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Whether you’re craving something lighter after that heavy meal on Thanksgiving, cozying up by the fireplace and laptop for that Black Friday/Cyber Monday shopping, or just craving a hearty, lean, vegetable-forward soup, this turkey vegetable soup checks all the boxes!
Gobble This Up: Turkey Vegetable Soup
If you’re anything like me, you’re going to have lots of turkey left over this holiday season, which is perfect to use in this homemade turkey vegetable soup! The week after Thanksgiving is probably when I get the most creative in the kitchen, since I have so many leftovers to play around with. Turkey is easy to shred or slice and use in so many dishes, including skillet turkey pot pie, baked turkey and cheddar cranberry sandwiches, and this wild rice soup! For something completely different, try these turkey chilaquiles.
This turkey vegetable soup is a great way to eat a lighter fare, and this soup includes a medley of fresh vegetables, shredded turkey, and rich broth. You may omit the noodles if you want to keep this recipe low-carb, but I like the addition of them for the texture of each bite. If you choose to skip out on the shell pasta, I recommend doubling down on the veggies to make sure every ladle-full is rich with ingredients!
Recipe Tips and Substitutions
- You’ll want to use short cut pasta shapes in this recipe as opposed to long pasta. Shells, like used in this recipe, work well but so do elbows, orzo, and macaroni. Cooking time will vary and you will want to cook the pasta until just tender; you don’t want them overcooked and mushy!
- Definitely substitute whatever hearty vegetables in this soup that you like. I would stick to vegetables like squashes and root vegetables because they won’t break down as much — meaning, they won’t turn to mush. Sweet potato and parsnips would be a great addition or substitute!
- You can use your favorite type of leafy greens in this soup if you want to add it in addition to the kale. Lacinato (dinosaur) kale works well in this as well as baby spinach or another dense, leafy green. I would stay away from iceberg lettuce or romaine.
Storage and Reheating Instructions
In an airtight container, this soup will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I recommend reheating this soup right back on the stovetop, not the microwave. If you need more liquid, add more broth or water. Your pasta will be slightly bloated due to it sitting in liquid for an extended period of time.
If you plan on freezing this soup, before the pasta is completely done cooking (still hard when you take a bite), portion out what you would like to freeze into freezer-safe containers. This ensures that when you reheat the soup, the pasta isn’t overcooked and mushy. Continue cooking the rest of the soup that you aren’t freezing.
To reheat from frozen, place the frozen soup into a pot on the stovetop and reheat on the stovetop over medium heat until thawed and warmed through.
Turkey Vegetable Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ white onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 8 cups (1893 ml) turkey or chicken broth
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced into ½" pieces
- 3 celery stalks, diced into ½" pieces
- 2 cups (280 g) butternut squash, cut into ½" cubes
- 8 ounces (227 g) shell shaped pasta
- 2 cups (199 g) shredded turkey
- 2 cups (134 g) chopped kale
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a deep soup pot then add the onion and cook until it becomes translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, bay leaf, salt, thyme, sage, oregano and pepper and stir and cook until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Pour in the chicken broth and bring it to a boil over high heat then reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Add the carrots, celery and butternut squash and let it simmer, covered, for 30 to 45 minutes or until the squash is tender.
- Bring the heat back up to high and let the broth boil before adding the pasta and cooking until tender, uncovered.
- Once the pasta is cooked, remove the pot from the heat and stir in the turkey and the chopped kale.
- Divide into bowls and serve with freshly minced parsley for garnish.
Nutrition
Photographs by Eat Love Eat
