Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Family Dinner: Turkey and Rice Soup

I think Thanksgiving doesn't happen often enough....or really, that turkey dinner doesn't happen often enough. To solve this problem, I started buying the bone-in turkey breasts when they were on sale to keep in the freezer. You see, not only do you get an awesome turkey dinner....you also get turkey carcass, hence turkey stock. Sooooo many meal options from this animal part.

Here's where I'm going with this: the other day I made roasted turkey breast. We had that for dinner and then lunch the next day. I saved the bones and made stock. I used the stock to make soup. We had that for dinner a couple days later, and then lunch the next day. The moral of the story? Don't throw your bones away. Also, I appreciate leftovers.



First, I made stock. There really isn't a "recipe" for this. I put my leftover bones/carcass (turkey, chicken, lamb, beef....whatever) in a large pot. I quarter an onion or two, cut a couple stalks of celery and carrots in half and add those. Toss in a couple whole garlic cloves and a couple bay leaves. Then I cover it all with water, bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and let it simmer for hours. At least 3, usually 4, sometimes more. Then I strain it, let the stock cool, skim off the fat, and keep it in the fridge or freeze it. It's really not that hard. And the taste is way better than what you get at the store. Plus you get to control the salt content. The next time you have leftover bones....do this. Seriously.

Now, for the soup....I made turkey, but this can easily be swapped out for chicken (another use for rotisserie chicken, anyone?)

Turkey and Rice Soup
Makes 8 servings
150 cals / 2g fat / 25g carbs / 9g protein

5-6 cups turkey stock (or chicken)
2-3 cups water
Any leftover breast meat, plus the meat picked off the turkey bones
1 tsp olive oil
1 onion
6 carrots (about 1 lb)
3 celery stalks
2 tsp dried tarragon
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup dry wild rice
3/4 cup dry long grain brown rice
Salt and Pepper

1. Dice onion. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat, and add onions. Cook until soft, about 10 minutes.

2. While onions are cooking, peel and chop carrots and dice celery. Add these to the cooking onions.

3. When onions are done, add tarragon and wild and brown rice, and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add meat, stock, and water and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to medium low and simmer until rice and vegetables are cooked through and soft, 45-60 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. You can add more stock if you want a looser soup, or continue to boil uncovered if you want it less liquidy.


Stock in-the-making? Not so pretty to look at, eh?



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