What to Make with Leftover Christmas Turkey: 10 Great Recipes

Turkey is a low-calorie meat, but only if it is cooked correctly.

For many, boiled foods seem tasteless and banal.

But, most likely, someone just doesn’t know the secrets of preparing excellent boiled turkey.

Boiled turkey - general cooking principles

Turkey takes longer to cook than chicken. It usually takes 1.5 hours for dark meat to be fully cooked, a little less for small pieces and white meat. Never cook a carcass for soup frozen. The broth will turn out cloudy and will not have a very beautiful color. The bird needs to be thawed, washed well, defects removed, and only then sent to the pan. The foam that forms during cooking must be removed, even if you do not plan to use the broth further.

For cooking, you can take any pieces of turkey: fillet and bone-in. For a dietary product, the skin and fat must be removed immediately. It is better to put meat in boiling water so that more nutrients are preserved and the taste is richer. There should not be a lot of liquid in the pan; ideally, it should barely cover the pieces. Cook the meat at a low simmer over low heat.

The following additives are used when cooking turkey: onions, celery, carrots, roots, different types of peppers, garlic and other spices. You should not put tomatoes, lemon and other acidic foods into the broth, which prevent the softening of meat fibers.

Shawarma with turkey

Hearty shawarma can be prepared with pork, and a more dietary one with chicken. With turkey, this dish will turn out juicy and low-calorie at the same time.

Lavash thin 4 sheets
Turkey breast 500 g
Korean carrots 100 g
Beijing cabbage 50 g
Tomato 1 pc.
Cucumber 1 pc.
Onion 1 pc.
Garlic 3 cloves
Olive oil

For the sauce:

Mayonnaise 200 g
Kefir 150 g
Sour cream 2.5 tbsp.
Garlic 4 cloves
Curry 1 tsp.
Khmeli-suneli 0.5 tsp.
Paprika 1 tsp.
Greens optional

Wash the turkey meat, cut into slices and then into small pieces. Marinate with garlic and olive oil, best left overnight. Also make the sauce in advance so that it infuses and acquires a delicious aroma. Start preparing the sauce by chopping the garlic and herbs. Place in a blender bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and beat everything quickly.

Prepare vegetables. Coarsely chop the Chinese cabbage.

Peel the onion and finely chop it. Cut the tomato into slices, cucumber into strips. To prepare shawarma, you can use either fresh or pickled cucumber. In the second case, the taste will be more spicy. Mix onion, cucumber and tomato.

Fry the turkey in a hot frying pan until done. The main thing is that it is not dry. Place a sheet of lavash on the table. Place a quarter of the meat in the form of a narrow rectangle on the sheet closer to one edge. Spread liberally with sauce. Then add a quarter of the Korean carrots and a quarter of the vegetable mix. Roll the shawarma into a roll, leaving one end open, and quickly fry on both sides in a grill pan.

Shawarma with turkey

Recipe 2: Boiled turkey in a steamer

Steaming allows you to get the most delicious boiled turkey, juicy and healthy, since no substances go into the broth. And to give the meat a special flavor, you can marinate it in advance. All ingredients are taken in arbitrary quantities, to suit your taste.

Ingredients

• turkey pieces;

• garlic;

• salt, black pepper.

Preparation

1. Peel the garlic cloves, mix black pepper and salt. You can use any mixture of spices to suit your taste, for example, chicken seasoning.

2. Make cuts in washed and dried pieces of meat and insert garlic cloves, rolled in a salt mixture. The cloves can be cut into several parts.

3. Place the stuffed turkey in a bowl, sprinkle with a mixture of salt and pepper, seasonings and leave to marinate for at least an hour.

4. Place the turkey in a steamer and cook for 1-1.5 hours. The cooking time for meat depends on the size of the pieces and the quality of the pieces.

Turkey skewers with bacon

Turkey fillet 700 g
Bacon 400 g
Yogurt 300 g
Butter 50 g
Olive oil 2 tbsp.
Garlic 4 cloves
Parsley, cilantro
Salt, black pepper to taste

Cut the fillet into cubes with a side of approximately three centimeters. Finely chop the greens, peel the garlic and pass through a press. In a container, stir yogurt, olive oil, add garlic, parsley, cilantro, sprinkle with salt and ground pepper, stir until smooth. Place the meat in a container, rub the sauce into it, cover with a lid and marinate in the refrigerator overnight.

On the second day, remove the turkey, wrap each piece in a strip of bacon and place on wooden skewers. Heat butter in a frying pan and fry the resulting rolls. This way the bacon will set on the barbecue and the rolls will not unravel during baking.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Place skewers with meat on the sides of a deep pan; this is an easy way to create a convection effect in the oven. And send the kebabs there for five minutes.

Recipe 5: Boiled turkey pork in a bag

A recipe for making homemade pork from boiled turkey, which retains all the juices. Another advantage of this method is the small percentage of loss; the piece does not decrease much in weight, unlike cooking in the oven.

Ingredients

• a piece of turkey fillet approximately 0.8 kg;

• a little less than a spoonful of salt;

• garlic cloves;

• pepper, spices.

Preparation

1. We stuff the turkey with garlic, rub it with salt and spices, put it in a plastic bag and put it in the refrigerator to marinate for a couple of hours, you can forget about it for the whole day or night, it will be even better.

2. We take out the bag, let out all the air and tie it as tightly as possible so that the cellophane fits tightly around the meat.

3. Take the second bag and put the meat in it again, also tie it tightly.

4. Lower the workpiece into the pan. It is desirable that it is not very large in volume. Fill the bag with water and cook for about 90 minutes.

5. Take out the bag, put it on a plate and cut it. Inside it will be rich meat juice, which was released during the cooking process.

6. Cool the meat; if desired, you can rub the boiled pork on top with pepper or liquid smoke.

Turkey pancakes

Turkey pancakes The classic recipe for pancakes can be varied using meat.

Turkey fillet 0.5 kg
Potatoes 4 pcs.
Eggs 4 pcs.
Mayonnaise 3 tbsp.
Dried basil
Salt to taste

Cut the turkey into small pieces. Beat the eggs. Peel the potatoes, wash them, grate them on a fine grater and immediately mix them with poultry meat and eggs, add seasonings and mayonnaise. Mix well. Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan. Place one tablespoon of the resulting mixture on it, forming pancakes. Fry the potato pancakes until golden brown, turn them over and fry again until golden brown. Serve with a light vegetable salad.

Turkey roll

Turkey fillet 1 kg
Spinach 100 g
Dried apricots 100 g
Sour cream 1 cup
Soft cream cheese 100 g
Hard cheese 100 g
Garlic 5 cloves
Salt, black pepper to taste

The fillet should be taken in one piece. Rinse and dry. Using a sharp knife, cut the meat lengthwise, but not all the way through. Thus, the second half of the fillet can be lifted and the meat expanded, resulting in one large layer. It is good to beat it off, but make sure that the meat does not tear.

Then sprinkle with spices.

Boil water in a saucepan, throw in the dried apricots and quickly remove. Cut dried apricots into cubes. Wash the spinach, dry it and chop it the same way. Grate hard cheese and garlic on a fine grater, mix them with soft cream cheese. Coat the turkey fillet well with the resulting mixture, and evenly spread the dried apricots and spinach on it.

Carefully roll up the roll, place it in a baking dish and cover with foil. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees and bake the turkey roll for 40 minutes. Then open the oven, remove the foil, brush the meat with sour cream and bake for another 20 minutes.

Potato soup

This simple and nutritious dish is ideal for a family dinner. To cook this soup, you will need:

320 grams of turkey breast.
Medium carrot.
700 grams of potatoes.
A small onion.
A tablespoon of good butter.
Salt, bay leaf and any spices (to taste).
Vegetable fat and filtered water.

Having figured out what to cook from turkey breasts, you need to understand exactly how to do it. The first step is to deal with the meat. It is thoroughly washed, cut into not too large pieces and fried in melted butter. Then the fillet is placed in a pan, and grated carrots and chopped onions are loaded into the vacated frying pan. After a few minutes, the sauteed vegetables are moved to the meat and poured with three liters of boiling water. Diced potatoes, bay leaves, salt and spices are also sent there. Cook the soup over low heat until all ingredients are soft.

Turkey thigh fillet chops in batter

From the listed products you can prepare 4 servings of turkey thigh fillet chops in batter.

Composition of ingredients

turkey thigh fillet – 600 g;
onion – 1 pc.;
chicken eggs – 2 pcs.;
garlic – 2 teeth;
flour – 3-4 tbsp. l.;
sesame - to taste;
ground black pepper - to taste;
salt - to taste;
sunflower oil.

Step-by-step cooking process

Turkey thigh fillet must be washed, dried and cut into small slices 2-3 cm thick.
Onions and garlic need to be peeled, washed and chopped using a blender. Ground black pepper should be added to the resulting mixture.
Turkey fillet, cut into splints, must be carefully beaten with a kitchen hammer, after having been wrapped in plastic.
The chops must be transferred to a suitable bowl and thoroughly greased with the prepared garlic-onion mixture, then add salt to taste and leave for 25 minutes. marinate.
Chicken eggs must be beaten using a whisk in a deep bowl.
Pour flour into a separate bowl and add sesame seeds to it.
Place the beaten turkey splints in a preheated frying pan with sunflower oil, first dipping each piece in beaten eggs and then in sesame flour, thoroughly rolling the splints on each side.
Turkey fillet in batter must be fried over medium heat until golden brown on each side.

Turkey thigh fillet in batter is served as an independent dish with vegetable salads with white meat sauce.

Chops with cheese

This recipe will be of interest to those who are wondering what to quickly cook from turkey breast. It allows you to diversify your family menu with tasty and juicy meat, covered with a golden-brown cheese crust. To implement it you will need:

700 grams of chilled turkey fillet.
2 eggs.
100 grams of good hard cheese.
2 large spoons of not too fatty sour cream.
A pinch of starch.
Salt, spices and vegetable oil.

Having figured out what to cook from turkey breasts, you can begin the process. The washed meat is thoroughly blotted with disposable towels and cut into portions. Each of them is lightly beaten, salted, sprinkled with seasonings and put aside for a while. Then each piece is dipped in a batter made from beaten eggs, sour cream and starch, and fried in heated vegetable fat. The browned chops are sprinkled with cheese shavings and simmered over low heat in a covered frying pan.

How to make turkey fillet in sour cream in the oven

Brass fillet in sour cream can be prepared for a holiday or for an everyday dinner. A light, non-greasy dish suitable for those who adhere to proper nutrition.

Products:

kilo of turkey fillet;
350 ml fat sour cream;
2 onions;
2 carrots;
a bunch of dill;
4 cloves of garlic;
spices and salt according to preference.

Cooking technology:

Peel the carrots, garlic and onions. Chop the garlic, cut the onion into half rings, grate the carrots.
Rinse the fillet and dry. Cut into small pieces.
In a bowl, mix sour cream with spices, chopped garlic and dill. Pepper and salt.
Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil. Lay in layers - onions, carrots.
Place meat on top. Sprinkle with spices and salt.
Pour in sour cream sauce.
Cook in a hot (180°C) oven for 50 minutes.
If desired, 10 minutes before the end of cooking, the meat can be sprinkled with grated cheese.

Turkey in cream sauce

The technology described below produces a tasty and nutritious dish that goes well with many side dishes. It will certainly attract the attention of those who still haven’t decided what to cook with turkey breasts for dinner. This time you will need:

130 grams of hard cheese.
130 milliliters cream (10%).
450 grams of turkey breast.
30 g good butter.
Salt and aromatic spices.

So, how to cook a delicious turkey breast? The fillets are washed under running water, blotted with paper towels, cut across the grain and lightly beaten. Then the meat is salted, sprinkled with spices and left for a couple of hours. The marinated pieces are fried in melted butter. Thin slices of cheese are placed on the slightly browned meat and cooked all together in a covered frying pan. Just a few minutes later, the fillet is poured with cream and simmered over low heat for a quarter of an hour.

How to deliciously cook turkey fillet on a grill pan

To ensure that the steak is juicy and not dry, you need to properly prepare the meat. It should be washed and marinated for a certain time. Spices are also important for the taste of steak.

Products:

2 turkey breasts;
1 tbsp. "Provencal herbs";
2 tbsp. black French mustard seeds;
1 tbsp. olive oils;
juice from half a lemon;
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar;
2 tsp butter;
pepper, salt according to preference;
greens, cucumbers, tomatoes for decorating the dish.

Cooking technology:

Grind the mustard seeds in a mortar.
Wash the breast, cut into steaks about 1.5 cm thick.
Place Provençal herbs, crushed mustard seeds, salt and pepper on a cutting board. Stir and spread over the surface. Roll the pieces of meat in the spicy mixture, pressing the spices in thoroughly. Then use a meat masher to beat in the spices and even out the pieces.
Sprinkle the steaks with olive oil, lemon juice and wine vinegar. Cover the container with meat, wrap it in film and put it in the refrigerator for 4 hours.
Remove meat, dry with paper towels, and remove large spices.
Coat the grill pan with butter. Place a piece of meat and press with a wooden spatula. And fry for 3 minutes on each side.
Then fry for another 2 minutes on each side to create a lattice pattern.
Place the fried meat in foil and let stand for a quarter of an hour.
You can make a light vegetable salad with the steak or simply chop cucumbers and tomatoes.

Jambalaya

To prepare you need:

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4 teaspoons olive oil;
one onion (finely chopped);
red and green peppers, seeded and chopped;
4 celery sticks, finely chopped;
2 large cloves garlic, minced;
4 spicy sausages or chorizo, sliced
400 grams of turkey breast, cut into cubes;
2 red chilies, finely chopped;
500 grams of long grain rice;
2 full tablespoons of turmeric;
2 tablespoons Cajun spices;
1 teaspoon Tabasco;
liter of chicken broth;
3 chopped tomatoes;
4 tablespoons frozen peas;
450 grams of shrimp;
salt and black pepper.

Heat the oil in a deep frying pan and fry the onion, pepper, celery, garlic and sausage for about 10 minutes. Add cooked turkey, chiles, rice, spices and Tabasco, stirring well.

Pour in the broth and bring it to a boil. Then add the tomatoes, peas and shrimp and reduce the heat. Simmer for 30-40 minutes. Don't forget to stir from time to time. Add spices if necessary. The dish is ready!

Roll with nuts

This tender meat with aromatic filling can be used not only as a cold appetizer, but also as a main dish. To prepare it you will need:

3 kilograms of turkey fillet.
20 thin slices of bacon.
20 grams of good butter.
2 onions.
140 grams of smoked brisket.
A tablespoon of olive oil.
50 grams of pine nuts.
4 cloves of garlic.
Zest of two lemons.
100 grams of breadcrumbs.
A bunch of parsley, salt and spices.

It’s not enough to know how to deliciously cook turkey breast; you need to carefully process all the ingredients. Heat olive oil and butter in a frying pan. Then chopped onions and pieces of smoked brisket are placed there. As soon as they acquire a golden hue, crushed garlic, nuts, chopped parsley and citrus zest are added to them. Mix everything well and simmer over low heat. After one minute, add salt, breadcrumbs and spices to the same frying pan.

While the stuffing is cooling, you can start preparing the turkey fillet. It is washed well, blotted dry with disposable towels, cut, opened and lightly beaten with a kitchen hammer. Place the cooled nut mixture on top. The edges of the meat are carefully folded inward. A piece of fillet prepared in this way is tied with twine and wrapped in foil covered with slices of bacon. Bake the roll at 190 degrees for two hours. After this, it is completely cooled and cut into thin slices using a sharp knife.

Soft and tasty turkey fillet goulash in tomato

Fragrant, tasty goulash will appeal to both adults and children. Even a novice housewife can handle the preparation. The hot dish perfectly complements any side dish - pasta, mashed potatoes or porridge.

Products:

kilo of turkey fillet;
2 carrots;
3 medium sized onions;
2 cloves of garlic;
350 ml tomato sauce or 3 tbsp. tomato paste;
basil and dill to taste;
salt;
a pinch of cumin;
1/2 tsp. paprika;
black pepper to taste;
5 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.

Cooking technology:

Dry the washed meat and cut into small pieces.
Finely chop the peeled onion.
Heat a frying pan, pour oil. Place onions in it and fry.
Peel the peel from the carrots. Grate the vegetable. Add to the onion and cook for about a quarter of an hour, until soft.
At the same time, fry the turkey in another skillet.
Add tomato sauce or tomato paste diluted with hot water and spices to the prepared vegetables. Let the sauce boil and cook for a couple of minutes.
As soon as the meat is well fried, add chopped peeled garlic and tomato-vegetable sauce to it. Salt the goulash. Add finely chopped greens.
Cover the goulash with a lid. Simmer for a quarter of an hour, stirring the meat occasionally.

Recommendations for selecting and storing turkey

To make the fillet tasty and truly healthy, it is important to choose the right meat.

It is better to purchase turkey at farm stores. It contains fewer harmful substances.
Fresh meat does not fall apart; when pressed with a finger, the cavity gradually straightens.
After placing the meat in the marinade, it should be immediately sent to a cool place; it will spoil in the heat.
Chilled turkey meat can be stored for no more than 2 days in the refrigerator.
Cooked poultry can be stored for no longer than 4 days in the refrigerator.

Turkey dishes are tasty and very healthy. Combining meat with various spices and herbs allows you to get new flavors. It’s a big plus that the bird cooks quickly enough, and the recipes are so simple that it won’t be difficult for even a novice housewife to prepare them.

I would like to believe that you will find the answer to the question that interests many, how to deliciously cook turkey fillet. After all, there is plenty to choose from to suit your taste.

Turkey fillet with potatoes in the oven

For lunch or dinner, turkey can be cooked immediately with a side dish. It turns out to be a low-calorie and very tasty dish. Preparing the components does not require special skills or a long time.

Products:

0.7 kg turkey breast;
a pinch of nutmeg;
50 ml soy sauce;
1/2 tsp. chili powder;
5 pieces. potatoes;
2 tsp mustard;
onion head;
1 tsp honey;
1/2 tsp. black pepper;
lemon;
50 ml vegetable oil;
4 cloves of garlic;
1/2 tsp. salt;
1 tsp sesame seeds.

Cooking technology:

Rinse turkey fillet and dry. Cut into medium pieces.
In a deep container, combine vegetable oil, soy sauce, nutmeg, chili, black pepper, honey, mustard and sesame seeds. Add salt. Squeeze the juice from half a lemon, crush 2 cloves of garlic with a garlic press. Mix well.
Place the fillet in the marinade mixture. Leave to marinate for 60 minutes.
Peel the onion and cut into rings.
Wash the potato tubers well. If desired, the peel can be left on. Cut the vegetable into 4 parts.
Grease the mold with vegetable oil. Place a layer of onions.
Slice lemon into slices and place on top. Crush or chop the garlic, sprinkle with lemon and onion.
Place potatoes and meat on top.
Pour over the brine in which the meat was marinated.
Place the mold in a hot oven (180°C). Cook for 1 hour.

Caesar with turkey

This salad can be deliciously prepared not only with chicken, but also with turkey. For a more dietary option, use breast fillet.

Caesar with turkey

Turkey fillet 300 g
Cherry tomatoes 8 pcs.
Quail eggs 8 pcs.
White bread
Romaine lettuce 1 bunch
Parmesan 80 g
Spices to taste
Salt
Mayonnaise
Garlic 3 cloves

Rinse the turkey, rub with spices to taste, place in a baking bag and leave to marinate. When the meat has stood for a couple of hours, preheat the oven and place the turkey in there without removing it from the sleeve. Bake for 30 minutes at 180 degrees.

Make crackers from bread. To do this, cut the loaf pulp into cubes with a side width of one centimeter. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, drizzle with olive oil and place in the oven to dry. Wash the lettuce leaves and dry them very well, otherwise they will become soggy and look unappetizing. Cut tomatoes and eggs in half. Grate the cheese on a fine grater. Cut the finished turkey into thin slices. For the sauce, peel and pass the garlic through a press, mix it with mayonnaise.

Place lettuce, turkey breast, croutons, tomatoes and eggs on a platter. Sprinkle cheese on top. Serve the sauce in a separate sauce boat.

Delicious turkey fillet in a frying pan in sour cream sauce

The meat turns out tender and juicy, with aromatic and tasty gravy. Suitable as a main dish for dinner or breakfast. You can add any spices if you wish.

Products:

0.5 kg fillet;
1 glass of hot water;
vegetable oil for frying;
1 onion;
4 tbsp. sour cream;
1.5 tbsp. l. flour;
pepper and salt according to preference;
greenery.

Cooking technology:

Wash the bird, dry it, cut into small pieces.
Place the frying pan on the stove, turning on medium heat. Pour in the oil. Lay out the meat. Fry until half cooked and golden brown.
Peel the onion and cut into half rings.
Place the onion in the frying pan. Mix and fry for about 5 minutes.
Then add sour cream and water. Salt, pepper, add your favorite spices. Mix.
Simmer for 10 minutes.
Turn off the stove, cover the frying pan with a lid and let the meat brew for a quarter of an hour.
When serving, sprinkle with chopped herbs.

Turkey fillet skewers on skewers in the oven

Roast Turkey, Brie and Cranberry Sandwich

You will need:

8 slices turkey;
8 slices of bread;
100 grams of butter, which should be kept at room temperature for 30-50 minutes;
250 grams brie cheese, sliced;
4 tablespoons cranberry sauce;
salt and black pepper.

Butter each slice of bread. Spread cranberry sauce on the other side, top with turkey - two slices per sandwich - and cheese. Season with pepper and salt and place another piece of bread on top.

Heat a frying pan to medium temperature, adding a little vegetable oil, place sandwiches in it and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side.

How to make turkey fillet soup

Cooking turkey soup differs little from standard technology. First, the broth is made, vegetables and vermicelli are added to it as desired. In this recipe, the onion is not chopped, but cooked whole. Only the dirty top husk is removed. This method makes it possible to obtain a golden and aromatic broth.

Products:

0.4 kg turkey fillet;
1 onion;
1 carrot root;
4 large potatoes;
200 g vermicelli;
200 g sweet pepper;
pepper and salt according to preference.

Cooking technology:

Peel the carrots and remove the top layer of peel from the bulb.
Fill a saucepan with clean water. Place it on the switched on stove.
Throw a whole onion and 1/2 of a peeled carrot into the water.
Wash the fillet. Cut into small pieces. Throw into boiling water and cook for 40 minutes.
Peel the potatoes, cut into bars or small pieces of another shape.
Grate the rest of the whole carrot and fry in a minimum amount of oil for 5 minutes.
As soon as 40 minutes of cooking the meat have passed, you need to remove the onion and carrots from the broth.
Throw the potatoes into the soup, add salt and boil for 8 minutes.
Throw vermicelli into the soup. Let cook for 2 minutes.
Add chopped sweet pepper, fried carrots, black pepper. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Remove from heat. To cover with a lid. Chopped herbs can be added directly to the pan or separately on plates when serving.

Turkey Satsivi

Turkey Satsivi
Traditional Georgian dish. At the festive table, Georgians eat it first.

Turkey fillet 0.5 kg
Walnuts 200 g
Water 700 ml
Green onions
Adjika 1 tsp.
Garlic 3 cloves
Salt, hot spices to taste

Cut the turkey into pieces. Place in a saucepan with cold water. Add green onions and finely grated garlic. Turn on the stove, bring the broth to a boil and cook for 20 minutes.

Remove the meat from the broth, cool it slightly, rub with salt and transfer to a baking dish. Bake in an oven preheated to 190 degrees for about half an hour until the meat is browned.

Cool the broth and strain. Grind the walnuts in a blender, add spices and spicy adjika to them, mix with the broth. Pour it over the turkey and put the finished dish in a cold place for 10 hours. Serve cold.