Turkey Soup for the Day After

This is some very scrumptious soup to use up your leftover turkey and put smiles on everyone's faces.

Since Teddy can't go up and down steps with the cone, we have been taking her on a daily car trip for a few hours just to get her out of the house. She can't be off leash outside because she could rub her eyes in the bushes and that is a giant no no. As a treat, we stop at Mc Donald's and buy her 2 hamburger patties. Today, as my husband was placing her special order, she was doing a bit of puppy math. She was counting the days on her little pudgy toes and figuring out how long she wore the cone the last time. This summer we did not make the daily car trips and she did not get any burgers. After thinking it through, she let us know that we owe her 28 burgers! She would like them all at once.

Look who is right behind Sam Champion on the today show? Right over Sam's right shoulder! Yep, that would be The Blog Tech in his mouse ears in NYC.


Hey Sam, get your hand out of The Blog Tech's face!


Now to the soup.

Make a pot of stock using your turkey carcass. Fill a pot of water with the carcass in it. Add a halved onion, some celery stalks, 4 carrots, some peppercorns and juniper berries, bay leaves and thyme and rosemary. Let it simmer for several hours and then strain it to remove the solids. This can be refrigerated overnight so you can remove the fat.


Melt 1 1/2 sticks of butter in a heavy pot.


Stir in the onions.


Then the carrots.


The celery.


Stir them for a minute over medium heat.


Then add 1 cup of flour.


Cook stirring for 2 minutes.


Start to add the stock. I added about 6 quarts of it.


Keep the heat set on medium.


Add 2 cups of rice.


Add 1 tablespoon of pepper. I added some Knorr's chicken stock concentrate. Taste for seasoning and add salt if needed.


Add 2 cups of half and half.


Cover and simmer over low heat until the rice is cooked.


While it is simmering, dice up the turkey and add it.


Just before serving, add a bunch of chopped fresh parsley.


This is one of my families favorite soups. It is outstanding.


Turkey is one of the dishes we are serving at my daughter's next event. This is the 4th one I made in one week.

In case any of you are not sure how to prepare your bird, I have a very simple full proof way. Place your rinsed turkey in your roasting pan. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Place the bird breast side down, brush it with butter, cover it with some heavy aluminum foil. Make sure it is breast side down. This allows the dark meat to cook through and the juices pool into the breasts which keep them very moist. Cooking at a low temperature allows the fat in the turkey to melt slowly and baste the meat as it does. When you roast the turkey in a hot oven, the fat melts quickly and drips into the pan and you end up with a dry bird. Cook covered, breast side down for 3 hours for a 16 pound bird. After 3 hours turn the bird breast side up, cover it again and continue to cook for 2 more hours. After 2 hours, uncover it and continue to cook until it is done. The internal temperature of the thickest part of the breast should be 165 degrees. Remove from the oven, cover it again and let it rest for about 30 minutes. This allows the juice to reabsorb into the meat. The outcome will be a tender, moist falling off the bone turkey. Believe me, after roasting 70 odd pounds of turkey this past week, I know my birds!

Comments

Anonymous said…
I can't imagine cooking 70 some punds of turkey in one week, I shall take this advice to the bank!
I have tried a few mothods over the years, (37) years, the brown paper bag, breast up, covered in cheese cloth soaked in butter (good old Martha), but the best is in my gramma's old blue enamel roast pan, its huge, for some reason this roast pan works beautiful, moist and browned turkey with beautiful pan drippings.I even bought a new pan like it but obviously it didn't have my gramma's mo jo cause it failed, miserably, I look for the blog teck, couldn't find him on the day but i see him there in your phot, he's a great son, you must be so proud.He did wonderful job while you were away.I hope Teddy heals fast, thankyou for sharing this, I will try this soup, its a little rich but so good sounding,
Anonymous said…
No turkey here but this would be a great soup from any kind of bird!

So Teddy is not suffering that bad this time :-) How long till the cone comes off?

Have a great day!
SharleneT said…
Poor little Teddy. Hope this is her last journey with the cone and that your shins hold up. I'm taking the easy way out this year and cooked my turkey today to reheat at my daughter's tomorrow. I know what a cooked turkey looks like, so I won't miss the pix. Have my day-after soup stock started and can't wait to dig in. Been very busy but definitely wanted to wish you the happiest of Thanksgivings and that it's a day filled with great moments to remember through the year. (P.S. I added just a touch of fresh rosemary to my stuffing and it is a real WOW! Will post recipe, later.
brokenteepee said…
I love turkey soup.
:( no turkey, no turkey soup
kymber said…
my mother always cooked her turkeys/chickens/hens breast-side down for the first half of cooking and that is the way that i always do it too. haven't seen too many people do that. but it makes for the moistest breasts.

(strange twist of fate - i posted our menu for Thanksgiving Day on our blog today and gave instructions for cooking the turkey breast-side down!)
The best part of T-Day dinner are the leftovers, including the turkey carcass. Well YUM! What else can you say.
Guillaume said…
Totally forgot Thanksgiving is tomorrow, but an American client reminded me of it. I think with this soup, I would prefer the day after.
Marigold said…
How do you manage to get all your veggies chopped so nice and uniformly? Such precision! The Goatmother is so envious. :)
Yay, Blog Tech, you star you!
TARYTERRE said…
TEDDY deserves each and every treat after suffering with that cone. I did not see The Blog Tech. But you did. YEAH. He is immortal now. Blinked into permanence on video. Soup sounds good. But I really appreciate the tip on cooking the bird. Thanks for sharing your wisdom. HAPPY THANKSGIVING.