By Friday afternoon, the turkey in the fridge stops being exciting. This leftover turkey soup is what I make with it. One pot, 40 minutes, and it turns a pound of leftover breast into six big bowls of something you actually want to eat.
Each two-cup bowl has 29 grams of protein and about 260 calories, calculated from the actual ingredients. That is the turkey and the white beans doing the work, with kale and carrots filling the rest of the bowl.
A bowl like this is also the easiest way to get Friday back to normal after a big Thursday. If you want to know what a normal day looks like in numbers, my free calorie calculator takes about a minute and gives you a target you can hold in your head.
- 29 grams of protein per bowl, with about 260 calories, from leftover turkey breast and white beans
- 40 minutes in one pot, and most of that is the vegetables simmering while you clean up
- The one technique that matters: add the turkey last and keep the heat gentle, because cooked turkey goes stringy and dry if it boils
- Keeps 4 days in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer; it freezes better than almost any other leftover
- Honest caveat: the sodium depends almost entirely on your broth. With low-sodium broth it lands where the card says; with regular broth it can nearly double. Homemade stock from the carcass is the lowest of all
Why This Recipe Works
The day after a holiday, most people swing one of two ways. They either keep grazing on leftovers standing at the counter, or they barely eat and call it a reset. Neither one works. A real lunch with protein and vegetables is what settles the day down.
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Protein per meal matters more as we get older, and 25 to 30 grams at lunch is a good target for most women. This soup gets you there in one bowl without trying, and the beans and kale add fiber that keeps you full through the afternoon.
There is a practical reason too. Soup is the one leftover meal that does not taste like leftovers. The turkey is the same turkey, but the broth, the lemon, and the thyme make it a different dish, so nobody at the table groans.
A Few Notes on the Ingredients
Leftover turkey can be breast, thigh, or a mix. Breast keeps the protein highest and the calories lowest, which is what the card reflects. If you roasted my herb butter turkey breast, one pound is about a third of what comes off a 5-pound roast.
Low-sodium chicken broth is the honest choice. Regular broth adds several hundred milligrams of sodium per cup, and with eight cups in the pot that adds up fast. The carcass stock in the recipe notes is even better if you have the time.
Cannellini beans are creamy and mild and they soak up the broth. Great Northern or navy beans are the same idea. Rinse them well; that washes off a good chunk of the sodium in the can.
Kale holds its texture in a hot soup better than spinach does. If you only have spinach, use it, but stir it in after the heat is off so it does not turn to mush. Strip the kale stems out first; they stay tough.
Tools I Use for Healthy Leftovers
A slow cooker and good glass containers make turning leftovers into easy meals simple. Here is what I recommend. (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.)
Leftover Turkey Soup
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery with a pinch of salt and cook 6 to 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Mince the garlic and add it with the thyme. Stir for 1 minute until fragrant. Do not let the garlic brown.
- Pour in the broth and bring it to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer 10 minutes, until the carrots are tender when pierced with a fork.
- Shred or chop the turkey into bite-size pieces. Drain and rinse the beans. Add both to the pot and simmer 5 minutes, just until the turkey is heated through. Cooked turkey turns stringy if you boil it hard, so keep the heat gentle.
- Strip the kale leaves from the stems, chop them, and stir them in. Cook 3 to 4 minutes until the kale is wilted and tender but still bright green.
- Turn off the heat. Stir in the lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Taste, and add more salt only if it needs it; broths vary a lot.
- Ladle into bowls and top with parsley. Serve hot.
Nutrition
Notes
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- Lower carb: leave out the beans and add two more cups of chopped vegetables, such as zucchini or green beans. The protein drops a little; the bowl stays filling.
- Protein boost: use 1.5 pounds of turkey instead of 1, or stir in a second can of beans. Either one adds several grams per bowl.
- Barley version: add half a cup of pearl barley with the broth and simmer 25 minutes before the turkey goes in. It turns the soup into a stew.
- Creamy version: blend one cup of the beans with one cup of the broth and stir it back in. It thickens the soup without any cream.
- Spicy version: add a pinch of red pepper flakes with the garlic, and finish with a spoon of hot sauce at the table.
Storage, Leftovers, and Serving
This soup keeps 4 days in the fridge in a covered container. Reheat it on the stove over medium heat until it steams, or in the microwave in 2-minute bursts with a stir between. The kale softens more each day, and the flavor gets better.
It freezes very well. Cool it completely, portion it into containers or freezer bags, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat gently. The beans and turkey hold their texture; the kale is a little softer, which is fine in a soup.
This is the Friday lunch in my Healthy Thanksgiving Guide, which covers the whole week from the morning-of breakfast to the last of the leftovers. You will find the rest of the holiday recipes there as well.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Is My Turkey Soup Bland?
Usually it needs acid and salt, in that order. Stir in the lemon juice first, taste, and then add salt a quarter teaspoon at a time. Low-sodium broth needs more help than regular broth. A parmesan rind simmered in the pot or a spoon of white miso at the end also adds depth without much sodium.
Can I Make Turkey Soup Without Leftover Turkey?
Yes. Poach a pound of raw turkey breast or chicken breast in the broth during the simmering step, about 15 minutes until it reaches 165F, then pull it out, shred it, and return it to the pot. Rotisserie chicken also works and gives nearly the same protein per bowl.
Is Leftover Turkey Soup Healthy?
Each bowl comes to about 260 calories with 29 grams of protein, 6 grams of fiber, and 485 milligrams of sodium, calculated from the listed ingredients with low-sodium broth. It is one of the best day-after meals you can make: high in protein, full of vegetables, and easy on the stomach after a heavy day.
Free printable checklist
The Healthy Thanksgiving Prep Checklist
A day-by-day make-ahead plan: what to cook the weekend before, Wednesday’s big prep, Thursday’s oven order and the day-after plan.
Get the free checklistYour This-Week Plan
Make this once before the holiday with a rotisserie chicken or a poached turkey breast, so you know the recipe cold. Freeze half. Then on Thanksgiving night, before you go to bed, pull a pound of turkey off the bird and set it aside in a container labeled soup. Friday lunch is already decided.
This article is for general education and isn’t medical or nutrition advice. Nutrition values are calculated from the listed ingredients and will vary with brands and substitutions. If you have a health condition, food allergy, or take medication, please check with your doctor or a registered dietitian before changing how you eat.
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