Making Turkey Broth is easy, especially when you have the turkey bones and turkey carcass leftover from the holidays. A classic stovetop broth recipe with herb and spice flavor suggestions, perfect base for soups, stews and more!
Save Your Thanksgiving Turkey
What to do with your leftover turkey bones? You've spent all this time cooking your bird to feed your family, and it's tempting to throw the bones out. Don't! Save your turkey bones and carcass, don't waste any food! It makes a wonderful leftover turkey broth, save the turkey meat to make your soup hearty.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- No waste - make your turkey go further for an additional meal. You don't even need to eat it during turkey week, but can freeze it to enjoy later
- Easy - just throw it all in your stock pot and let it simmer
- It's delicious - use this recipe to make soups, or substitute anything that calls for chicken stock
Ingredients
- Leftover Turkey Bones - save the carcass, wings and drumsticks, you might need to break it to fit into the pot. If it's a large bird, then use ½ now and freeze the rest for another broth recipe
- Onion - even save the onion skins for deeper broth color
- Garlic - to boost your immune system
- Bay Leaves - add pleasant warm notes
- Celery Stalks - including leaves for a nice celery flavor
- Carrot - no need to peel it when making broth
- Peppercorns - or crushed peppercorns
- fresh parsley and thyme
- salt and pepper to taste
- water - of course, it's a soup! Just enough of fill the stock pot
Adding Acids to Broth
Often and acid is added when making broth. This helps break down the connective tissue, and some say helps nutrients release from the bones. All you need is just a small splash, I promise it won't taste like vinegar.
- Apple Cider Vinegar - just a splash changes balance in your broth and helps break down connective tissue
- Lemon or Lime - a squeeze from half a fresh citrus to add zing
- Verjuice - adds sour notes
Broth Flavor Ideas
ASIAN BROTH FLAVORS
- Ginger - great for Asian soup, boosts immune system
- Cilantro - a staple in Asian cooking
- Green Onions - adds fresh onion taste
- Turmeric - an anti-inflammatory but makes your broth yellow
- Lemongrass - bruise the stock before adding to pot
HERB BROTH SUGGESTIONS
- Parsley - used a herb base for almost all soup recipes
- Thyme - often used in French soups, just throw in a few stems
- Oregano - flavorful, often used in a bouquet garni
- Sage - use dried or fresh, great for adding to Turkey Broth
- Basil - perfect it making Minestrone
- Dill - for Eastern European soups
How to Make Turkey Broth
The hero of this recipe is your Thanksgiving Turkey. After serving, strip as much meat as you can from the turkey. You might want to save this meat for a Turkey Soup you will make later. You're probably too tired to make it on the same day, keep the turkey bones in the fridge until you're ready. Not usually longer than a few days.
- Place turkey into a large stock pot. Add onions (including peels), garlic, celery, carrot, bay leaf, peppercorns and fresh herbs.
- Fill the pot with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for minimum 4 hours. The longer the better flavor, even up to 10 hours.
- Remove any large pieces of turkey and strain the broth with a colander over a bowl. For a clearer broth, strain a second time through a cheesecloth.
- Season with salt and pepper.
Roasting Vegetables for Broth
Oven roasted vegetables taste better in your soup broth, but that take more time. Pro tip: Quickly sauté the vegetables in some oil before adding your carcass to the pot. The caramelized veggies also add extra flavor to your soup.
Instant Pot Turkey Broth
I love using my Instant Pot of make Bone Broth. It's so easy, just throw all the ingredients in the pot! Fill to the MAX line and set to manual for 90 minutes. Follow instructions in my Instant Pot Bone Broth recipe, just substitute the leftover turkey carcass. Instant Pot are excellent for making soup broth because they're faster and really pull out the nutrients.
Can You Freeze Turkey Broth?
It's easy to make this turkey soup stock and pop it into the freezer to enjoy in a few months. I don't recommend freezing it in glass jars, instead use plastic soft drink bottles. It won't crack in the freezers and easily fits, and is easy to defrost to use.
How to Use Turkey Broth
- Soups and Stews - the most common reason why people make turkey broth
- Broth in a Mug - people love warming up from the inside out with a cup of broth
- Cooking Rice, Couscous and Grains - instead of cooking these in water, use Turkey Stock
- Chicken Stock substitute - any recipe that calls for chicken stock can be changed with turkey stock
Turkey Recipes You'll Love
- Turkey Wonton Soup - a nice change from the typical turkey overload
- Turkey Turnovers - easily made with Puff Pastry, a delicious snack
- Leftover Turkey Soup with Bacon - an easy, creamy soup your kids will love
- Russian Cabbage Soup - use Turkey broth to make cabbage soup, ready for post holiday detox
It's so easy to make a delicious turkey carcass stock from leftover holiday turkey. As tempting as it might be to throw out the leftover carcass, save it and make this soup base instead! Bon Appetit! Приятного аппетита!
Ingredients
- 1 turkey carcass
- 4 litres of water
- 1 onion chopped in half
- 5 cloves garlic
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 stalks of celery
- 1 carrot chopped in half
- 10 peppercorns
- 2 sprigs of parsley and thyme
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place the turkey carcass in a large stockpot or dutch oven. Break down the carcass if necessary to fit into the pot.
- Add onions (including peels), garlic, celery, carrot, bay leaf, peppercorns and fresh herbs.
- Fill the pot with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for minimum 4 hours. The longer the better flavor, even up to 10 hours
- Remove any large pieces of turkey and strain the broth with a colander over a bowl. For a clearer broth, strain a second time through a cheesecloth.
- Season with salt and pepper. Keep broth refrigerated until ready to use.
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