Day-After-Thanksgiving Turkey Carcass Soup

This leftover turkey soup is an easy and delicious meal that puts your turkey carcass to good use. Save the carcass from your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner — and some stuffing too! — and make this tasty soup for lunch or a light dinner the next day. I usually make cornbread muffins to serve with it.

• Preparation Time: 15 mins
• Cooking Time: 1 hr 40 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 55 mins
• Calories: 370 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
• 1 teaspoon ground sage
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 (16 ounce) package frozen green peas
• 2 ½ quarts chicken broth
• 1 onion, peeled and diced
• 1 picked over turkey carcass
• ground black pepper, to taste
• ½ teaspoon garlic salt, or to taste
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 ½ cups leftover stuffing
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 cups (uncooked) regular long-grain white rice
• 1 cup water, or as needed (Optional)

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Place turkey carcass in a large, deep pot. Add stuffing, onion, carrots, celery, poultry seasoning, sage, and bay leaves. Pour in chicken broth, and add additional water, if needed, to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Step 2

Reduce heat to medium and simmer, skimming off any foam, for about 1 hour. Remove carcass and any bones.

Step 3

Pick any meat off carcass and bones. Return meat to the pot and discard bones and skin.

Step 4

Season soup with garlic salt and pepper. Stir in rice and return to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in peas, and continue to simmer until rice is tender, about 10 minutes more.

Step 5

Adjust seasonings to taste before serving.