Recently one of my dearest friends has been sick. I’ve spent more time at the hospital in the last few weeks than ever before and at various points wrestled with feelings of helplessness when all I want is for her to be healed and feeling well. And with all that’s going on in the world, I know I’m not alone.
When times like this rise up, I find myself pulled to the kitchen like a magnet to the side of the refrigerator. What can I do when it seems like there is nothing I can do? I recently read about a teacher, who when asked this question simply answered “I teach”. And I’ve been thinking a lot about this, about how whatever it is we do, can be an act of activism, love, and hope in itself.
So it makes sense that my fifteen-year-old caribbean blue dutch oven has been simmering with stocks and soups for weeks and my freezer is full of simple soups for when my friend comes home. I have been finding clarity and comfort in small things— my boy’s faces when they get in the car after school, my dog sleeping on the couch, laughing with a friend, and the gift of writing recipes for you. What can I do? I can put my hands to work and cook. At the grocery store last week, I saw egg noodles on sale and voila, the idea for this soup was born. This Turkey Noodle Soup is simple, full of gentle yet satisfying flavor, and deeply nourishing.
Flexible Ingredients
You can use leftover turkey meat, but you can also easily swap out the turkey for chicken. To keep things simple, the recipe calls for turkey or chicken broth which can be purchased or made at home. If you are roasting a turkey, please consider saving the bones, which will make a wonderful broth that you can use for this soup: break up the cooked turkey carcass into smaller pieces and in a large pot cover them with cold water. Add a splash of apple cider vinegar, a generous pinch of salt and any vegetable or herb scraps you have available. Bring this to a simmer and let simmer for an hour (or more) before straining.
Also, keep in mind the things you have that can be put to good use in this soup. You can make this without noodles. You can add hearty greens, green beans, potatoes, beans, calabacitas if you have it and if it sounds good to you.
PrintHeartwarming Turkey Noodle Soup
Discover the therapeutic power of cooking in challenging times with this heartwarming Turkey Noodle Soup. Customizable and leftover-friendly, this recipe is full of gentle, yet deeply satisfying flavor.
- Prep Time: 1
- Cook Time: 1
- Total Time: 2 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings
- Category: soup
- Method: simmer
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the soup:
- 4 T. butter
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 5 large celery stalks, diced
- 4 large carrots, peeled & sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 c. fresh herbs (any combination of rosemary, sage, thyme), minced
- 1 T. azafran
- 4 c. cooked turkey meat, torn into bite-sized pieces
- 8 c. turkey or chicken broth
- 3 c. dried egg noodles
- Salt and pepper, to taste
For garnish:
- Sliced spring onions (optional)
Instructions
Sweating the Veggies
In a large soup pot over medium heat add the butter. Once it melts, add the onion, celery, and carrot and let these vegetables sweat in the pot, stirring frequently so they don’t burn.
Cook and Simmer
After around ten minutes or so, add the garlic, herbs and azafran. Cook for another few minutes. Add the turkey meat and broth. Turn up the heat and bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer.
Adding the Noodles
After around 20 minutes, the vegetables should be just about tender. Add the dried noodles and cook for 20 more minutes. Add salt and pepper as needed. Garnish with sliced spring onions if you want to add a bit of bright green vegetable crunch.