A few vegetables, broth, and fresh herbs are all you need to make this leftover turkey noodle soup recipe. Brimming with comfort and flavor, this easy soup is the best way to reimagine Thanksgiving leftovers. Plus, it comes together in less than 15 minutes, a welcome reprieve from long cooking times after a big holiday meal!
My recipe for homemade turkey noodle soup is endlessly customizable. You can use different pasta shapes and sizes, add more vegetables, and even add more fresh herbs to suit your tastes. For more leftover turkey recipes, try my turkey casserole, turkey pot pie, and Monte Cristo (a turkey and ham sandwich!).
Ingredients
Cooking fat — I used olive oil, but use your preferred cooking oil. You’ll also need unsalted butter for a little richness. Feel free to use all olive oil if you prefer.
Vegetables — to build flavor from the beginning, you’ll make a mirepoix consisting of chopped onion, carrots, and celery.
Garlic — garlic adds a deep savory flavor to the soup. You can substitute fresh cloves with ½ teaspoon of garlic powder if desired.
Broth — use store-bought or homemade turkey broth or stock. For convenience, substitute water and bouillon if desired.
Herbs — fresh thyme and a bay leaf go into the soup, and a few tablespoons of fresh Italian parsley add a bright finishing touch.
Noodles — I prefer to make a classic noodle soup using uncooked egg noodles, but any kind of pasta you have in the pantry will work. You can use dried egg noodles or try your hand at making homemade egg noodles!
Turkey — chop up cooked turkey meat or shred it if you prefer. This is a fantastic opportunity to use up any drier, leftover pieces from Thanksgiving!
How To Make Turkey Noodle Soup
1. Heat a large Dutch oven or large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and butter, and let the butter melt. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and salt. Cook until the vegetables are slightly softened.
2. Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant.
3. Add the turkey broth, 2 cups of water, bay leaf, and thyme. Bring the mixture to a simmer.
4. Add the egg noodles and give the pot a stir.
5. Then, add the chopped turkey and black pepper. Once simmering again, cook for 7 minutes or until the noodles are al dente. Remove the bay leaf. Season the turkey noodle soup with additional salt and ground black pepper to taste.
6. Stir in the minced flat-leaf parsley and serve.
A Great Use For Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey
If you’ve made a roasted turkey for Thanksgiving, chances are you have plenty of leftovers. This easy turkey noodle soup is the perfect way to use up leftover turkey meat! You can use a mixture of white and dark meat or just one type. Just chop it up or shred it so you have 3 cups’ worth to make 8 servings of soup.
I like to pick out any turkey pieces that may have dried out a little bit on the serving platter. Those pieces may not be ideal for simply reheating or stuffing into turkey sandwiches. But once soaked in broth, they are perfectly tender and delicious again, making them ideal for use in this recipe!
Make The Soup With Homemade Stock
Instead of buying turkey stock from the store, you can use the leftover turkey carcass and trimmings from a cooked turkey to make homemade turkey stock. With water, a few vegetables, and some herbs and spices, you can have a flavorful stock in just a few hours. Freeze it for later and whip up this soup anytime with homemade stock!
Substitutions
- Use different noodles: Swap the egg noodles for other small pasta, like orzo, penne, or macaroni. If you have long noodles, I recommend breaking them into smaller pieces before stirring them into the pot (it makes them easier to spoon up and eat!).
- Use gluten-free pasta: Use your favorite gluten-free pasta to make this into a gluten-free turkey noodle soup.
- Use rice: Instead of noodles, add 2 to 3 cups of cooked rice or ½ cup of uncooked rice to the soup.
- Add more vegetables: To make this soup even heartier, feel free to use your favorite vegetables or add extras like mushrooms, green beans, sweet potatoes, zucchini, and broccoli. You can also use up any leftover roasted vegetables or sides you have in your refrigerator, like roasted butternut squash or roasted carrots!
- Use a different broth: Vegetable broth, chicken broth, or chicken stock will work well if you can’t find turkey broth.
- Add more herbs: Fresh rosemary and sage are great options that complement the flavor of the turkey.
How to Make Ahead and Store Leftovers
I love making this recipe for meal prep! If I set out with that intention, I like to leave out the noodles and cook them when reheating the soup to serve it. Or, I will boil the noodles on the side, refrigerate them separately, and stir together when reheating a serving. This way, the noodles don’t get too soft or mushy in the fridge or freezer.
- Refrigerating: Once the soup has cooled completely, transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freezing: If you have leftovers, cool the turkey noodle soup to room temperature, and transfer it to freezer bags or freezer-safe containers. It will keep well in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Reheating: If the soup is frozen, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. Add the soup to a saucepan and reheat until warmed through. You might need to add a splash of broth while the soup warms up.
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- For a thicker broth, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of flour to the pot when adding the garlic in step 2. Cook for 1 extra minute, stirring frequently, until no dry flour is visible, then add the broth (continue to step 3). You can also stir in some heavy cream, sour cream, or leftover mashed potatoes at the end of cooking.
- If using white meat, be mindful of how long the soup is cooking. It can dry out if it cooks for too long, so just add it when you add the noodles.
- If you don’t have leftover turkey, make my easy air fryer turkey breast or shred a rotisserie chicken and use that for the soup!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Add all the ingredients aside from the egg noodles to the slow cooker. Cook on Low for 3 hours or High for about 2 hours. Stir in the noodles and turkey and cook for another 30 minutes to 1 hour.
If you have a lot of leftover turkey, measure out the turkey and multiply the recipe by the amount of turkey you have. So, if you have 6 cups of meat, double the other ingredients. Only have about 5 cups? Increase the other ingredients by 1.5 (1½ times the recipe).
Yes, you can use raw turkey that is boneless or bone-in. Simmer 2 pounds of turkey along with the vegetables and broth until it is cooked through to 165ºF. Remove the turkey pieces from the Dutch oven, allow it to cool slightly so you don’t burn your fingers, and shred or chop the meat. Then, follow the rest of the recipe as written.
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If you’ve tried this turkey noodle soup recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Turkey Noodle Soup Recipe
Equipment
- Large Dutch oven or pot
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 onion chopped (280g)
- 4 carrots peeled and chopped (226g)
- 3 stalks celery sliced (130g)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 8 cups turkey broth (1.92L)
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 6 ounces uncooked eggs noodles (170g)
- 3 cups cooked turkey chopped (340g)
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
Instructions
- Heat a large dutch oven or pot over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and butter.
- Once the butter has melted, add the onion, carrots, celery and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes until the vegetables are slightly softened. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.
- Add the broth, 2 cups of water, bay leaf, and thyme. Bring the soup to a simmer.
- Add the noodles, turkey, and pepper. Once simmering again, cook for 7 minutes, or according to the cook time for the noodles on the package instructions, until they are al dente.
- Remove the bay leaf. Season the soup with additional salt and ground black pepper to taste. Stir in the parsley and serve.
Notes
- For a thicker broth, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of flour to the pot when adding the garlic in step 2. Cook for 1 extra minute, stirring frequently, until no dry flour is visible, then add the broth (continue to step 3). You can also stir in some heavy cream, sour cream, or leftover mashed potatoes at the end of cooking.
- If using white meat, be mindful of how long the soup is cooking. It can dry out if it cooks for too long, so just add it when you add the noodles.
- If you don’t have leftover turkey, make my easy air fryer turkey breast or shred a rotisserie chicken and use that for the soup!
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