Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup

Chilly nights call for a bowl of something warm and comforting, and nothing fits that bill better than a batch of homemade turkey noodle soup. Good-for-you ingredients, such as carrots, onions, celery, and a wholesome turkey stock create the bulk of this soup, along with some leftover turkey stirred in the final minutes. It comes out on top in terms of simplicity, too—ease is its greatest feature. Have everything ready to go and this recipe will come together in less than thirty minutes, making it perfect for a post-Thanksgiving lunch or an everyday dinner on a cold winter weeknight.

Turkey Noodle Soup Ingredients

This simple soup is made with equally simple ingredients, but that’s what makes it delicious and nourishing.

• Mirepoix: The combination of onions, carrots, and celery is called mirepoix. It's the flavor foundation for all kinds of savory soups, stews, and sauces. For our turkey noodle soup, the mirepoix is sautéed in a few tablespoons of butter until the vegetables are softened and release all of their flavor. This step is essential in building the soup’s overall flavor, so take the time needed to sweat the vegetables until they are tender and soft. 
• Homemade turkey stock: Our secret ingredient is turkey stock made from scratch. If you’re making this soup with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving, be sure to also use the bones to make your own stock. 
• Egg noodles: When it comes to noodles for this soup, we say go wide or go home. Egg noodles cook quickly, so they don’t need to be cooked separately from the soup. Stir them in during the last 10 or so minutes and they’ll cook by soaking up some of the delicious turkey stock. 
• Fresh rosemary: One sprig of fresh rosemary is all you need to impart a uniquely earthy, woodsy flavor to this comforting soup. 
• Cooked turkey: Whether you shred or dice the turkey is up to you—stir it in at the end just until warmed through.

4 Tips for Making Homemade Turkey Stock

Making homemade stock is the best (and easiest) thing you can do to take soup from good to great. The best news? You can set it and forget it—it’ll be ready to go in about two hours. 

1. Don’t throw away any part of the turkey: In the name of being sustainable and economical, there’s no part of the turkey carcass you can’t use. In addition to the bones, you can also add the neck and giblets to your stock pot. The bones don’t need to be perfectly clean, either–there can be some meat still attached; it’ll only add more flavor. 
2. Incorporate vegetable scraps: Nothing goes to waste here! We like to keep our vegetable scraps (things like onion skins, carrot and potato peels and tops, herb stems, and dark leek greens) in a re-sealable bag in the freezer. Depending on how many scraps you have, you may not need the full amount of vegetables a stock recipe calls for. 
3. Use herbs and spices you love: Peppercorns, bay leaves, and parsley sprigs are standard for stock, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use other herbs like thyme or spices like a cinnamon stick. 
4. Skim the top periodically: Often gray scum, or impurities will rise to the surface as turkey stock cooks. This is because the proteins in the turkey bones coagulate and cluster on the surface. There’s no need to worry about it–use a large spoon or ladle to skim the scum off of the surface every thirty minutes or so.