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This turkey stew is perfect to use up odds and ends from Thanksgiving, not that you need a holiday feast as a reason to make this recipe. It's super delicious and simple to make for any occasion or weeknight meal.
Turkey Vegetable Stew
My stove-top chicken stew is a hit, so I decided to give the recipe a try with turkey instead of chicken! After Thanksgiving, I always have turkey leftovers to build meals like this stew, or my epic Turkey Chili Recipe.
You can cook the turkey from scratch as I'll explain below or skip that step and use cooked turkey leftovers. In both cases, it turns out delicious thanks to the veggies, aromatics, and herbs.
Ingredients
Make this healthy stew with turkey breasts or cutlets, or shredded cooked turkey. The tasty flavor comes from onion, carrots, celery, dried thyme, dried rosemary, and bay leaves. Golden potatoes are my favorites for bulk up stews, but you can use any other. Finally, you’ll need frozen or canned green peas and half & half to make the stew creamy (swap it for coconut milk to make it dairy-free).
How to Make Turkey Stew
Check out the steps to make this healthy turkey stew recipe:
- Brown the turkey in a large pot and set aside on a plate. If you're making this stew with leftover shredded turkey, skip this step and stir the meat in along with the green peas and cream.
- Sauté the veggies for 3 minutes or until golden brown.
- Simmer the veggies with the broth, potatoes, and turkey for 30 minutes.
- Cook for 10 additional minutes after adding the half & half and green peas.
Thickening Turkey Stew
Any stew should be robust and thick, so if you find this has too much of a soupy consistency for your liking, here’s how to thicken it:
- Once cooked, mash a few of the potatoes with the back of a spoon, then stir. The starches in the potatoes will thicken the stew.
- Whisk 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water. Slowly pour into the stew while stirring. Same as the method above, the added starch will help thicken the broth.
How to Store Turkey Stew Leftovers
Once the stew has cooled down to room temperature, refrigerate it in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Reheat in the stove or the microwave.
I don’t recommend freezing this stew, as soups with cream and potatoes change their texture after thawing. For optimal consistency, cook the recipe without half & half and potatoes, freeze it, and add these items while reheating for serving.
Easy Turkey Stew Recipe
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 ½ lbs boneless turkey cutlets, cut into 1-inch pieces or 2-3 cups shredded roasted turkey
- 1 small onion, diced
- 3 carrots, cut into ½-inch rounds
- 3 stalks celery, diced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- 2 leaves bay
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 5 medium golden potatoes, quartered
- 40 ounces chicken broth, (5 cups)
- 1 cup frozen green peas, or canned
- ½ cup half & half
Instructions
Brown the turkey:
- In a large soup pot, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes until the chicken is browned. If you're making this stew with leftover shredded turkey, skip the browning step and stir it in along with the green peas and cream at the end.
- Remove the turkey from the pot and set it aside onto a plate.
Simmer:
- Add the remaining tablespoon oil over medium-high heat and add the onions, carrots, and celery. Cook for 3 minutes or until the veggies are softened and golden brown. Add the seasonings, salt, pepper, potatoes, chicken broth, and turkey pieces. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, until the potatoes are fork-tender.
- Stir in the green peas and half and half, cook for another 10 minutes, or until thickened. Remove the bay leaves and serve.
Notes
- Make this dairy-free by swapping the cream for ½ cup canned coconut milk.
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