Creative Leftover Turkey Recipes for Tasty Weeknight Meals

Unlock the potential of your leftover turkey with these tasty recipes that transform post-holiday leftovers into satisfying dinners. We’ve chosen a variety of easy, flavourful ideas to reinvent roast turkey—perfect for using up Christmas or Thanksgiving leftovers.

Nicky’s Notes

I could probably eat a hundred leftover turkey sandwiches before getting bored—ideally with plenty of salted butter, stuffing, cranberry sauce and a little warmed gravy. Christmas evening sandwiches are hard to beat, even when full from dinner.

But the family wouldn’t want sandwiches every night, so here’s a collection of recipes that use leftover turkey (or leftover chicken swapped for turkey). These ideas keep dinners varied and delicious.

The Leftover Turkey Recipes

Leftover Turkey Pasta Bake with Ham and Cheese

Turn leftovers into a comforting pasta bake with turkey, ham and melted cheese—a great way to use party leftovers.

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Leftover Turkey Risotto Recipe

A rich, creamy risotto with mushrooms and pancetta—an elegant way to use leftover turkey. Also naturally gluten free.

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Crispy Turkey Nachos

Make fajita-spiced turkey nachos with beans and lots of melted cheese—the perfect crowd-pleaser.

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**Use leftover cooked turkey instead of chicken for this delicious treat!**

Roast Chicken & Creamy Garlic Mushroom Burger

A brioche burger with roast chicken, creamy garlic mushrooms, crispy bacon and spinach. Swap turkey for the same great result.

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**A go-to dinner is to make a turkey curry using shredded turkey—warm, comforting and fast.**

Leftover Turkey Tikka Masala

A creamy, mildly spiced tikka masala that works beautifully with leftover turkey—quick, family-friendly and gluten free.

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**For a creamy turkey pot pie soup, make the stock without chicken and add cooked turkey at the end.**

Chicken Pot Pie Soup Recipe

A creamy, comforting pot pie soup—use turkey in place of chicken for an easy turkey pot pie soup.

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Leftover Turkey Curry Recipe

A rich, lightly spiced creamy curry similar in flavour to butter chicken—ready in about 30 minutes and perfect for shredded turkey.

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**Use turkey instead of chicken for a delicious white chilli turkey dish.**

White Chilli Chicken Recipe

A creamy, gently spiced white chilli—swap in turkey for a tasty alternative to classic chilli con carne.

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**For a turkey version of this creamy pie, make the stock without chicken and add cooked turkey when the sauce is ready.**

Creamy Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

A hearty creamy pie topped with puff pastry—use leftover turkey for a delicious change.

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**Use turkey bones (the carcass) to make a rich homemade turkey stock.**

Chicken Stock Recipe

How to make a rich stock with minimal prep—perfect as a base for soups and sauces. Use turkey carcass for turkey broth.

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Three Bone Soup With Veggies and Beans

A wholesome way to use bones and leftover meat—filling, nutritious and easy to make gluten free.

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Leftover Turkey Bolognese Recipe

Shredded turkey in a rich ragu—quick to prepare and perfect served with pasta.

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**Swap turkey for chicken in fried rice for an easy turkey fried rice.**

Chicken Fried Rice Recipe

A quick takeaway-style fried rice—use leftover turkey instead of chicken for a tasty twist.

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Hope you enjoy these ideas! If you have a favourite turkey-leftovers recipe I’d love to hear about it.

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