Easy Turkey Wild Rice Soup Recipe
Do you have leftover turkey to use from a big holiday turkey recipe that you made for Thanksgiving or Christmas? If so, this is the perfect easy soup recipe to use leftover turkey! This creamy wild rice soup is hearty and filling. Made with wild rice, and an array of vegetables including onions, carrots, celery, as well as plenty of herbs and seasonings such as fresh thyme, rosemary, and sage, this soup truly is just layered with rich flavors. Coupled with nice chunks of turkey, this is a comfort in a bowl! No leftover turkey? No problem! You can easily make it with shredded rotisserie chicken from the grocery store or leftover chicken from last night’s dinner. So, don’t worry if turkey isn’t on the menu – this soup is a winner either way! Whether you’re using Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey leftovers, poached chicken, or leftover cooked chicken, this soup is bound to become a family favorite. I adapted this recipe from my own Creamy Wild Rice Soup recipe. If you’re looking for an option without meat, it’s a winner!
Ingredients in Turkey Wild Rice Soup
To make this creamy turkey wild rice soup recipe, you’ll need the following ingredients. Like many soup recipes, this one has a fair amount of ingredients – mostly due to the variety of herbs but if you’re short on one or two – don’t worry about it:
Olive oil Vidalia onions Carrots Celery stalks Cremini mushrooms Garlic All-purpose flour Kosher salt Pepper Poultry seasoning Fresh thyme Fresh rosemary Fresh sage Uncooked wild rice Reduced sodium chicken broth (or beef broth or turkey broth or homemade turkey stock if you have it) Bay leaves Heavy cream Leftover cooked turkey, shredded or cubed (or rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken from a whole roasted chicken or poached chicken) Fresh parsley Lemon juice Sugar, optional
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
What is Wild Rice?
Did you know that wild rice isn’t rice after all? Technically, it’s a type of grass! And no, it doesn’t taste like grass but it is more earthy than basic white rice. As for the texture, wild rice has a chewy outer sheath with a tender inner grain to give it plenty of hearty chew. It’s heartier than white rice or even brown rice. It’s nutty and earthy in flavor and is a great addition to soups, stews, and stuffing! Plus it triples in size after it cooks so it can really bulk up and “stretch” whatever you add it to.
How to Make Wild Rice Soup with Turkey
This wild rice turkey soup recipe takes only 10 minutes of prep and then the final hour is hands-off as the soup simmers on the stove. Therefore, don’t be surprised if wild rices seems pricey or expensive compared to other rice. It is! But I promise, this soup recipe with wild rice is so worth it! Wild rice needs more time to cook than white rice or brown rice do so take note of that. But the instructions to make this soup are easy to follow. Step 1: To a large stock pot or Dutch oven, add the olive oil onions, carrots, celery, and saute for a few minutes. Step 2: Add the flour, stir, and cook for 1 minute. Step 3: Add the mushrooms, minced garlic cloves, and saute. Step 4: Add the salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, thyme, rosemary, sage, wild rice, broth, bay leaves, and bring to a boil. Step 5: Allow soup to boil fairly rapidly for about 30 minutes uncovered, or until liquid volume has reduced by nearly half. Step 6: Cover the soup, turn the heat to low or medium-low, and allow the soup to simmer for another 25 minutes or until rice is tender and done. Step 7: Add the heavy cream, leftover turkey with white and dark meat OR turkey breast (or leftover chicken, poached chicken, rotisserie chicken) and simmer for 5 minutes. Step 8: Remove the bay leaves and other sprigs of fresh herbs, add the parsley, lemon juice, and season with additional salt and pepper to taste. If desired, add a pinch of sugar to balance out the flavors before serving!
What to Serve with Turkey Wild Rice Cream Soup
Before diving in to a big bowl of wild rice and turkey soup, I like to add some some grated Parmesan cheese on top. Cheese makes everything better! Some of the rice grains will appear ‘burst’ or cracked in places, which is a visual clue. Also, the soup will thicken as it cools and I find that as the leftover soup sits in the fridge, the rice continues to absorb the liquid over a few days like many noodle based soups tend to do or soups with long grain rice. So don’t worry if it looks a little brothy when you immediately take your pot of soup off the heat. Other perfect accompaniments for your creamy wild rice soup with turkey are bread or dinner rolls. My fluffy Garlic Herb Rolls are just the thing for mopping up the savory broth. Any type of crusty bread like French bread, baguettes, or your favorite dinner roll is also great. Additionally, a crisp side salad with a light vinaigrette like my Classic House Salad is a light and fresh choice. Even though some people may say ‘soup isn’t a meal’ this one truly is! There’s plenty of protein, hearty grains, and vegetables so you won’t have to worry too much about what else to serve the soup with.
Recipe Substitutions and Variations
These substitutions and variations offer plenty of flexibility to make creamy Turkey and Wild Rice Soup that makes your mouth water! Feel free to try some of these suggestions:
Use Chicken or Turkey: If you don’t have leftover turkey, a store-bought rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken would work just as well. I’ve repurposed leftovers from my 20-Minute Oven Baked Chicken and my juicy Poached Chicken in this soup and they were both perfect!
Mushrooms: I use cremini mushrooms, but white mushrooms or baby portobello mushrooms are both great. Not a mushroom fan? Just omit them.
Onions: I like sweet Vidalia onions in soups but yellow or white onions work just as well.
Additional Vegetables: While not as traditional, you can throw in a variety of veggies you may have on hand including cauliflower florets (add it when you begin to simmer the soup covered), peas, corn, or greens such as fresh spinach or shredded kale. Besides cauliflower, the remaining options can be added in the final 5-10 minutes or so of simmering when you add the heavy cream.
Smoky Flavor: For a smoky twist, consider adding a few strips of cooked and crumbled bacon or smoked paprika to the soup.
Spice It Up: Add a pinch of red pepper flakes for some heat, a dash of cayenne pepper, or some chopped jalapeno to give your soup a spicy kick.
Instead of Lemon: If you don’t have lemon juice, you can use another acid including a splash of white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Why add lemon or any acid to soup? It truly rounds out the flavor profile of the soup and I always recommend doing so.
Switch Broths: Experiment with different broths such as turkey broth – which you may have on hand if you were making a whole turkey – or vegetable broth.
Tips for Making the Best Turkey and Wild Rice Soup
Herbs: I prefer to use fresh herbs when I can get them. They are so full of flavor and again, if you are making this soup to use up leftover turkey you made for the holidays, chances are you have fresh herbs on hand anyway. If you don’t have fresh herbs, or have a mix-and-match assortment of fresh and dried herbs, that’s fine. A general rule is to use half the quantity of dry herbs as you would for fresh. So rather than 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, you will use 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme. Rice: I strongly recommend using 100% wild rice. I hesitate to even suggest a wild rice blend, meaning a mixture of wild rice and other rice because cooking times will vary and things could be ‘off’ for you from the way I wrote the recipe. Heavy Cream: I advise heavy cream in this soup for that very white appearance and super creamy texture. If you’re trying to save some fat and calories half-and-half will work. However, don’t use whole milk, 2% milk, or anything without the rich fat of heavy cream or half-and-half.
How to Store Leftover Soup
Like a lot of soups, this one tastes amazing the next day as the flavors have a chance to mingle. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also reheat it in the microwave in 30-second bursts until it’s hot. Of course, you can also do it in a pot on the stovetop. You may need to add some more broth when reheating if the wild rice soaks up some of the liquid. I don’t recommend freezing this soup. Dairy products don’t freeze and thaw well and it will change the texture of your soup.
More Easy Leftover Turkey Recipes:
Turkey Noodle Soup – Have leftover Thanksgiving turkey? Make this turkey soup! It’s easy and tastes like grandma’s homemade chicken noodle soup, but with turkey! Tried this recipe? Leave a review! Consider leaving a 5 star rating if you’ve made and loved one of my recipes! Easy Turkey Pot Pie – Wondering what to do with that leftover turkey from the holidays? Make this easy turkey pot pie recipe! It’s hearty, creamy, comforting, perfect for chilly weather, and EASY to make! Turkey Tetrazzini – Wondering what to do with your leftover Thanksgiving turkey? This rich casserole features al dente spaghetti, a decadent cream sauce, tender vegetables, cheese, and of course your extra turkey! It’s EASY to make and may be even better than your Thanksgiving feast! Turkey and Cheese Sliders – Juicy turkey, Swiss cheese, and cranberry sauce all nestled in soft Hawaiian rolls that are brushed with butter and topped with poppy seeds for the BEST turkey sliders! FAST, EASY, and takes advantage of leftover turkey! Deli turkey also works. Thanksgiving Leftovers Turkey Crescent Rolls — These stuffed crescent rolls are QUICK and EASY to make using leftovers from your Thanksgiving dinner including turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and gravy! Thanksgiving Crunchwrap Supreme — A soft flour tortilla and crunchy corn tostada base is piled high with your favorite Thanksgiving leftovers including turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and more before sealing them, toasting, and dunking them in gravy. Leftovers never tasted so good!
