This turkey vegetable soup is loaded with diced turkey, carrots, green beans, potatoes and corn, all simmered together in a homemade tomato based broth. An easy dinner option that’s also a great way to use up leftover Thanksgiving turkey.
When I have leftover turkey on hand after the holidays, I use it to create delicious dishes including turkey noodle soup, hearty turkey casserole and this fresh and colorful turkey vegetable soup.
I intentionally roast more turkey than I need each year during the holidays so that I have plenty on hand as leftovers. I love to repurpose my turkey into a hearty and delicious turkey vegetable soup. The great thing about this recipe is that it’s easily customizable, which means you really can use whatever veggies you happen to have on hand, and still end up with a great meal.
Table of Contents
Turkey Vegetable Soup Ingredients
There are two components to this recipe, which include a homemade turkey broth, as well as the soup itself. The broth is made with a leftover turkey carcass, onion, carrot, celery, herbs and seasonings.
The soup contains the homemade broth, diced turkey, tomatoes, tomato sauce and vegetables including potatoes, green beans, carrots, celery and corn.
How Do You Make Turkey Vegetable Soup?
Start by preparing the turkey broth. Place the carcass, vegetables and seasonings in a large pot with water, then bring everything to a simmer. Let the broth cook for 3-4 hours, then strain out the solids. Melt butter in a pot, and add the carrots, onions and celery. Cook the veggies until they are tender. Next, stir in the turkey, tomato products, homemade broth, potatoes and seasonings. The soup will simmer until the potatoes are tender. You don’t need to bring it to a boil, just a medium simmer works perfectly. Add the corn and green beans and cook everything for a few more minutes. Finally, sprinkle parsley over the soup and enjoy.
Tips For The Perfect Soup
- This recipe assumes you’re using leftover turkey and that you have a carcass on hand to make homemade broth. You can absolutely make this recipe without the homemade broth if you don’t have the time or are not using leftovers. Simply substitute store bought chicken or turkey broth instead.
- Leftover soup will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and can be stored in the freezer for 2 months. Just be aware that if you freeze the soup, the vegetables will be softer when the soup is reheated.
- I typically use frozen corn and green beans in this recipe because I always have them on hand, but fresh will also work well.
Quick Tip
You can easily adapt the recipe for the slow cooker. Place all of the ingredients except the frozen vegetables and parsley in a slow cooker. Cook on low heat for 4 hours. Stir in the frozen vegetables and cook for another 10 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
Recipe FAQs
This particular turkey vegetable soup has plenty of flavor from the homemade broth base, tomatoes and herbs. If you want to take the flavors up to the next level, you can add other ingredients such as cooked bacon, hot sauce, Cajun seasoning, parmesan cheese, or more fresh herbs such as dill or chives.
There are two ways to thicken turkey vegetable soup. One method is to let the soup simmer for longer to allow for some of the liquid to evaporate. The other option is to spoon some of the cooked vegetables and broth into a blender and puree it until smooth. Add the pureed vegetable mixture back to the soup for a thicker, creamier texture.
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Flavor Variations
This soup is great as-is, but you can switch up the ingredients to accommodate for whatever veggies you have in the fridge with good results.
- Protein: Feel free to use ground turkey or diced cooked chicken instead of the diced turkey. You can also add extra protein by stirring in 1 cup of canned beans such as white beans.
- Vegetables: There are so many other types of veggies that work well in this soup, so get creative! Some great options include spinach, mushrooms, zucchini, cabbage, peas or butternut squash.
- Add-Ins: You can make this soup even heartier by stirring in some cooked pasta or grains such as rice, quinoa or barley. Just be aware that these additions may soak up some of the broth, so you may need to add more liquid to the finished soup. It’s also fine to substitute olive oil for the butter.
This turkey vegetable soup is sure to be a hit with both kids and adults alike. I don’t even wait for the holidays to make it, I serve this recipe year round to my family!
More Great Soup Recipes
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Black Bean Soup
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Tuscan White Bean Soup
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Matzo Ball Soup
2 hrs 5 mins
Easy Egg Drop Soup
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Turkey Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
For the broth
- 1 turkey carcass
- 1 medium onion peeled and quartered
- 2 medium carrots peeled and cut into 3 inch pieces
- 3 stalks celery with leaves, cut into 3 inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
- 4 sprigs fresh parsley
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 6 cloves garlic
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons salt
For the soup
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup onion diced
- 3/4 cup carrots peeled, halved lengthwise and sliced
- 3/4 cup celery thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons garlic minced
- 3 cups diced cooked turkey
- 15 ounce can diced tomatoes do not drain
- 8 ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 6 cups turkey broth
- 1 cup Russet potato peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1/2 cup frozen corn
- 1/2 cup green beans diced, fresh or frozen
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Instructions
For the broth
- Place the broth ingredients in a large pot. Cover with cold water (at least 10 cups).
- Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Cook for 3-4 hours, skimming the surface occasionally.
- Pour the broth through a fine sieve into a container. Reserve 6 cups of broth for the recipe and save the rest for another use.
For the soup
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrot and celery and cook for 5-6 minutes or until just vegetables are just softened. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add the turkey, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, broth and potato to the pot, along with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook for 20-25 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired.
- Stir in the corn and green beans and cook for 5 minutes more. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
Notes
- This recipe includes directions on how to make homemade turkey broth. If you want to skip this step to save time, or are not using leftover turkey, feel free to use store bought chicken broth or turkey broth instead.
- Leftover turkey vegetable soup will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and can be stored in the freezer for 2 months. Just be aware that if you freeze the soup, the vegetables will be softer when the soup is reheated.
