This amazing leftover turkey orzo soup is the perfect way to use up your shredded roast turkey! It’s creamy & delicious with a healthy spinach and vegetable twist!
Thanksgiving is coming, and I don’t know about you but I always have so much leftover turkey after the holiday. Honestly, I usually just eat it as is the next day, and then toss it afterward. But I wanted this year to be different, so I found a way to repurpose all that roasted turkey!
One Pot Creamy Turkey Orzo Soup is easy, amazing, delicious, and healthy! It’s a fun and different way to eat turkey after Thanksgiving. Plus, it’s much less wasteful and you can even freeze the leftover soup!
How do you store leftover turkey?
The best way to store leftover turkey is to shred it up, similiar to the way you’d shred a roasted chicken, wrap it up in foil or freezer paper, and then put it in an airtight container or ziplock bag. Get it in the fridge (up to 3-4 days) or freezer (up to 3 months) as quickly as you can after it cools, and then store it until you’re ready to eat it again or repurpose it into soup.
How long can you eat leftover turkey?
If properly stored in the fridge, you can eat your leftover turkey for up to 3 or 4 days. If you’re wanting to save it for longer, slice or shred it up, wrap it in foil or freezer paper, and then freeze it in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Can you put hot turkey soup in the fridge?
The best way to prepare your turkey soup for the fridge is to allow it to cool until warm, not hot. Divide into small and/or shallow containers, and then put it in the fridge. Putting hot soup directly in the fridge can be done if you divide the soup into small and/or shallow containers.
If you use deep containers, your fridge won’t cool the soup fast enough, and your food can become spoiled. It’s usually best to let your soup cool a little bit before you put it in the fridge or freezer.
How long will turkey soup keep in the fridge?
This creamy turkey orzo soup will stay good for up to 3-4 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the fridge.
This recipe makes about 8 servings, so freezing the leftovers is a good option. You can use either freezer zip locks or small, airtight containers.
Healthy Turkey Orzo Soup
This One Pot Creamy Turkey Orzo Soup is delicious and healthy! With the carrots, celery, spinach, and mushrooms, it has vegetables in every bite!
Plus, it’s a delicious meal that’s light but filling, making it a perfect recipe to follow a day of crazy Thanksgiving eating!
Total nutritional content per serving is:
- Calories: 476 calories
- Protein: 42 grams
- Sodium: 476 mg
- Carbohydrates: 39 grams
- Fiber: 5 grams
Freezer Friendly
Like I mentioned above, this recipe is 100% freezer friendly. After you make the turkey orzo soup, cool it slightly, then divide into small containers or freezer zip lock bags.
Freeze the soup for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to eat it, thaw it overnight in the fridge. Heat it on medium heat in a sauce pan or microwave in a bowl until hot.
Budget Friendly
One of my favorite things about this recipe is that it utilizes leftover turkey from Thanksgiving. You spent all that time brining, basting, and roasting that turkey only to have half of it left the next day.
What better way to repurpose that delicious leftover turkey (and save some money) by making a healthy soup for your family the next day?!
Estimating for the cost of the turkey (about 4 cups shredded), this recipe comes out to be about $11.48 total, or roughly $1.44 per serving. That does include the cost of the shredded turkey. Because, even though you’re not buying the turkey specifically for this recipe, you still spent the money on it!
Other soup recipes:
Tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comments below! I would really appreciate your feedback!
Recipe
One Pot Creamy Turkey Orzo Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 4 celery sticks chopped
- 4 carrot sticks peeled and chopped
- 2 cups mushrooms sliced
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tsp dry oregano
- 1 tsp dry basil leaves
- 8 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1½ cups dry orzo
- 4 cups shredded turkey
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 3 cups fresh spinach leaves
- 1 cup half and half
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat avocado oil on medium heat. Add garlic, onion, carrots, celery, and mushrooms. Saute for 5-6 minutes until vegetables are softened.
- Add thyme, oregano, basil, chicken broth, orzo, and turkey to the pot. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes until orzo is full cooked.
- Season with salt and pepper. Add spinach and half n half to the pot. Stir until well combined and spinach is wilted. Serve!
To Make It A Freezer Meal:
- Cool soup until warm but not hot. Divide into zip lock bags, small/shallow containers and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, thaw overnight, then heat in a sauce pan or in the microwave until hot throughout.
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xoxo Megan
Beth says
I love this soup so flavorful, but the orzo soaked up so much of the liquid. what can I do about that?
Megan Byrd, RD says
You could cook it separately and add it at the end. Or I usually add more broth when I heat it up the next day!
Piper says
What about this soup makes it creamy??
Megan Byrd, RD says
The half n half 🙂