Our Turkey Wild Rice Soup is a cozy and comforting cold-weather soup that is packed with flavor and a great way to use any leftover turkey (or leftover chicken)! A perfectly creamy soup that is actually dairy-free!
The Best Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Thanksgiving leftovers are a thing of beauty, aren’t they? But, what do you do if you have so much turkey leftover that you don’t know what to do with it!? We are here to save the day with this cozy soup! It is packed with the best flavor and just happens to be gluten-free and dairy-free. You are going to be blown away with how delicious this leftover turkey soup is! Just follow this step by step guide on how to make this family favorite comfort food.
Looking for More Leftover Turkey Recipes?
If you love leftover turkey as much as we do, you definitely need to try one of our favorite recipes – Turkey Pot Pie!
What You Will Need
- olive oil – a splash in the bottom of the pot to help with sautéing the fresh veggies.
- fresh garlic & yellow onion – this classic combination that gets the flavor party started.
- celery, carrots, & mushrooms – the fresh vegetables that help to round out this soup.
- arrowroot powder – a great thickening agent that also keeps things gluten-free.
- broth – just pick-up your favorite store-bought options or learn how to make chicken broth, chicken stock, or homemade turkey stock! Vegetable broth would work too.
- unsweetened coconut milk – provides a smooth, creamy texture without any of the dairy. Option to sub with heavy cream, if dairy isn’t a concern.
- cooked turkey breast meat – a perfect way to use that leftover, holiday roast turkey! Or use cooked chicken by making poached chicken at home or buying a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store.
- wild rice – feel free to make the uncooked wild rice on the stovetop, in a rice cooker, or make Instant Pot wild rice.
- bay leaf, fresh sage, fresh thyme, kosher salt, & ground pepper – a great combination of seasonings and fresh herbs that bring all the flavor!
- lemon zest – a little bit of acidity really brightens this recipe and elevates all of the flavors.
How To Make Turkey Wild Rice Soup
The first steps to making this easy recipe are to bring a large dutch oven to a medium heat, drizzle in the olive oil, and sauté the garlic and onion. Next add the carrots and celery, followed by the arrowroot powder, and then slowly add the broth. Now comes the addition of the coconut milk, bay leaf, and tender turkey to the large pot. Let this hearty soup simmer for a few minutes and then finally add the seasonings, sautéed mushrooms, and cooked wild rice. Make any seasoning adjustments you want and enjoy!
Best Ways To Serve Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Our whole family loves making a big pot of this soup during those chilly winter months. Serve with some crusty bread with butter, grilled bread, or breadsticks for dunking. Plus, it makes plenty so you can always store leftovers in the fridge to enjoy throughout the week!
Storage & Freezer
Once the leftover soup has cooled, you can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 5-7 days. Unfortunately, we do not recommend freezing this soup. Any soup that is made with rice won’t maintain a very good texture during the freezing and thawing process.
Cooking Variations
- Slow Cooker Turkey Wild Rice Soup: We have only tested this turkey wild rice soup recipe on the stove top, but if you do try and make it in your slow-cooker, be sure to add the rice at the end of the cooking time. Because it will soak up some of the liquid and can become more of a porridge consistency! Especially if you use a different rice than wild rice.
- Instant Pot Turkey Wild Rice Soup: we wouldn’t recommend the Instant Pot for this recipe, just because the rice and the turkey are already cooked when you are adding it in – so it is really most efficient to make it on the stove top!
Recipe FAQs
- How to thicken turkey wild rice soup? If the soup isn’t getting as thick as you like, you have the option to add more arrowroot powder in small amounts at a time or make a thickening slurry, as noted in the recipe card.
- Reheating Leftovers: either in a saucepan on the stovetop or in a bowl in the microwave, both will do the trick!
Made this recipe and loved it?! We would love it if you would take a minute and leave a star rating and review – it is also helpful if you made any substitutions or changes to the recipe to share that as well. THANK YOU!
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Other Soup Recipes You Might Like
Turkey Wild Rice Soup
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
A delicious and flavorful Turkey Wild Rice Soup recipe that is the perfect bowl of cozy comfort food! Perfect for leftover Thanksgiving turkey!
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided (sub avocado oil)
- 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 celery stalks, sliced
- 3–4 medium carrots, sliced
- 3 1/2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
- 5 1/2 cups chicken broth (sub turkey broth)
- 1 can full fat, unsweetened coconut milk (fully mix before adding)
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 1/2 cups cooked turkey, cubed
- 16oz wild rice, cooked
- 2 pints of fresh mushrooms, sliced
- 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh sage, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- 2–3 teaspoons fresh lemon zest
Instructions
- Sauté: Add 2 tablespoons of oil to large dutch oven or saucepan and bring to medium-high heat. Add garlic and onion, move around the pot allowing to cook, approximately 2-3 minutes. Add celery and carrots and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add another tablespoon of oil and the arrowroot powder. Stir to coat the vegetables.
- Simmer: Slowly pour in the broth, stirring as you go. Then gradually add the coconut milk, bay leaf and cooked turkey. Bring soup to a simmer.
- Mushrooms: While soup is simmering, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a fry pan and bring to medium high heat. Sauté mushrooms to soften and then add them to the soup pot.
- Finish + Taste: Now add the wild rice, salt, pepper, sage, thyme and lemon zest. Stir to combine. Taste and add additional seasoning, as desired.
- Serve: Enjoy immediately!
Notes
- Simmer: we would recommend adding the wild rice 10 minutes before serving, that way the rice doesn’t soak up too much of the liquid.
- Mushrooms: you can add the mushroom directly to the pot, but there is an extra added flavor that comes from sautéing them.
- Thickening: for a thicker soup, you could ladle out 3 tablespoons of broth into a little bowl and add up to 1 tablespoon of arrowroot powder. Whisk that together until the powder is fully combined and then pour back in the soup, stirring as it thickens.
- Storage: leftovers can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5-7 days. Do not freeze.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6oz
- Calories: 460
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 838.4 mg
- Fat: 15.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 42.8 g
- Protein: 39.1 g
- Cholesterol: 105.8 mg
Charlotte says
I made this for my family tonight. Everyone enjoyed it. If my college son would have been here, there would have been nothing left. I am looking forward to leftovers tomorrow.
Erin says
So happy to hear that, Charlotte! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your review + feedback – I appreciate it!
Angie says
It was great! I was worried about the coconut flavor, as it smelled strongly of coconut, but the flavor was subtle (can see how it could go unnoticed if you weren’t aware of ingredients list) It was absolutely delicious!
Erin says
So happy to hear that, Angie!!
Mary says
Another great recipe from Erin! Thanksgiving 2020 with a 13 pound turkey and a family of 4 (including the 4 year old twins) meant a lot of leftover turkey!
My husband and I enjoyed this soup on Sunday after Turkey day.
I plan to freeze 2 servings (with the cocked rice frozen separately). I’ll reply to my comment when I find out how it turns out from the freezer!
Erin says
Aw that is so awesome to hear, Mary! So glad you both enjoyed it 🙂 And yes, definitely report back – thank you!
Anna says
Make this! You don’t be disappointed. I love the creamy coconut, and wild rice. It’s so tasty! 5/5 stars ⭐️ and the hubby agrees!
Erin says
Thank you so much, Anna! I am so happy you both enjoyed it:)
Lydia says
This is my family and extended family’s favorite soup! Planning to make it this year but was wondering if you’ve ever frozen it? I’ve never frozen something with rice before and was unsure.
Erin says
I haven’t frozen this particular soup before, but I have frozen other soups with wild rice in it and while it does work the rice does tend to get a bit softer during the freezing/thawing process so just be aware of that!
Ellie says
Soooo yummy and flavorful 💜
Erin says
I am so happy to hear you enjoyed this one, Ellie! And thank you so much for taking the time to leave your feedback – I really appreciate it!