Turkey Noodle Soup

An old-fashioned Turkey Noodle Soup filled with turkey chunks, vegetables and noodles in a rich, turkey broth made from a holiday turkey carcass. Serve with a rustic, crusty loaf of bread and this is an economical, full-meal soup!

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Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 30

Additional Time: 4

Total Time: 4 50

Servings: to 16 Servings

Calories: 227kcal

Author: Pat Nyswonger

Ingredients

Turkey Broth:

1 turkey carcass
2 roasted turkey wings
2 roasted turkey drumsticks
1 onion halved
1 head of garlic halved
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 teaspoon peppercorns
Fresh herbs: thyme rosemary, sage and parsley
6 quarts of cold water

The Soup:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion chopped
3-4 celery ribs sliced
4 large carrots peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3-4 cloves garlic chopped
8- oz. sliced mushrooms
Turkey meat from above turkey broth
5 or 6 quarts above prepared turkey broth
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
8 ounces dry noodles or pasta

Instructions

For the Turkey Broth:

Break up the turkey carcass and add them to a large soup pot with the wings, drumsticks, onion, and garlic. Tie the fresh herbs together with a string and add to the pot.
Pour in the water, there should be enough cold water to cover the bones by at least 1-inch.
Over high heat, bring the pot to a boil then immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer with a gentle bubbling for 4 or 5 hours. Do not allow the liquid to boil. Occasionally skim off and discard any foam that accumulates on the surface.
Scoop the bones from the broth and when cool enough to handle strip the meat from them, cut large pieces into small, bite-size pieces, and reserve. Discard the stripped bones. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer and set aside until needed. Discard the solids.

For the Turkey Soup:

In a large Dutch oven or soup pot set over medium-high, add the oil, and when it is hot add the onion, celery, carrots, and mushrooms. Cook until slightly softened, add the garlic, and when it is fragrant stir in reserved turkey broth and turkey meat. Add the bay leaves, salt/pepper, bring the soup to a boil then immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
For the Noodles: In a large saucepan of salted water, cook the noodles to just tender then drain and add to the soup. (See Notes)

Notes

If you do not have a leftover turkey carcass, packages of turkey parts, i.e. thighs, drumsticks, wings and breast can be purchased in the meat/poultry counter of regular grocery stores.
You can add all the noodles to the pot of soup and this is fine if all the soup is to be eaten at once. In the event of leftovers, however, if the noodles are left in the pot of soup for too long they will become soft and soggy. The solution is to keep the noodles separate, adding a portion of hot noodles to each serving of soup. To do this, drain the cooked noodles then return them to their cooking pot and toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Cover the pot and reserve until ready to serve the soup. Then, scoop a portion of noodles into individual bowls and ladle hot soup over them. Any unused portions of soup and noodles can be refrigerated in separate lidded containers for up to 1 week.

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