LUXURY WITH LEFTOVERS

by Joy Wielland on November 24, 2022

Over 30 Delicious Turkey leftover Recipes

It’s Thanksgiving Day and you’ve bought the bird and probably have it oven ready if not already roasting. If you still need help in prepping or cooking a turkey click Nov. 28, 2018 now for a comprehensive overview on all aspects of dealing with a turkey, buying, prepping, stuffing, cooking, carving, stripping, storing the meat, and repurposing leftovers,.

If you haven’t decided on a stuffing go to Nov. 10, 2022 or the other 3 links listed below for suggestions. Otherwise, this is a reprint of the post oven portion of my article for N0v. 25, 2021. I’d written so many postings on turkey over the years; how to buy, prep, stuff, cook, carve, strip the carcass, preserve the meat and use left-overs-enough recipes for left-overs to fill a book-I decided to give a ‘Cliff Notes’ on The Turkey Experience. I’m summarizing the steps of the process and include links to specific posts

This way you can easily locate answers to any questions you have, get help or find suggestions you need and go directly to the specific posting(s). After all, anyone responsible for holiday meals has no time to waste searching for things.

First of all, I want to state my approach to turkeys is bigger is better because they s-t-r-e-a-c-h. I love leftovers, they make wonderful impromptu meals and it’s relaxing to know you have the basis of dinner on hand. A larger bird can give you that with only a bit more cooking time and no extra effort. The cooked meat freezes well and given the seasonal prices now, getting a larger one is an economy. So before you cut back on size of the entrees for holiday dinners this difficult year, consider that turkey is the perfect entrée for all winter holidays and the most economical if you take advantage of the pre-Thanksgiving prices on frozen birds. Extra stored meat is a saving, not a waste.

When planning ahead, always choose the plumpest bird, follow the handling directions and cook as instructed for times and temperatures, especially noting the differences between stuffed and unstuffed birds. I explain each of these steps in detail in my post for Nov. 15, 2012.

To simplify things, here is a roasting chart from famous food writer and teacher David Joachim’s book, 5,000 Food Tips and Tricks. The cooking times are a bit longer than other charts and I truly believe safer. The oven temperature is 325 deg. and the temperatures required for doneness are 180 deg. for the breast and 165 deg. for the stuffing.

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Weight Fridge defrosting Cold water defrost Roasting unstuffed Roasting stuffed
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5-7lb. 16-22 hr. 3-5 hr. 1 ½ -2 hr. 2-2 ½ hr.
7-9 lb. 18-24 hr. 4-6 hr. 2-2 ½ hr. 2 ½ -3 hr.
9-11 lb. 24-36 hr. 8-10 hr. 3-3 ½ hr. 4-4 ½ hr.
12-15 lb. 36-48 hr. 10-14 hr. 3 ½ -4 hr. 4 ½ -5 hr.
16-20 lb. 48-64 hr. 16-20 hr. 4-6 hr. 5 ½ -7 hr.
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Stuffings, both for cooking in bird and separately, are discussed in my posts for Nov.19, 2012 Nov. 3, 2016, Nov. 19, 2020 and Nov.10,2022. The first post gives the fundamentals of stuffing making and the basic recipe for bread stuffing which can be modified in so many ways. The more recent post explores different stuffing recipes, among them Wild Rice, Squash, Mushroom and Cranberry, with an eye to trying something new to brighten the holidays. The most important things to remember in dealing with stuffing is that always stuff the bird just before placing in the oven and all stuffing, regardless of ingredients, must register 165 deg. to be considered cooked through and ready to be served. Finally, be sure to remove stuffing as soon as the dinner is over and store separately. For freezing tips, see the storing section below.

Gravy is another important accompaniment to a roast, especially turkey. It’s important to remember that gravy is an accessory not a star, but still a deal breaker. Unless it complements the entrée, is compatible with the other dishes and has a pleasing texture, it can ruin the meal. The first two requirements aren’t much concern, especially if the gravy base is the juice rendered by the meat. The last can be more difficult. For example a little fat from the roast can give it a silky texture, just as a pat of butter smooths a sauce, but too much can cause it to break, or separate, making it appear, and taste, greasy. Also, improper introduction or cooking of the thickening agent can make gravy lumpy and unappetizing.

Both problems can be easily solved. A large amount of excess fat can be removed by slightly chilling the rendered juice and spooning it off, a light film by gently drifting strips of paper towel across the top of the reserved juice, 4-5 strips usually suffice. To avoid lumpy gravy, dissolve the thickener in cold liquid before adding it to the saucepan and whish constantly until desired density is reached.

I discuss these problems, specifically different ways of thickening and how to avoid errors, in my post of Nov. 20,2014, more recently on Feb. 17,2022, Feb. 24,2022 and in depth generally for both sauces and gravies, with many recipes and variations in my book Savvy Sauces and Gravies available at dinnerwithjoy.com/booksproducts/ and Amazon. It’s also part of my book Food Facts for Millennials available at the above sites and summarized in my post of June 7, 2018.

Carving a turkey is not difficult. There are 2 main methods, one traditional and the other more recent, either way the first move is to remove the wing and leg, with thigh, by slicing through the joints, on one side to give clear access to the breast. Then either slice the meat off the breast parallel the breast bone, in clean strokes or make one slice through the lobe along the breastbone and another along the bottom perpendicular to the backbone, removing the entire lobe, which can then be sliced crosswise. The thigh meat can be sliced separately. Repeat on the other side.

I do this in the roasting pan, but you may need to move the bird to a board for the second method of carving. For this it’s easier to mound at least the first serving of stuffing on the serving platter before you start to carve.

Stripping the carcass sounds more labor intensive than it is. (See post for Nov. 28, 2019) Set out a plate, size dependent on the amount of meat left on the carcass, and cut, or pull the meat off the bones, putting it on the plate. Toss the bones pieces of cartilage, joints, and any pieces of skin in a large pot as you go. When finished stripping, cover the pot contents with water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 2 hours. This will make soup or stew base. When it is finished, strain and store in plastic containers with lids and freeze. Do not skim it. The fat will form a hard layer on top which keeps the broth fresh and can easily be scraped off before thawing for use.

Tip for freezing stuffing. Store stuffing in plastic containers with lids and cover with a few tablespoons of the broth. This prevents the stuffing from drying out and locks in flavor and texture. Use within 3 weeks.

To freeze the meat, I divide it into piles, small, for soups and chilies, medium, for stews and casseroles, and large, for pan sautés or sauced dishes. I use plastic wrap to seal it into size-labeled 2-portion packages, and freeze the packages in bags. Depending on the turkey and the number of guests I served, I usually count on having the basis for 10-15, 2-serving meals on tap. It’s a real stress saver in the weeks ahead and a great reward for having cooked a big bird.

I do love leftovers and I’ve written posts focused on leftover turkey recipes over the years, each discussing a different aspect of transforming leftovers into delicious, fresh appearing meals. There’s no excuse for re-runs or boredom, or reason not to enjoy the leftovers for months. As I said turkey freezes very well.

Below I list links to my turkey leftover posts along with the recipe contents in each. I’ve deleted repeats but you’ll find there are plenty of recipes to serve up the leftovers of more than one bird in style. As I said above, this post is a condensed version of dealing with leftovers, the other texts are more specifically focused on the details of the process not only of prepping but also of stripping the carcus. Some have specific focus; for example Nov. 20, 2014 and Nov. 27, 2014 discuss boiling the bones for soup and gravy base and using gravies and sauces in leftover recipes.

LINKS

Dec. 21, 2011 Nov. 15, 2012 Nov. 19, 2012 Nov.29, 2012 Dec. 2, 2013 Nov. 20, 2014 Nov.27, 2014 Nov. 18, 2015 Nov. 3, 2016 Nov.24, 2016 Nov.23, 2017 Nov. 22, 2018 Nov.21, 2019