-Thanksgiving turkey soup!
This is a recipe that we've made a million times. Or at least once a year for the past 20-something years ā pretty close to a million.
Why we love this turkey soup recipe
- It reminds us of home and family and being a kid. It's the same exact recipe that mom made after every Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner so there's big-time nostalgia going on here.
- It's super easy to make.
- The broth, made from simmering that pile of turkey bones you have, is unbelievably flavorful.
- Eating a bowl of this turkey soup is like getting a big hug. Honestly, it's all good feelings here.
Ingredients in turkey soup
To make homemade turkey soup, you'll start by simmering the bones from your roast turkey in water to create a wonderfully rich and flavorful broth. Once you have your turkey stock, you'll need these ingredients for the soup:
- Olive oil ā to sautĆ© the vegetables.
- Onion, carrots, and celery ā the classic turkey soup trio.
- Turkey meat ā this comes from the roast turkey. If you don't have enough leftover turkey, you can use chicken instead.Ā Ā
- Sea salt ā helps to bring out all the other flavors.Ā
- Cooked egg noodles ā we love noodles in our turkey soup! It's best to cook them separately and add them to your bowl otherwise the noodles will go mushy if you have leftover soup.
How to make homemade turkey soup
The recipe goes something like this:
- Grab your biggest pot (or crockpot!), pop in the turkey bones, and fill the pot with water.
- Simmer. Keep simmering. Strain.
- SautƩ some onions, carrots, and celery.
- Now add the turkey broth you just made and some leftover turkey meat. Easy!
What makes this the best homemade turkey soup
This soup is 90% about the delicious homemade turkey stock. You could drink the stock on its own it's so good.
It's also ridiculously easy to make. All you're going to do is remove as much of the meat as you can from the turkey carcass, break the bones into a few pieces so that they fit into your largest pot or crockpot, then fill it with water. You'll slowly simmer the stock overnight and wake up to the most amazing-smelling home and a pot of tasty turkey broth.
You'll notice that we don't add anything other than the turkey bones to the pot. While you certainly can add herbs, onion, carrots, etc., it's really not necessary. The roasted turkey is all the flavor you need.
How to store turkey soup?
If you have leftover turkey soup, store it in an airtight container in your fridge. It will keep for up to 3 days.
Can I freeze turkey soup?
Yes! Turkey soup freezes very well! Simply let it cool completely and then store it in freezerproof containers for up to 3 months. We love reusable Stasher freezer bags for freezing soups.
Wondering what to do with all your Thanksgiving leftovers?
If you have a pile of turkey dinner leftovers in your fridge, here are a few of our other favorite recipe that put them to good use.
Thanksgiving Leftovers Eggs BenedictĀ
Roasted Brussels Sprouts Pizza
Leftover Turkey Shepherd's Pie
For more inspiration, check out all of our turkey dinner leftover recipes!
What to serve with turkey soup
To really take this meal over the top, serve it with a thick slice of our no yeast bread with herbs and cheese. You could even try making your own homemade butter to slather on top!
It's also nice as a side with a turkey sandwich!
Recipe FAQs
Can I make turkey soup with storebought broth?
While you certainly can, it will alter the recipe significantly. Homemade broth is wonderfully flavorful and has a rich mouthfeel that storebought broth simply doesn't match.
How can I add more flavor to turkey soup?
Using homemade turkey stock is the best way to ensure your turkey soup has lots of flavor. But if you'd like even more, you can reduce the stock by boiling it. Or you can add a pinch of poultry seasoning. Also, don't forget to salt the soup!
What is the best way to thicken turkey soup?
Homemade turkey stock has a rich, viscous mouthfeel because of the natural collagen and gelatin. But if you would like it to be a little thicker, you can add a tablespoon of all-purpose flour after you saute the vegetables.
Do I need to add the noodles?
This recipe is how we typically make homemade turkey soup.Ā If you choose to add egg noodles and turn this recipe into a homemade turkey noodle soup, cook them separately and add them to each bowl of soup to prevent them from getting over-cooked and mushy. If you'd rather have a homemade turkey vegetable soup, or you eat paleo/keto/gluten-free, simply leave the noodles out.
More leftover turkey recipes
Homemade Turkey Soup Recipe
Ingredients
Turkey Stock
- Bones from your roast turkey
Homemade Turkey Soup
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion (minced)
- 3 large carrots (chopped)
- 4 stalks celery (chopped)
- 6 cups turkey stock
- 3 cups reserved turkey meat (see notes)
- Sea salt (to taste)
- Optional: cooked egg noodles
Instructions
Turkey Stock
- Remove all of the meat from the turkey and reserve 3 cups for the soup. If you've cooked your stuffing in the turkey, make sure to remove it all.Bones from your roast turkey
- Break the roast turkey into 3 or 4 pieces that are small enough that they will fit into your largest pot. Fill the pot with cold water so that the water comes 2-inches above the bones. Bring the pot almost to a boil then reduce the heat so that it is barely simmering. You want the water to move around and a few small bubbles to rise, but not to boiling. Cook for 8-10 hours, leaving the lid off. (See notes if you'd like to use your crockpot instead.)
- Strain the turkey stock through a colander into a large bowl and discard the bones. Strain the stock once more through a fine-mesh sieve. You can either use the turkey stock immediately or let it cool and refrigerate it for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 3 months.
Homemade Turkey Soup
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. Add the carrot and cook until it begins to brown in a few places, about 5 minutes.1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 medium onion, 3 large carrots
- Add the celery, turkey stock, and reserved turkey meat to the pot and bring it to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until the carrots and celery are soft. Season to taste generously with sea salt.4 stalks celery, 6 cups turkey stock, 3 cups reserved turkey meat, Sea salt
- If you're using the egg noodles, add them cooked to your soup bowl, ladle in the soup, and garnish with a little sprinkle of parsley.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
For more inspiration, check out all of our soup recipes!
Making this soup tonight looking forward to enjoying it with my family
Are you able to use drippings to make gravy with the broth in the bottoms of the roasting pan?
You could definitely use some of the broth to make gravy!
Very easy to make. I used the crockpot method for the broth. Used a variety of seasonings as it defiantly needed more than just salt. Turned out absolutely delicious!
This is a totally decent recipe. I didnāt have any turkey meat, so got some chicken thighs as recommended and cooked in the broth. I would highly recommend either using breasts or trimming as much fat as possible from the thighs- I trimmed a lot off them and it was still too fatty. Also, I seasoned the soup with fresh ground pepper, it really needs more than just the sea salt.
Perfect Easy Soup…. I just add a little garlic and spinach ?
I’m a newbie at making soup and get frustrated because I have questions and do not wish to ruin this great turkey stock. 1. Do i skim the fat off the stock before using for soup? 2. If I saute the vegetables, do I still need to boil them? Stupid questions I know, but I so would like to make something good.
Most of the time, I leave the fat in turkey stock. (I do remove it from beef stock though as there’s usually a lot of it.) If you want to remove it, strain the turkey stock into a large mixing bowl then put it into your fridge for at least 24 hours. The fat will solidify on top and you’ll be able to easily scrape it off. You can use the fat for cooking; it’s tasty!
Sauteeing the veggies makes them more sweet and flavorful so you don’t want to skip this step. They only need to be simmered briefly to soften them completely. š
Can you use vegetable broth or chicken broth if you donāt have turkey broth? Thank you!Ā
Chicken broth would be the best substitute in this recipe. Just make sure it’s either homemade or a quality store-bought bone broth for the best flavor.
Kristen, your writing is so cute and a joy to read. And this soup sounds delectable. āŗļø
Thank you, Alex!
Nice ‘Rosol’ soup you have there š
haha I had to look up what that meant! Looks like Poland has their own version of chicken/turkey soup. š
Love this recipe and making it with the bone broth is so rich and healthy. Nice basic recipe and easy. (I do bone broth in pressure cooker.) Thank you for recipe.
Also to defat the broth, being very cold outside, I put the pot outside in garage overnight. Besides there was no room in refrigerator.
I almost always do the same with mine!
You’re so welcome, Joan!
Try putting all the carrots, onions, celery along with the spices you have listed as well as a package of frozen peas and a half pound of barley or rice and not making stock but a hearty soup! I cook it basically 2 hrs, pull all the bones and skin etc and serve!!
Good idea!
The soup turned out rancid. I kept it at low all night for 10 hours until the next morning. Then I refrigerated it. We were going to have it for lunch, but it was sour.
This recipe is horrible. We could have all gotten extremely sick. Luckily I tasted it before hand and realized it was rotten.
Please do not make this for your family.
I suspect that the temperature was too low. When making the stock, the water should be hot enough to move around with little bubbles rising. If it’s not moving at all, it won’t be hot enough to be safe to eat.
That wasnāt nice of Mr. Anonymous. He clearly messed it up. You took the time to write out a nice recipe that reminds you of happy family times and he had to say all that?
Maybe you shouldn’t have used that turkey you bought out of that guy’s trunk on that NYC street corner in the South Bronx.
Turkey soup has been a family tradition in my family for a long long time. Im almost 70 an learned it from my grandma.. But were going back many a years where u used everything. in it. with that said lets see how strange this get an if anyone wants to experament wth it. Dont forget the little dab of (homemade ofcourse) stuffing ,an that dab of cranberries. an if you had a vegie like corn yes throw that in too. even peppers are good. Like said no waste in this family. youll be surprised @ how good it can be. an if you love garlic like us throw in a dash of it to.
I’ll have to try adding a little cranberry sauce and stuffing next year!
Thank you Very Much!
You’re so welcome!
Yet another great recipe Kristen.
If I’m short on meat I’ll roast turkey neck bones then painstakingly separate the meat & use the bones for stock. Gives the soup a stronger turkey flavour but a real pain.
That’s dedication! But a really good idea. š
I could go for a big bowl of this right now. It looks amazingly delicious.
Thank you! We love it. š