If you celebrated Thanksgiving two days ago and are anything like me, you’re probably tired of all the leftover potatoes and turkey and such! We even tried to plan better this year and cook less than last year…but alas…we still have leftovers!
It’s OK, though, because one of my favorite stews ever is best made using leftover turkey and pretty much anything else you have in the crisper or the pantry! It’s not an exact science, since this recipe has evolved over the past several years, but it was originally taken from my favorite Thanksgiving cookbook The Thanksgiving Table.
Here’s what I added to my Dutch Oven over a medium flame:
- a splash of olive oil and half a chopped onion. Saute until the onions are soft.
- 2 large carrots, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- about a pound of potatoes. Whatever you have on hand will work, we used a few purple, some German Butterballs and a couple of tiny reds from the garden
- about a pound of winter squash (we like butternut or hubbard, but I’m sure any will work)
- 2 quarts of turkey broth or stock (You made some right? With your leftover carcass?) and about 1 quart of water (it’ll look thin, but trust me, it’ll cook down
- if you have celery in the house (or in the garden), you can add in a few stalks of that, too…we didn’t have any left this time, so it’s absent from this batch
Simmer it all for about an hour.
While it’s simmering, cook up some bacon, drain it (save your grease for another use later!) and chop it up into bite-sized bits. Then, shred your turkey (if I had to guess, I’d say about 3 cups of shredded turkey is about perfect).
Once your potatoes and squash are tender, throw in your turkey and bacon to warm up (remember, it’s already cooked…if you simmer it all too long at this point your turkey will get rubbery and your bacon will start to dissolve). Now is when you also want to add in some sage and/or thyme (fresh is best, but dried works well, too), a little salt (to taste) and maybe even a little garlic powder (just a shake or two).
There you have it! Easy, fast and absolutely delicious! Serve it up and enjoy!
xoxo,
M
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Wow, sounds delish! I’m going to try making a quiche this evening with our leftovers 🙂
By any chance, have you written a post about how you grew your potatoes? Did you put them in the a raised bed or those “potato bag” things? I’m planning on trying my hand at potatoes this spring.
Oh, and I got my hands on a bunch of wood pallets and after constructing a big planter for asparagus with most of them, I’m going to turn the remaining four into vertical planters. Thanks so much for that wonderful idea!
YUM! I bet that’s delicious and especially wonderful on a cold day. 😉
Happy belated thanksgiving to you all!
Oh yes! It is the best!
Hope you guys had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
BTW-I haven’t forgotten your seeds…as soon as I find a few minutes to breathe I have several such things to take care of 🙂