Homemade Turkey Soup

Make the most of leftover turkey with this Turkey Noodle Soup recipe made with simple ingredients and easy-to-follow instructions.

Try this Homemade Turkey Soup to warm you up this season

If you’re staring down a big Ziploc bag full of leftover turkey and you’ve already had a few sandwiches, it’s time to make Turkey Noodle Soup.

Even if you don’t feel like eating it right now, you can make it and freeze it for a meal next month or something (Future You will thank you)!

This soup works well with leftover turkey meat (either dark or white meat), and leftover chicken, too!

Turkey Soup Ingredients

• cooked turkey meat – you’ll need 2 cups of fully cooked, chopped turkey meat. Either light or dark meat, or a combo is fine. Chicken works too!
• egg noodles – I like either a medium or wide egg noodle here, but you can use whatever you like best.
• turkey broth – or turkey stock, chicken broth or chicken stock.
• carrots – add sweetness and vibrant color.
• celery – for a subtle earthiness and crunch.
• onion – adds depth of flavor.
• garlic – adds lots of aromatic flavor.
• olive oil – for sauteeing the vegetables. Butter works, too.
• bay leaves and thyme – infuses the soup with subtle herbal notes.
• salt and pepper – for seasoning the soup to perfection.

Turkey Soup Seasoning

We’ve kept it simple by seasoning this soup with just salt and pepper, along with bay leaves and thyme for herbal notes.

You can also add additional herbs such as rosemary or oregano, if you wish.

Seasoning may need to be adjusted before serving, depending on brand of broth or stock you use. Taste soup and make adjustments (like adding extra salt) as necessary.

How to make Turkey Soup

1. SAUTE VEGGIES. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the carrots, celery and onion, and cook until the vegetables are softened.

2. ADD AROMATICS. Add the garlic, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper, and cook 1 minute.

3. ADD BROTH AND BOIL. Stir in the broth and water, and heat to boiling.

4. NOODLES. When the soup is boiling, stir in the noodles and cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

5. TURKEY. Reduce the heat and stir in the turkey. Cook 5 minutes or until turkey is warmed through and noodles are tender.

6. SERVE. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with parsley, if you wish.

How to make Turkey Soup in advance

This soup is perfect as a make-ahead meal. Something you MAY want to consider (although this is certainly quite optional) is cooking the noodles separately, so that they don’t get soft while being stored in the fridge (this really depends on your tolerance for softer noodles).

If you’d like to do this, make the soup according to the recipe card below, but skip Step 4. Refrigerate soup until ready to serve.

Then, when you want to serve the soup, bring it to a boil and stir in the uncooked noodles at that time, allowing the noodles to cook until they are tender before serving.

What to pair with this Turkey Noodle Soup Recipe

Pair this homemade turkey soup with a Thanksgiving green salad and crusty bread or homemade yeast rolls to turn it into a wholesome meal.

Storing Homemade Turkey Soup

Allow soup to cool and then transfer to an airtight container. Soup can be refrigerated up to 3 days or frozen up to 3 months.

How to reheat this recipe for Turkey Soup

Thaw frozen soup overnight if necessary, and then gently reheat soup on stovetop with a splash of water or broth to restore its original consistency.

Turkey Soup Recipe FAQ