Turn Thanksgiving leftovers into this amazing Creamy Leftover Turkey Wild Rice Soup. This creamy and rich cold weather soup is full of onion, carrots, celery, parsley, thyme, wild rice, and chopped turkey.
This from scratch soup is simple to make in under 30 minutes. Half-and-half gives it creaminess without making it overly rich.
The addition of wild rice to this soup gives it a wonderful nutty flavor. You can serve this soup as a starter or with a green salad and bread as a full meal.
One of my favorite things about Thanksgiving is the leftovers. I always try to be sure to make extra turkey and sometimes I go ahead and cook a Crockpot Turkey Breast along with a roasted turkey just to use it for leftovers.
Tips for making Creamy Leftover Turkey Wild Rice Soup:
- Chicken can be used instead of turkey.
- A combination of milk and heavy cream can be used instead of half-and-half.
- To make this soup healthier, you can use whole milk instead of half-and-half.
- You need to cook the wild rice first. I like to use a box of Uncle Ben’s Long Grain and Wild Rice Mix which is a mixture of white rice and wild rice, but you can use straight up wild rice. Wild Rice can take up to 50 minutes to cook, but it can be made a day or two in advance to save time.
- I like to make this soup really thick like a chowder. To thin it some, add additonal chicken or turkey broth.
More Leftover Turkey Recipes:
Creamy Leftover Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Turn Thanksgiving leftovers into this amazing Creamy Leftover Turkey Wild Rice Soup. This creamy and rich cold weather soup is full of onion, carrots, celery, parsley, thyme, wild rice, and chopped turkey.
SERVINGS: 6
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
- 1 celery rib, diced
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups chicken or turkey broth
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups cooked wild rice
- 2 1/2 cups diced cooked turkey
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes.
- Add flour. Cook and stir for 1 minute.
- Gradually whisk in the chicken or turkey broth.
- Stir in half-and-half, thyme, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer. Add wild rice, turkey and parsley and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve.
Notes
Diced chicken can be used instead of turkey.
Nutrition
Calories: 460kcal
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Recipe tasted good, but I like my soup creamier. I also added some bacon fat to give it a little more flavor.
I’ve been making this recipe for years. It’s my favorite part of Thanksgiving and the thing I start looking forward to every year
I’ll be making this after turkey. I’m wondering if it’s a good idea to throw leftover gravy in also?
Family favorite!
I have made this recipe several times. The first time, I forgot to cook the rice!!!! It is definitely better when rice is cooked. The cream makes it so delicious. I have made it with chicken, but the turkey makes it much more flavorful. I would double the pepper and also add more thyme. I used my homegrown dried thyme as I forgot to buy fresh. The longer it sits in the fridge, the better it gets!! Such a welcome meal on a cold day!!! Yum!
Slammin recipe. Just made. Did x3 I’ve got a huge pot. Used heavy instead of half. Going in for my second helping. Sent the recipe to a friend right away.
Great base recipe! I added a bit of Sherry but that’s about it — everyone loved it!
I had leftover shredded turkey, that I shredded in the food processor. Making it as we speak. Did not add onions because it’s my family preference but this is spot on. (I stole a taste) Will definitely be making this again next year after Thanksgiving. Serving it with sweet ham and cheese sliders. Thank you for sharing.
This was fantastic! When it would thicken up I just added a splash of broth to loosen. Great flavor and very filling. I used Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice long grain and wild rice for a super time saver! Will be making this again maybe with chicken next time.