The Best Creamy Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

We never throw away our turkey carcass, after a holiday feast! This Turkey and Wild Rice soup is deliciously creamy. There’s a bit of white wine added to the broth, for extra depth of flavor. While we love turkey sandwiches, this soup is a great alternative– and, it’s so comforting.

Every Thanksgiving, I always toss the turkey carcass into a large pot, with carrots, celery and herbs. I freeze of the turkey stock, and turn the rest into a turkey vegetable soup. This time, I wanted to do something different– especially since I had a bag of wild rice in my hoard stash of various rices.

I finally settled on a recipe from one of most trusted recipe sources– America’s Test Kitchen/Cooks Illustrated and Cooks Country. I always appreciate the “science” behind the why and how the recipe was tested again and again. Here’s what was written:

Turkey and rice soup is a great way to make use of leftover Thanksgiving turkey. Unfortunately, all the turkey and rice soup recipes we found tasted of weak broth studded with undercooked rice and rubbery turkey. Our Creamy Turkey and Wild Rice Soup recipe avoids these pitfalls by sautéeing and simmering the turkey carcass with vegetables and a combination of chicken broth (for flavor) and white wine (for brightness), which produced a rich, savory broth. To speed up the cooking of the rice, we added a small amount of baking soda to the soup—this helped break down the tough fibers in the rice and reduced our cooking time by about 15 minutes. Adding the leftover turkey at the very end of cooking ensured that it stayed tender.

Cooks Country Magazine October/November 2007

A Dutch oven is the perfect size to make this soup. (I bought mine several years ago, at a Le Creuset outlet for about a significant savings.) It’s not a complicated recipe to make. In melted butter, brown celery and onion (you probably have a lot leftover from making stuffing). Brown the carcass, then add low-sodium chicken broth and white wine. Simmer for about an hour. Strain the broth and discard the solids.

To save a little time, I used my de Buyer carbon steel crepe pan to toast the wild rice. I loved the “nutty” aroma. I did this to save time. Otherwise, once you finish the broth and strain it, you’ll need to wipe out the Dutch oven to toast the rice.

For the final step, whisk the heavy cream and flour and slowly whisk into the soup. Add the chopped turkey and stir until thickened (about 10 minutes). Give the soup and final taste, and adjust with salt and pepper to your own taste.

TASTING NOTES: What a delicious way to use leftover turkey! The wild rice has a nutty and chewy flavor. The white wine adds a brightness to the broth. I need to buy another bag of wild rice, so I can make this soup when the craving hits. You might wonder if you can use just regular rice. I suppose you could, but it wouldn’t have the deep flavor of wild rice. Try it! I think you’ll like it.