I’ve been working on some freelance Thanksgiving menu recipes and that’s gifted me leftover turkey a little earlier than usual. Obviously, leftover turkey is bound for soup. I chose to go in a creamy soup direction with this turkey and wild rice soup.
It’s creamy, comforting, and very tasty. It’s simple to make and can be cooked in an hour—most of which time is hands off time while the soup simmers. I like how the wild rice adds a contrasting chew to the creaminess; it’s a little nutty, too. This soup reminds me of Panera Bread’s chicken and wild rice soup which is one of my favorite options there (You Pick Two with a Turkey Bacon Bravo!)
♥ Related: Cauliflower Chowder
And as soups tend to be, this is a versatile recipe. Substitute turkey with leftover chicken if you don’t have leftover turkey; ditto with the turkey stock. I used cauliflower to add some extra heartiness, but you could try broccoli, green beans, or peas (or a combination of them!) Spinach might be nice too but I’d add that at the very end of cooking since it cooks very quickly.
Creamy Turkey & Wild Rice Soup | Perfect Use for Leftover Turkey
Ingredients
- ½ tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup onion diced small, ~1/2 medium onion
- ½ cup carrot diced small, ~1 medium carrot
- 1/4 cup shallot minced, ~1/2 medium shallot
- 1 tsp poultry seasoning
- 1 cup wild rice blend
- 5 cups turkey stock homemade or boxed
- 1/4 head cauliflower chopped small, ~3 cups
- 4 tbsp butter
- 4 tbsp flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- ½ cup half & half
- 3 cups cooked turkey chopped into bite sized pieces
- kosher salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place a medium Dutch oven or soup pot (with at least a 6 quart capacity) on the stove over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and let heat for a couple of minutes. Then add the onion, carrot, and shallot to the pot. Add a hefty pinch of salt. Sauté for about 5 minutes until the vegetables start to soften and the onion turns translucent.
- Add the poultry seasoning and wild rice blend. Cook for about a minute allowing all of the rice to get coated with the oil in the pan. Then add the turkey stock and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat so that the soup slows to a simmer and cover. Cook for 25 minutes.
- After 25 minutes, add the cauliflower and another hefty pinch of salt. Cook for another 15 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender and the rice is cooked through.
- While the soup is simmering, place a small frying pan or sauce pan on the stove over medium heat. Add the butter and let it melt. Once the butter is just melted, add the flour. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and let this cool while the cauliflower and rice is finishing cooking in the soup.
- Once the cauliflower and rice is cooked through, whisk the milk into the roux so it's well blended and smooth. Stir the roux & milk mixture into the soup. Let the soup come back to a boil, stirring frequently until the soup is thickened.
- Finish the soup by adding the chopped, cooked turkey and half and half. Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed.
Notes
- Poultry seasoning is an easy, quick herb blend to use here, but if you don’t have it, a combination of dried thyme, sage, and rosemary would work to replace the spice blend. Just make sure the herbs are ground fine.
- I like this Royal Blend Texmati Wild Rice, but anything similar should work. Look for a blend that has about a 45-minute cooking time.
- You can definitely replace the turkey with cooked chicken and the turkey stock with chicken stock.
- Try this recipe with any vegetable you like. I like the way that cauliflower soaks up the broth, but I think broccoli, peas, or green beans (or a combination of these vegetables) would also be great. Some spinach stirred in towards the end of cooking would also be delicious.
Things You Might Need for This Recipe
Wild Rice Blend
Poultry Seasoning
Enameled Dutch Oven
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