Warm up this winter with a bowl of turkey wild rice soup. Tender turkey meat and wild rice create a filling and hardy soup suitable as a main dish.
Grown in Minnesota, wild rice is an ancient grain, not a variety of rice. It is considered healthier than white rice as it is less refined with more protein, fiber, and vitamins. I love the hardy, nutty texture.
Elements
Roasted Turkey Meat: I like to make this recipe using leftover meat after roasting a turkey or a turkey breast.
Butter: This is used to sauté the veggies. Later, the butter will combine with the flour to help thicken the soup.
Onion, Carrots, & Celery: The classic vegetables for soup. So good in many broth-based soups, such as turkey noodle soup.
Garlic: Adds great flavor.
Flour: Flour will thicken the soup.
Half & Half: Makes the soup rich and creamy.
Wild Rice: We are adding uncooked wild rice straight into the soup. The rice will cook in the stock and half-and-half, absorbing flavor as it cooks.
Stock: Homemade stock is preferred for optimal flavor.
Bay Leaf: A bay leaf adds flavor to the stock.
Salt & Pepper: Brings out the flavors. I like a generous amount of pepper in soup.
Thyme & Rosemary: So good with poultry.
Parsley: Adds fresh flavor and a pop of green color.
Preparation
I like to use the turkey bones from a roasted turkey to make homemade stock. My turkey noodle soup recipe discusses making homemade stock. You can certainly use store-bought stock or broth, but homemade adds tremendous flavor.
Melt the butter in a large pot. I use a stockpot. Add the onion, celery, and carrots and sauté until the vegetables are somewhat tender. Add garlic and stir for a minute. Stir in the flour until incorporated into the butter.
Add the wild rice, stock, half-and-half, and spices. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the wild rice is tender. Wild rice takes a lot longer to cook than white rice. Taste the wild rice after about 45 minutes, and continue cooking until it is tender to your liking.
Once the rice is done, remove the bay leaf. Ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with parsley.
Enjoy!
Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound leftover roasted turkey meat
- 3 Tbsp butter
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 medium carrots chopped
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup half & half
- ¾ cup wild rice uncooked
- 4½ cups turkey or chicken stock
- 1 bay leaf
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp rosemary
- 2 tsp parsley garnish
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large stock pot. Add the onions, carrots, and celery. Cook until the onion is translucent and soft. Add garlic and cook for one minute.
- Add flour and mix well. Slowly stir in the half and half, wild rice, stock, salt, pepper, thyme, and rosemary.
- Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium-low, and cover. Cook until rice is cooked; 45 minutes to an hour.
- Add the turkey to the pot and cook for another 5 minutes until heated though.
- Remove the bay leaf. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with parsley.