• Recipes
  • Entertaining
  • Family
  • Life
  • Travel
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Bloglovin
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Snapchat
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

Mama Harris' Kitchen

Bringing you tasty, family-style recipes with fresh local ingredients!

  • Home
  • Recipe Index
  • Most Recent Posts
  • About
    • About Me – Mama Harris’ Kitchen
    • Press
    • Family Life
  • Contact
    • Contact
    • Advertise / Sponsor
    • Privacy Policy

comfort food Fall holidays leftovers main dish noodles pasta recipe soup Thanksgiving food traditional turkey veggies

Turkey Noodle Soup

As far back as I can remember, I can recall my parents using the leftover turkey to make a turkey soup each year after Thanksgiving. I never got a recipe or anything from them, but it just seemed like the customary thing to do, and I’ve continued the tradition with my own family. Through the years I just sort of created my own technique and recipe, so if there’s a faster or easier way to do any of this, by all means be my guest!

After all those heavy Thanksgiving dishes, this soup seems like the perfect alternative leftover. It’s light and flavorful, but the ingredients and herbs still have strong ties to the holiday season. I just got done making this today, and my daughter has already had 3 bowls!

Ingredients:

  • leftover turkey carcass, with most of the meat cut off
  • about 7 liters water
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 5 stalks celery
  • 4 medium carrots
  • 1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil
  • 1 tablespoon dried sage
  • 1 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning (I use Old Bay)
  • 12 ounces uncooked wide egg noodles
Directions:
Cut all the meat off your turkey. Place leftover bone pieces in a large stockpot.
Fill the pot with water, enough to cover all the bones.
We had a 15 pound turkey, and I used about 7 liters of water to cover it.
Pour in about 2 tablespoons of salt, and cover. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower heat to a simmer and continue to simmer, covered, for about 8 hours.
After about 8-9 hours, all the little pieces of meat, fat, and skin will have fallen off the bone.
Turn off the stove, and let the turkey and broth cool for 1-2 hours.
Once cooled, place a strainer in a large bowl, and carefully pour the stockpot into the strainer, slowly.
Keep the bowl of broth, leave in the bowl and let cool. Clean and dry your stockpot.
While broth is cooling, empty the turkey pieces out of the strainer one by one.
Toss the bones in a bowl to discard.
Once the meat is off the bone, shred the pieces by hand, and drop back into the stockpot.
Mine still had a good amount of meat, it doesn’t look like it but my pot was 1/3 full of shredded turkey.
By this point the broth should be cooled down and the fat should have risen to the top.
Get a flat spoon and remove the filmy top layer that has formed.
Then spoon the broth with a ladle through a mesh strainer over the shredded turkey.
This will ensure you won’t have any tiny bones that get into your soup.
Once the broth is in the pot with the shredded turkey, turn the heat back on the stove and cook, uncovered, on high. Bringing the soup to a boil.
While the pot is warming up, chop up your onion.
First quarter it, then cut it into slices. Drop the slices into the soup.
Mince the garlic, and drop that in too.
Now halve (or quarter) the carrots, then slice them. Drop them into the soup.
Halve, then slice the celery. Add it to the soup.
Chop up the parsley, then add to the soup.
By now the broth should be boiling or almost boiling. Add the seasonings. Bring to a rolling boil, cover and lower the heat to simmer for about 2 hours, until vegetables are soft.
Once the broth has had a chance to simmer with the seasonings, add in the uncooked egg noodles.
Once again turn it back up to boil, then simmer and cover for about 20 minutes.
After about 20 minutes, the noodles should be soft but not overcooked.
Remove from heat, cool, then serve.
Perfectly paired with saltines and a glass of wine. Enjoy!

Print
Turkey Noodle Soup

Ingredients

  • leftover turkey carcass, with most of the meat cut off
  • about 7 liters water
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 5 stalks celery
  • 4 medium carrots
  • 1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil
  • 1 tablespoon dried sage
  • 1 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning (I use Old Bay)
  • 12 ounces uncooked wide egg noodles

Instructions

  1. Cut all the meat off your turkey. Place leftover bone pieces in a large stockpot.
  2. Fill the pot with water, enough to cover all the bones.
  3. We had a 15 pound turkey, and I used about 7 liters of water to cover it.
  4. Pour in about 2 tablespoons of salt, and cover. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower heat to a simmer and continue to simmer, covered, for about 8 hours.
  5. After about 8-9 hours, all the little pieces of meat, fat, and skin will have fallen off the bone.
  6. Turn off the stove, and let the turkey and broth cool for 1-2 hours.
  7. Once cooled, place a strainer in a large bowl, and carefully pour the stockpot into the strainer, slowly.
  8. Keep the bowl of broth, leave in the bowl and let cool. Clean and dry your stockpot.
  9. While broth is cooling, empty the turkey pieces out of the strainer one by one.
  10. Toss the bones in a bowl to discard.
  11. Once the meat is off the bone, shred the pieces by hand, and drop back into the stockpot.
  12. Mine still had a good amount of meat, it doesn't look like it but my pot was 1/3 full of shredded turkey.
  13. By this point the broth should be cooled down and the fat should have risen to the top.
  14. Get a flat spoon and remove the filmy top layer that has formed.
  15. Then spoon the broth with a ladle through a mesh strainer over the shredded turkey.
  16. This will ensure you won't have any tiny bones that get into your soup.
  17. Once the broth is in the pot with the shredded turkey, turn the heat back on the stove and cook, uncovered, on high. Bringing the soup to a boil.
  18. While the pot is warming up, chop up your onion.
  19. First quarter it, then cut it into slices. Drop the slices into the soup.
  20. Mince the garlic, and drop that in too.
  21. Now halve (or quarter) the carrots, then slice them. Drop them into the soup.
  22. Halve, then slice the celery. Add it to the soup.
  23. Chop up the parsley, then add to the soup.
  24. By now the broth should be boiling or almost boiling. Add the seasonings. Bring to a rolling boil, cover and lower the heat to simmer for about 2 hours, until vegetables are soft.
  25. Once the broth has had a chance to simmer with the seasonings, add in the uncooked egg noodles.
  26. Once again turn it back up to boil, then simmer and cover for about 20 minutes.
  27. After about 20 minutes, the noodles should be soft but not overcooked.
  28. Remove from heat, cool, then serve.
  29. Perfectly paired with saltines and a glass of wine. Enjoy!
3.1
https://mamaharriskitchen.com/2012/11/turkey-noodle-soup/

If you loved this here's more..

  • Baked tilapia and veggie foil packetsBaked tilapia and veggie foil packets
  • Deviled Chicken in White Wine SauceDeviled Chicken in White Wine Sauce
  • What Makes an Extraordinary Kid?What Makes an Extraordinary Kid?
  • Mushroom, Egg & Kale Breakfast Muffins PLUS Week 3 of the #MushroomMakeover ADMushroom, Egg & Kale Breakfast Muffins PLUS Week 3 of the #MushroomMakeover AD

Share this:

  • Email
  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr
  • WhatsApp


15 Comments

Previous Post: « Thanksgiving 2012 Recap
Next Post: Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sabz says

    November 25, 2012 at 6:14 am

    love this leftover idea! my mom made turkey taquitos today lol awesome job…love the wine touch 😉

    Reply
    • From the Kitchen of Mama Harris says

      November 25, 2012 at 4:53 pm

      Thank you! Mmm taquitos sounds good too. My friend made turkey lumpia, looks so good! One year I made turkey tacos, they were good!

      Reply
  2. Leisure M. says

    November 25, 2012 at 7:33 am

    This looks delicious! Wish I would have made a turkey for thanksgiving. Guess I will make chicken soup with this recipe one night

    Reply
    • From the Kitchen of Mama Harris says

      November 25, 2012 at 4:54 pm

      This would be great with chicken too! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂

      Reply
  3. Mom In The USA says

    November 25, 2012 at 7:32 pm

    You’re right. This does look and sound like a great light alternative to a day-after Thanksgiving meal. I agree too – I would have never thought to add a glass of wine to it. Great pairing. Thank you.

    Karina

    Reply
    • From the Kitchen of Mama Harris says

      November 27, 2012 at 1:50 am

      Hi Karina, thank you! Wine goes with everything! 😉

      Reply
  4. Connie Gomez says

    November 27, 2012 at 4:12 am

    That looks SO good! And, yes after all that food on Thursday, I should have had soup and salad the last 4 days… lol. Thanks for sharing!!!

    Reply
    • From the Kitchen of Mama Harris says

      December 6, 2012 at 2:57 am

      Thanks Connie!

      Reply
  5. Melissa Libertad says

    November 27, 2012 at 9:06 am

    I cook my chicken/turkey soup the same way.. but I have never thought to boil the bones. Why hadn’t I thought of this? lol. Thanks for the idea. I love coming to your blog, it always gives me inspiration! 🙂

    Reply
    • From the Kitchen of Mama Harris says

      December 6, 2012 at 2:58 am

      Well, thank you for the compliment! 🙂

      Reply
  6. Cynthia Landrie says

    November 30, 2012 at 5:19 pm

    I love to make soups like this! I am so happy to see you used egg noodles in your soup! They are my favorite!

    Thank you for linking up to Foodie Friends Friday! Can’t wait to see what you bring next week!

    Cynthia at http://FeedingBig.com

    Reply
    • From the Kitchen of Mama Harris says

      December 6, 2012 at 2:58 am

      Oh, I love egg noodles too! I have another recipe posted for beef stroganoff using egg noodles too!

      Reply
  7. Cynthia Landrie says

    November 30, 2012 at 5:21 pm

    Forgot to ask – would you please add our button to your party page? Thanks so much Foodie Friends Friday

    Reply
    • From the Kitchen of Mama Harris says

      December 6, 2012 at 2:59 am

      Will do! I try to update it pretty frequently when I find a new blog hop or link party!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Savory Chicken Noodle Soup | Mama Harris' Kitchen says:
    November 17, 2015 at 11:23 pm

    […] make a variation of this soup using turkey after the Thanksgiving holiday, but throughout cold weather season I love to make a nice big pot of […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar


Read ALL about me here or you can email me at dawn@mamaharriskitchen.com
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Stay Updated!

Get all the latest tasty goodness straight to your inbox!

Privacy Policy

Seasonal Recipes

Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Wings #ChicksWingIt #WingItWednesday | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Wings

Street Style Grilled Hot Dogs with Hebrew National #HebrewNationalSummer #ad | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Street Style Grilled Hot Dogs

Popular Categories

  • Main Dish Recipes
  • Chicken Recipes
  • Kid-Friendly Recipes
  • Side Dish Recipes
  • Veggie Recipes

Search by Category

Popular This Month

Weeknight Dinner Idea: Quick & Easy Chicken Teriyaki Bowl | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Quick & Easy Chicken Teriyaki Bowl

Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Lime Cream | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Lime Cream

Sunrise Moscato Mimosas | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Sunrise Moscato Mimosas

Savory Crepes with Turkey, Mushroom and Swiss Cheese | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Savory Crepes with Turkey, Mushroom and Swiss Cheese

Quick Pan-Fried Tilapia | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Quick Pan-Fried Tilapia

Follow on Instagram

Get all the latest recipes straight to your inbox!

Footer

You Might Also Like

Southwest Grilled Chicken and Avocado Salad with Chipotle Ranch (ad) #BTBGrillingRecipes #IC | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Southwest Grilled Chicken and Avocado Salad

Chili Rubbed Ribeye Tacos with Esquites (Elote Salad) #SaveMartSummer AD | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Chili Rubbed Ribeye Tacos with Esquites (Elote Salad)

Fresh Lentil Bean Salad AD #LoveALentil #LetsLentil | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Fresh Lentil Bean Salad

Grilled Pineapple Asparagus Salad | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Grilled Pineapple Asparagus Salad

Crunchy Broccoli-Apple Salad with Creamy Raspberry Poppy Seed Dressing #BetterWithCraisins AD | Mama Harris' Kitchen

Crunchy Broccoli-Apple Salad with Creamy Raspberry Poppy Seed Dressing

- View More Recipes Like This -

my foodgawker galleryEverywhere Society Member

  • Bloglovin
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Snapchat
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 · Mama Harris Kitchen

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.