5 Easy Ways to Use Turkey Leftovers

Updated: October 11, 2023

Last week we had the absolute best time having a friends turkey dinner. The idea of roasting a turkey mid-week seemed a bit bonkers, but it was great because we all went home with a ton of leftovers! YEAY! IMHO, the best part of having a turkey is the leftovers, and incorporating them into your weekday meals is SO easy.

Each Alberta Mama has taken our leftovers and use them to create a “typical leftover meal,” something that would typically get made in our homes. It’s actually quite telling of each family’s personality.

We’ve created this delicious blog post in partnership with Alberta Turkey and Alberta Mamas. All recipes, opinions, and everything else is our own! 

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Turkey Bone Broth (Deanne)

Using up the leftover turkey meat is a no-brainer, but the bones are useful too! Deanne took the bones from our turkey and turned them into a stock (or bone broth) that she can use for soups, gravy, or for drinking straight up.

For the turkey bone broth you will need:

• Your leftover turkey bones
• Carrots, onions, celery or any other root vegetable you have on hand
• Garlic
• Herbs (for this one we used leftover rosemary and thyme from our dinner the night before)
• Spices to taste (we used cumin, star anise, salt, and pepper but use what you have in the pantry)

For the instructions to make bone broth, check out the post Deanne wrote here: Making Bone Broth

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Turkey, Egg & Squash Bites (Christine R.)

These little bites are perfect for a quick healthy snack or for popping in your lunch bag using your leftover turkey. The best part of this recipe is that it might not use up all your turkey, so you not only have a quick and easy healthy snack but also, more turkey for your other leftover meals.

These tasty bites need the following:

• medium spaghetti squash
• chopped turkey
• all-purpose flour
• egg whites
• salt, pepper, and other spices to taste
• shredded cheese – your choice what kind

Head on over to read the complete instructions on making Turkey, Egg & Squash Bites.

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Festive Poutine (Kimberly)

Classic Canadian comfort food but make it festive!

Kimberly went with the Quebecois classic and took it up a notch with Turkey Poutine. Make sure everything is hot enough to melt the cheese curds before you assemble – they should be stringy!

To make this upgraded Canadian classic, you’ll need:

• Fries- homemade if you have time, but I just used a frozen oven baked variety from M&M Meats!
• Bacon- cooked and crumbled
• Cheese Curds
• Green Onions- washed and sliced
• Leftover Cranberry Sauce, gravy, and turkey – cut into smaller pieces

Get the complete instructions on how Kimberly made her Turkey Poutine.

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Turkey Curry (Nicola)

This isn’t a typical “curry” – there are a million curry recipes out there that are authentic and 1,000 times better – but this is my family’s quick and delicious recipe for a weeknight meal.

Spice up your turkey leftovers with:

• Leftover turkey
• 1 can of tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon (or more to taste) of Pataks Curry paste (I used the madras)
• 1/2 cup of cream
• 1/2 cup of chicken broth

Instructions: 

Dump the sauce and turkey into a pot and heat up. Mix in one tablespoon of the curry paste and stir. Add in the stock to thin the sauce and the cream to add some extra flavour. Serve over rice or fries.

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Turkey Cranberry Swiss Slides on a Ciabatta Bun (Christine B.)

This leftover recipe is sure to be one of your favourites! All you need are 4 basic ingredients (2 of which you most likely still have) and an oven! Turkey leftover win!

Pull these basics out of your fridge (or pantry) and enjoy!

• Turkey
• Cranberry Sauce
• Swiss Cheese
• Ciabatta Bun

Find the easy and delicious recipe at Turkey Cranberry Swiss Slider.

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More Leftover Turkey Ideas

It’s easy to substitute turkey into your everyday recipes. Change up your Taco Tuesday meat with turkey, or your chicken pot pie is now a turkey pot pie. Turkey is great, too, because it’s a lean meat.

We’ve written a few other turkey recipes over the years, too. Check them out!

• Instant Pot Turkey Buffalo Mac n Cheese
• Easy Turkey Meatball Appetizer

To learn more about Turkey as a healthy protein, check out the Alberta Turkey website for turkey nutritional information.

Looking for additional tips, recipes, or even how to cook a turkey? Visit Alberta Turkey for all your cooking inspiration. Alberta Turkey makes your holidays easy with all the recipe suggestions and turkey prep tips you need.