Creamy Turkey Wild Rice Soup
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This creamy Turkey Wild Rice Soup is perfect for days when you have leftover turkey or chicken and are craving a hearty, warm, and creamy bowl of good-for-you soup!
It’s delicious, ready in about 30 minutes, full of flavor, and made with better-for-you ingredients. It’s one of two soups I make following Thanksgiving or Christmas when leftover turkey is plentiful and the days are chilly! The other soup I make is Leftover Turkey Vegetable Noodle Soup.
Turkey Wild Rice Soup Ingredients
Here’s a quick list of the soup ingredients you’ll need:
- Turkey or Chicken: Shredded cooked turkey or chicken leftovers is perfect in this soup recipe. You can also buy a rotisserie chicken for a quick and easy fix.
- Vegetables: Sliced mushrooms, chopped celery, carrots, green beans, cubed butternut squash, and onion.
- Quick cooking wild rice (or cooked wild rice)
- Cooking liquid: Turkey broth, chicken or vegetable broth.
- Seasonings: Salt, pepper, and fresh herbs like parsley, rosemary, or thyme. If preferred, you can also substitute dried herbs.
- All-purpose flour to thicken the soup
- Sour Cream: For the “creamy” part of the soup!
Tip: The essential vegetables to this soup are the trio of onions, carrots, and celery. The mushrooms add delicious earthy flavor, and I love adding green beans (frozen when I don’t have fresh). However, I only add butternut squash when I have some available from the holidays or a bag of frozen in the freezer.
How to Make Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add mushrooms, celery, carrots, and onions; cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until softened.
Add flour, salt and pepper; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes more.
Pour in the broth and bring to a boil, scraping any browned bits from the pan. Add the wild rice, green beans, and butternut squash if using, and reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Cover and cook until the wild rice and vegetables are tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in turkey (or chicken), sour cream, and herbs; cook until heated through.
Can you substitute cooked chicken instead?
Absolutely. This soup works great with both cooked turkey and cooked chicken, making it a perfect recipe for using leftover chicken or poultry.
Tip: If you don’t have cooked turkey or chicken, you can easily poach the poultry by adding boneless skinless breasts to a skillet or large saucepan, covering it with water, and seasoning with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat to maintain a simmer, and gently cook the breasts for 10 to 12 minutes or until cooked through.
Quick Cooking Wild Rice Substitute
If you don’t have quick-cooking wild rice, substitute it with cooked conventional wild rice. Add 1 cup of wild rice to 4 cups of salted boiling water in a large saucepan to cook. Cook until tender, about 45 to 55 minutes. Drain and add to the soup with the turkey.
For variation, you also use quick-cooking pasta, like orzo or even couscous, like we do in Italian Wedding Soup.
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Creamy Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 ounces sliced mushrooms (about 4 ounces)
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 1/2 cup chopped onions
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup quick-cooking or instant wild rice
- 1/2 cup cubed butternut squash optional
- 1/2 cup green beans chopped (fresh or frozen)
- 3 cups shredded cooked turkey or chicken
- ½ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs like parsley, rosemary, or thyme
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add mushrooms, celery, carrots and onions; cook, stirring for 5 minutes or until softened.
- Add flour, salt and pepper; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes more.
- Pour in the broth and bring to a boil, scraping any browned bits from the pan. Add the wild rice, butternut squash (if using) and green beans. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer, cover and cook until the wild rice and vegetables are tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in turkey (or chicken), sour cream and herbs; cook until heated through.
Notes
- Turkey or Chicken: If you’re not using leftover turkey or chicken, poach boneless skinless breasts in a skillet or large saucepan, cover with water, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat to maintain a simmer, and gently cook the breasts for 10 to 12 minutes or until cooked through.
- Wild Rice: If you don’t have quick-cooking wild rice, substitute it with cooked conventional wild rice. Add 1 cup of wild rice to 4 cups of salted boiling water in a large saucepan to cook. Cook until tender, about 45 to 55 minutes. Drain and add to the soup with the turkey.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
This soup was absolutely delicious. I made it with rotisserie chicken for my daughter who just gave birth. She and her husband loved it. Highly recommend, and great for a novice cook.
Hi Diane! Congratulations on your new grand baby, this holiday season will be extra memorable! Thank you for trying the soup and I’m so glad you and your family enjoyed.