Post by water_moon on Dec 1, 2006 15:18:02 GMT -5
Well it's about that time again, now that the poor bird has been used for turkey sandwhiches it's time for the soup!
I tend to leave a bit of meat on the bird just for soup, and I alwasy cook the neck and gizzards with the turkey for soup use too. If your family likes to pick the bones clean, you can throw in a chicken leg to add a bit of extra meat.
The key ingredient is time. Read through to the bottom before begining and you'll find that it may be best to plan this over two days.
Spices, noodles, and long grain and wild rice mixes are also additions of mine.
Place the whole turkey leftovers (skin on is fine, we'll skim the fat and take the rest out with the bones later) in a large stock pot with water to within 2 inches of the top. Make sure the turkey is immersed.
I prefer to add the spices now so they can help flavor the broth but that may mean adding more later.
1/4 C parsley
1/8 C garlic salt (2 crushed cloves work too)
2 Tablespoons Tarragon
1 Tablespoon onion powder or half of a fresh onion
1 Tablespoons Sage
1 Tablespoons Rosemary
1 Tablespoon Thyme
2 teaspoons Savory
1 Cup chicken bullion
a sprinkle of cinnamon
a dash of pepper
You can adjust the flavors to fit your tastes and needs of course, and if you're in a hurry or don't have a lot of spices on hand I can suggest seasoning packets from pre-seasoned wild rice.
Leave the turkey to simmer on low heat for about 4-8 hours. Don't forget to replace the water in the pot as it boils off (keep the turkey covered.)
Alternatively, if you're short on time you can place the covered pot in the refridgerator and wait until the next day to strain the broth and pick the bones clean. I'll often do this if I'm streching it out over two nights or if I wasn't able to get started early in the day. I do suggest reheating the broth and bones all together to make the meat more workable again. Then pick it back up as follows below.
Once it's simmered about as long as you can stand, or when it gets to a good time for you, remove the turkey and strain the broth (sometimes small bones will come lose and you don't want to have that in soup!) Let the both sit and cool so it's easier to skim the fat. I've found that a larger gravey seperator works great in batches but you can also use a spoon or wisk.
At this point the meat will be if not falling off the bones, at least lose. I take the oppertunity to strip the neat from the small bones like the ribs and neck, being sure to seperate out the chuncks of skin, fat, and grizzle and any whole veggies you put in for flavor. You may want to pull apart or cut especially large chuncks and the gizards from earlier (being organs they have very dense meat that doesn't break apart easily.)
Once this meat is off the bones and the broth has seperated, you're ready to get to bussiness! Put the meat and broth back in the pot and set it to low again, you may need to add a bit of water but I try to have about a gallon or more all told. If you have to add more than a cup or two, I'd suggest adding chicken broth.
Now here's where my soup differs from many. I like my soup thick, and I'm not fond of veggies. You certainly can add veggies if you like them, and you may want to add less rice and noodles than I do, but the following is for a hearty soup.
Once the pot is simmering again, add the spices if you haven't already or touch them up to taste if you have. Then add about:
2 C long grain and wild rice
you can often find this pre mixed, but if not, 1 cup of wild rice and 1 cup regular white or brown rice works fine too.
let that simmer for about half an hour, keep an eye on the water as the rice will absorb quite a bit and once the rice grains start spliting open, go ahead and add about:
10-12 oz angel hair or simular noodles broken in half
Don't worry on exact amounts, you can adjust the broth to soilds ratio as you prefer. You cna also add more broth/water as it simmers down.
Let it simmer for about another 30 minutes or until the noodles are soft and swollen. Take off the heat and after it's cooled store in airtight containers in the fridge for short term of the freezer for upto several months.
I love to serve this pipping hot with shreaded chedder cheese on top, the cheese adds a wonderful flavor and the soup is a hearty meal for when you need to be warmed inside and out.
I tend to leave a bit of meat on the bird just for soup, and I alwasy cook the neck and gizzards with the turkey for soup use too. If your family likes to pick the bones clean, you can throw in a chicken leg to add a bit of extra meat.
The key ingredient is time. Read through to the bottom before begining and you'll find that it may be best to plan this over two days.
Spices, noodles, and long grain and wild rice mixes are also additions of mine.
Place the whole turkey leftovers (skin on is fine, we'll skim the fat and take the rest out with the bones later) in a large stock pot with water to within 2 inches of the top. Make sure the turkey is immersed.
I prefer to add the spices now so they can help flavor the broth but that may mean adding more later.
1/4 C parsley
1/8 C garlic salt (2 crushed cloves work too)
2 Tablespoons Tarragon
1 Tablespoon onion powder or half of a fresh onion
1 Tablespoons Sage
1 Tablespoons Rosemary
1 Tablespoon Thyme
2 teaspoons Savory
1 Cup chicken bullion
a sprinkle of cinnamon
a dash of pepper
You can adjust the flavors to fit your tastes and needs of course, and if you're in a hurry or don't have a lot of spices on hand I can suggest seasoning packets from pre-seasoned wild rice.
Leave the turkey to simmer on low heat for about 4-8 hours. Don't forget to replace the water in the pot as it boils off (keep the turkey covered.)
Alternatively, if you're short on time you can place the covered pot in the refridgerator and wait until the next day to strain the broth and pick the bones clean. I'll often do this if I'm streching it out over two nights or if I wasn't able to get started early in the day. I do suggest reheating the broth and bones all together to make the meat more workable again. Then pick it back up as follows below.
Once it's simmered about as long as you can stand, or when it gets to a good time for you, remove the turkey and strain the broth (sometimes small bones will come lose and you don't want to have that in soup!) Let the both sit and cool so it's easier to skim the fat. I've found that a larger gravey seperator works great in batches but you can also use a spoon or wisk.
At this point the meat will be if not falling off the bones, at least lose. I take the oppertunity to strip the neat from the small bones like the ribs and neck, being sure to seperate out the chuncks of skin, fat, and grizzle and any whole veggies you put in for flavor. You may want to pull apart or cut especially large chuncks and the gizards from earlier (being organs they have very dense meat that doesn't break apart easily.)
Once this meat is off the bones and the broth has seperated, you're ready to get to bussiness! Put the meat and broth back in the pot and set it to low again, you may need to add a bit of water but I try to have about a gallon or more all told. If you have to add more than a cup or two, I'd suggest adding chicken broth.
Now here's where my soup differs from many. I like my soup thick, and I'm not fond of veggies. You certainly can add veggies if you like them, and you may want to add less rice and noodles than I do, but the following is for a hearty soup.
Once the pot is simmering again, add the spices if you haven't already or touch them up to taste if you have. Then add about:
2 C long grain and wild rice
you can often find this pre mixed, but if not, 1 cup of wild rice and 1 cup regular white or brown rice works fine too.
let that simmer for about half an hour, keep an eye on the water as the rice will absorb quite a bit and once the rice grains start spliting open, go ahead and add about:
10-12 oz angel hair or simular noodles broken in half
Don't worry on exact amounts, you can adjust the broth to soilds ratio as you prefer. You cna also add more broth/water as it simmers down.
Let it simmer for about another 30 minutes or until the noodles are soft and swollen. Take off the heat and after it's cooled store in airtight containers in the fridge for short term of the freezer for upto several months.
I love to serve this pipping hot with shreaded chedder cheese on top, the cheese adds a wonderful flavor and the soup is a hearty meal for when you need to be warmed inside and out.