Turkey Soup Dingman

My friend Chris makes a great Turkey Soup each Thanksgiving and Christmas, which she makes with the leftover carcass and turkey meat. The key to any good soup is the flavour of the stock and a homemade roasted turkey carcass will make an extraordinary rich and delicious poultry broth — even better that chicken stock. Turkey stock is easy to make too, since it's as easy as boiling up some water and cutting up a few vegetables. A large stock pot and strainer come in handy also. 

Simply chop up the carcass or pull it apart so it fits in a stock pot, and cover it with water by an inch or two. Add a few basic vegetables and bring to a simmer. Skim off anything that rises to the top that you wouldn't want eat if you saw it floating in a bowl of soup! Leave the stock to bubble away gently for 3 to 4 hours, then strain it though a colander. If you chill it, the fat will congeal on the surface. It can then be removed before using it for the Turkey Soup. Both the stock and soup freeze beautifully, so you can be enjoying the fruits of your labour for the chilly months to come.

Turkey Soup Dingman

1 Turkey carcass, with 6-8 cups of good meat reserved

3 bay leaves

7 carrots, 6 diced fine and 3 coarse with fronds

7 celery stalks, coarsely diced

2 onions, peeled and coarsely chopped

2 leeks, diced fine

2 cups of fresh parsley

1 1/2 cups frozen peas

1 1/2 cups frozen corn

1 cup wild rice, uncooked 

Chop up the turkey carcass to fit in a large stock pot (with a built in strainer if you have one). Add the bay leaves, 1 coarsely chopped carrot, 3 celery stalks coarsely chopped with fronds and 2 onions. Add enough water to cover the carcass and vegetables by an inch or two, and bring to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down enough so it maintains a bubbling simmer. Let it bubble away for 3 to 4 hours, replenishing with some water if it gets too low.

Remove the carcass and vegetables from the stock pot, using a strainer. Discard the vegetables and carcass, but save any good looking turkey meat. Meanwhile, keep the strained turkey stock at a gentle simmer in the stock pot until needed. 

In a skillet, sauté the leeks and celery until soft, about 6 minutes. Add to the warm stock, then add the parsley, carrots and wild rice; salt and pepper to taste. Simmer about 30 minutes, or until cooked through. Finally, add the peas, corn and turkey meat (good meat plus the meat that fell from the carcass).

The soup can be bagged and frozen for future use, or served hot with some lovely warm bread and a lump of good cheese.