A good pot of leftover turkey soup is the easiest way to turn roast turkey bones and scraps into a clean, savory meal instead of trash. This version builds a light stock from the carcass, then layers vegetables, herbs, and tender noodles so every spoonful tastes balanced rather than watery. You get a practical method that fits a real post-holiday kitchen, not a fussy restaurant recipe.
The appeal is mostly about control. You decide how thick the broth gets, how much turkey goes in, and whether you want it noodle-heavy or vegetable-forward. Because the base is homemade, leftover turkey soup tastes brighter than canned versions and uses meat that would otherwise sit in the fridge until it spoils.
If you roasted a dry brined turkey, the carcass already carries seasoned flavor, so you can skip extra salt early and adjust at the end. That single detail changes how you build the pot from step one. Making this leftover turkey soup at home is surprisingly straightforward once you know the key steps.
Why You’ll Love These Leftover Turkey Soup
- Uses the whole bird, including bones, so nothing from the roast goes to waste.
- Ready in about 40 minutes of active work if you already have a simple stock.
- Flexible with vegetables, so you can clear the crisper drawer after a big meal.
- Freezes cleanly for up to three months without the noodles turning to paste if you follow the storage split.
- Naturally low in cost because the main protein is something you already bought and cooked.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- 1 turkey carcass, broken into pieces (from a 10–14 lb roasted bird)
- 2 cups cooked turkey meat, shredded or diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced (about 1.5 cups)
- 3 medium carrots, sliced into half-moons (about 1.5 cups)
- 3 celery stalks, sliced (about 1.5 cups)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 cups water (or unsalted poultry stock if you skipped carcass stock)
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to finish
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup wide egg noodles (or small pasta)
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Ingredient Substitutions
Olive oil: Replace with 2 tablespoons of butter for a rounder, richer base flavor. Butter browns the onion and celery faster than olive oil, so keep the pan at medium-low heat to avoid scorching the milk solids. The finished broth will feel slightly silkier but will carry a dairy note that olive oil does not. The leftover turkey soup works well for weeknight cooking when time is limited.
Wide egg noodles: Swap for 1 cup of white rice to make the soup gluten free and a little heavier. Rice needs about 18–20 minutes of simmering to soften, so add it earlier than noodles and check that the grains are tender before serving. You lose the springy bite of egg pasta but gain a milder texture that holds up better in the freezer. Storing leftover leftover turkey soup correctly keeps it tasting good for days.
Fresh parsley: Use 1 teaspoon of dried parsley if you have no fresh herbs left after the holiday. Dried parsley loses the grassy top note, so add it with the bay leaves during the simmer instead of at the end. The color stays duller but the savory base remains intact.
Dried thyme: Replace with 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves stripped from the stem for a more resinous, woodsy aroma. Fresh thyme is less concentrated, so taste after 20 minutes of simmering and add a pinch more if the broth reads flat. It also looks better floating on top than dried specks do. If you enjoyed this, our turkey burgers spinach is worth trying next.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 6-quart stockpot over medium heat. Add the diced onion, carrots, and celery, then cook for 6–8 minutes until the onion turns translucent and the celery softens at the edges.
- Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 45 seconds until it smells toasty but not brown, then add the turkey carcass pieces, water, salt, pepper, thyme, and bay leaves.
- Bring the pot to a boil over high heat, then lower to medium-low heat and simmer uncovered for 25–30 minutes so the bones release gelatin and the broth turns lightly golden.
- Remove the carcass with tongs and discard the bones, then add the cooked turkey meat and the egg noodles to the pot.
- Simmer at medium-low heat for 8–10 minutes until the noodles are tender but not mushy and the turkey is heated through.
- Stir in the chopped parsley, taste, and add more salt if the broth reads weak, then serve immediately or cool for storage.
Pro Tips
Break the carcass into smaller pieces before it goes in the pot so more surface area hits the water and the stock extracts faster in the same 25–30 minutes.
If your broth looks thin, simmer the soup uncovered for an extra 10 minutes to reduce and concentrate rather than adding flour or cornstarch, which dulls the clean turkey taste.
For a clearer broth, skim the gray foam that rises in the first 3 minutes of boiling with a spoon, then continue with the simmer without stirring it back in.
Make the base a day ahead and store the liquid separate from the noodles, a technique covered well by stock making guides, so the pasta does not over-soften in the fridge.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Adding salt too early before the stock reduces leads to an oversalted finished soup once the water cooks off, so start with the stated teaspoon and adjust at the end.
Crowding the pot with a whole intact carcass limits extraction and leaves you with a weak broth, so always crack or cut the bones so the water reaches the inner marrow.
Boiling the noodles in the full batch and then refrigerating causes them to swell and break down, so if you plan to store the soup, cook pasta separately and combine per bowl.
Serving Suggestions
Ladle the soup into wide bowls and pair it with lard bread for a chewy, salty contrast that soaks up the broth. The fat in the bread balances the lean turkey meat.
A simple side of fresh milled flour bread toasted with butter works if you want a softer bite next to the vegetables. Keep the slice thin so it does not cover the soup.
For a fuller table, pour a lillet spritz alongside the bowl since the light citrus cuts the savory thyme. That drink keeps the meal feeling like a relaxed dinner rather than a reheat.
Storage and Reheating
Refrigerate the soup without noodles in an airtight container for up to 4 days, then reheat on medium-low heat until it reaches 165°F inside for food safety with poultry. Store cooked noodles apart so they stay firm.
Freeze the base only, no pasta, in freezer bags for up to 3 months, laying them flat to save space. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating on the stove.
Reheat frozen base on medium heat for 12–15 minutes from thawed, then add fresh noodles for the last 8 minutes so they cook cleanly in the hot broth.
Recipe Variations
Smoky Version
Add 1/2 cup diced smoked turkey sausage with the onion step to build a deeper, woodsy background behind the roast meat. The sausage fat renders into the broth and gives the carrots a slightly sweet, smoky edge that plain turkey lacks.
Rice Instead of Noodles
Swap the egg noodles for 1 cup of long-grain white rice added at the start of the 25–30 minutes simmer so it cooks through with the bones. You get a gluten free bowl with a softer grain texture and a broth that coats the rice instead of threading through pasta.
Green Vegetable Boost
Stir in 1.5 cups of chopped green beans or peas during the last 5 minutes so they stay snappy and bright against the pale broth. This shifts the soup from root-vegetable heavy to a cleaner, fresher finish after a rich holiday meal.
Spiced Carcass Stock
Add 1/2 teaspoon of whole peppercorns and a strip of lemon peel to the simmering carcass, then remove before adding turkey meat. The result is a lighter, citrus-edged broth that reads less heavy than the thyme-only version and pairs better with the turkey gravy on the side.
Leftover Turkey Soup
Description
This leftover turkey soup builds a light stock from the roasted carcass, then layers vegetables, herbs, and tender egg noodles for a balanced, waste-free post-holiday meal. It is flexible, freezer-friendly, and tastes brighter than any canned version.
Ingredients
Instructions
-
Cook the aromatics
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 6-quart stockpot over medium heat. Add the diced onion, carrots, and celery, then cook for 6–8 minutes until the onion turns translucent and the celery softens at the edges.
-
Add garlic and base
Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 45 seconds until it smells toasty but not brown. Then add the turkey carcass pieces, water, salt, pepper, thyme, and bay leaves to the pot.
-
Simmer the stock
Bring the pot to a boil over high heat, then lower to medium-low heat and simmer uncovered for 25–30 minutes. The bones should release gelatin and the broth turns lightly golden, showing the stock is extracted.
-
Remove carcass
Remove the carcass with tongs and discard the bones. The remaining broth should be lightly golden and aromatic from the thyme and bay.
-
Add turkey and noodles
Add the cooked turkey meat and the egg noodles to the pot. Simmer at medium-low heat for 8–10 minutes until the noodles are tender but not mushy and the turkey is heated through to at least 74°C (165°F) inside for food safety.
-
Finish and serve
Stir in the chopped parsley, taste, and add more salt if the broth reads weak. Serve immediately or cool for storage following the split-base method.
Nutrition Facts
Servings 4
- Amount Per Serving
- Calories 350kcal
- % Daily Value *
- Total Fat 12g19%
- Saturated Fat 4g20%
- Cholesterol 60mg20%
- Sodium 480mg20%
- Total Carbohydrate 38g13%
- Dietary Fiber 3g12%
- Sugars 6g
- Protein 22g44%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Note
- Storage: Refrigerate the soup without noodles in an airtight container for up to 4 days, then reheat on medium-low heat until it reaches 165°F inside.
- Make ahead: Make the base a day ahead and store liquid separate from noodles, a technique covered well by dry brined turkey prep guides.
- Pro tip: Break the carcass into smaller pieces before cooking so more surface area hits the water and stock extracts faster.
- Clear broth: Skim gray foam in the first 3 minutes of boiling for a cleaner finish.
