Leftover Turkey Recipes: 5 Delicious Ways to Make the Most of
Your Festive Bird
Roast turkey is a great family favourite, especially at
Thanksgiving and Christmas. But after the feast, comes the
question - how to use the leftovers? Here are five ways to make
the most of your festive bird.
1 Leftover turkey sandwich recipes Use thick slices of
turkey breast and add a little of the dark meat for flavour. Use
different breads, like ciabatta rolls, baguettes, wholemeal
bread, or toasted white bread. Add other ingredients, such as:
salad leaves like lettuce or spinach sliced avocado cherry
tomatoes or thinly sliced beetroot wafer-thin cooked ham
crumbled crispy bacon sliced hard-boiled egg soft cheeses, like
Brie or Camembert Give it flavour with mustard, cranberry sauce,
leftover turkey stuffing, pickles, mayonnaise, sliced gherkins,
or radishes.
2 Leftover turkey salad recipes Use both white and dark
meat. Cube or shred the leftover turkey. Toss with toasted
almonds, thin slices of fresh mango and soft salad leaves. Dress
with a light vinaigrette. Mix with cubed avocado, slivered
yellow and red pepper, sweetcorn and halved cherry tomatoes.
Dress with olive oil, whisked with lime juice and chilli. Stir
shredded turkey breast meat through cooled cooked thin rice
noodles. Add shredded lettuce, matchstick slices of carrot and
cucumber, and dress with a well-blended mixture of 2 parts light
soy sauce to 1 part sweet chilli sauce.
3 Leftover turkey soup recipes Add diced turkey to a
basic vegetable soup recipe. Try it with celery and apple, in a
chowder with sweetcorn, or as part of a spicy oriental soup,
with noodles and shredded leaves. Liven up turkey soup with
herbs and spices. Try thyme and oregano, ground coriander,
smoked paprika.
4 Leftover turkey and pasta recipes
Mix diced turkey into tomato and sweet pepper sauce and serve
with rice or pasta. Stir pesto through chopped leftover turkey
for an instant pasta sauce.
5 Leftover turkey curry recipes Turkey makes a great
curry. Soften a chopped onion, add cubed turkey and curry paste.
Cook for a few minutes, add liquid made with creamed coconut
grated into boiling water, or use canned coconut milk. Stir
well, simmer until turkey is heated throught. Serve with rice
and naan bread.
If you have more leftover turkey than you can use straight
away, carve off slices on the same day that the turkey was
cooked, interleave with cling wrap, overwrap with foil, pack in
airtight plastic bags, and freeze. Keeps well in the freezer for
2-3 months.