Name: From-scratch Turkey Wild Rice Soup at Home
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 cup diced yellow onion; 1/2 cup carrots slice into half moons (about 2 medium carrots); 1/2 cup sliced celery (about 2 small stalks); 2 cloves fresh garlic (minced); 1 heaping teaspoon rosemary (minced); 1 heaping teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (minced); 6 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour; 4 to 6 cups turkey stock (or low-sodium chicken broth); 4 cups half & half ((see notes)); 1 bay leaf; 2 cups turkey (leftover, chopped); 2 cups cooked leftover wild rice; kosher salt (or to taste); freshly ground black pepper

Worth keeping the day after Thanksgiving. No, not because of Black Friday, which used to be the case but I’m more about Cyber Monday these days. Shop in my pj’s? Yes Please. No, the reason I genuinely look forward to the day after T-day is the leftovers. Nothing is better than a big plate of leftover Thanksgiving dinner. But after that one plate of leftovers, I’m usually bombarded with more turkey than side dishes and hey, that’s okay because I simply make a big batch of this turkey wild rice soup! And now you can too.

However, if it’s March or any other day that’s not right after Thanksgiving, then you can roast up a few turkey legs to use or substitute shredded cooked chicken. Do your thing.

Worth keeping wild rice. It’s texture and earthy flavor. I eat it with salmon or add it to salads, and it swells while adding a chewy [in a good way] texture in soups. Specifically this soup. Turkey wild rice soup is a recipe I’ve wanted to share for forEVER. It’s luxuriously creamy and filled with veggies, turkey, herbs and love.

To cook this Turkey Wild Rice Soup Gather:

butter
olive oil
onions
carrots
celery
garlic
fresh rosemary
thyme
bay leaf
unbleached all-purpose flour
turkey stock [or low sodium chicken broth]
half & half
leftover turkey
cooked wild rice
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

In a large Dutch oven, melt 4 tablespoons of butter with 2 tablespoons olive oil on medium-low heat.

Then add in 1 cup diced yellow onion, 1/2 cup carrots sliced into half moons and 1/2 cup sliced celery. You can adjust the quantity to 3/4 to 1 cup of celery and carrots, I’m the only one here who doesn’t mind them but the rest of everyone at the table, likes less of them. Cover and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Next add in 2 minced cloves of garlic, 1 [heaping] teaspoon of both minced fresh thyme and rosemary. Cook for one minute.

Then sprinkle with 6 tablespoons of all-purpose flour.

Stir the flour into the butter and cook for 1 minute.

Continue stirring while slowly pouring in 4 cups [1 quart] turkey stock and 4 cups half & half.

Drop in the bay leaf and increase the heat to medium to medium-high heat and stir occasionally until soup has thickened slightly. Keep in mind that you will be adding rice and continuing to simmer the soup, so at this point the soup should be thick but still a little on the thin side.