These Thanksgiving Leftover Recipes will help you reinvent your extras into new dishes you can enjoy for the next several days! Plus I share tips on storage and reheating to make sure your leftovers are just as delish as they were Thanksgiving Day.
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My Favorite Ways to Reuse Thanksgiving Leftovers!
Preparing and serving a beautiful, delicious turkey on Thanksgiving Day is a tradition in my family—and so are the Thanksgiving leftovers!
Once you’ve exhausted the obvious (turkey sandwiches), figuring out what to do with leftovers can be a challenge.
Over the years, I’ve found simple and scrumptious ways to repurpose my leftover turkey and sides that don’t feel like I’m simply reheating my Thanksgiving Day meal.
From comforting casseroles to veggie-packed pastas to creamy soups, these recipes will breathe new life into the leftovers from your Thanksgiving dinner. Plus, most of them serve multiple people, meaning they’re ideal for those of you who still have guests at your house.
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Leftover Turkey Casserole Recipes
You can’t beat a warm and cozy turkey casserole! And if you’re not exactly in the mood for a big casserole right after Thanksgiving, no worries: just pop it in the freezer and you’ve got a heat-and-eat dinner for another day.
Turkey Pot Pie
This turkey pot pie recipe skips the bottom crust to lighten things up! Leftover Thanksgiving turkey and frozen vegetables make it SO easy.
Turkey Tetrazzini
Turkey tetrazzini turns leftovers into a hearty casserole! With mushrooms, peas, and pasta in a cheesy cream sauce, it’s total comfort food.
Turkey and Biscuits
The original version of this recipe is made with chicken, but you can easily swap in turkey!
Leftover Turkey Pastas
Really, you can fold leftover turkey into just about any pasta recipe—especially ones with a creamy sauce. The flavors in the dishes below all pair well with turkey!
Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Add your leftover turkey to this creamy mac and cheese for extra protein.
Turkey Alfredo Bake
This is another recipe where you can swap the chicken with turkey. Easy!
Sweet Potato Pasta with Brussels Sprouts
Bulk up this fall-inspired pasta with your turkey leftovers. If you’ve got spare Brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes, even better!
Leftover Turkey Sandwiches
The classic! The OG! But these recipes are a little bit more elevated than the sandwiches you put together with leftover dinner rolls while standing in front of the fridge at midnight.
Turkey Salad
Use your Thanksgiving extras to make this leftover turkey salad with cranberries, apples and creamy Greek yogurt dressing. Easy and delish!
Apple Grilled Cheese with Turkey
This grilled cheese sandwich is a little more grown-up than the version made with American cheese slices, but it’s still a hit with kids. Win!
Leftover Thanksgiving Sliders
Juicy turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, and melty cheese sandwiched between fluffy Hawaiian slider buns and baked until golden, these easy Thanksgiving sliders are the most delicious way to use your leftover Thanksgiving turkey.
Leftover Turkey Soups
You can swap turkey for chicken in any of your favorite soups, but these are my personal favorites.
Turkey Soup
Use your leftover turkey meat for turkey soup! Made with or without the turkey carcass, this hearty soup is flavorful and satisfying.
Turkey Wild Rice Soup
Use leftover turkey instead of chicken in this satisfying soup recipe.
Turkey Enchilada Soup
Make turkey enchilada soup by using your leftovers instead of chicken. Add your favorite toppings and devour!
More Thanksgiving Leftover Recipes
Turkey’s not the only thing you’re likely to have in your refrigerator after Thanksgiving! While Sweet Potato Casserole With Pecans and such are probably best enjoyed as-is, here are some creative ideas to use some of the other leftovers you might have on hand.
Leftover Stuffing Cakes
Transform extra Thanksgiving stuffing into easy leftover stuffing cakes. Crisp on the outside, cheesy on the inside, and perfect with eggs.
Leftover Cranberry Sauce Parfait
Leftover cranberry sauce parfaits are the perfect use for leftover cranberry sauce from the holidays. An easy and healthy breakfast or snack.
Easy Shepherd’s Pie
An easy shepherd’s pie recipe with savory ground beef or ground lamb filling, frozen veggies, and creamy mashed potatoes baked on top.
Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie
Hearty vegetarian shepherd’s pie with a savory vegetable mushroom filling and creamy mashed potato topping is cozy, filling comfort food!
Sweet Potato Hash
If you have leftover baked or boiled sweet potatoes after making your casserole, put them to use in this hash recipe!
Roasted Vegetable Salad
Reinvent those leftover roasted veggies into an easy work-week lunch!
Storing Leftover Turkey
If possible, slice and refrigerate the turkey as soon as possible after the meal has ended. This helps keep the meat from drying out.
- To Store. Turkey leftovers will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Place them in an airtight storage container or ziptop bag. For extra moisture, you can drizzle some of the turkey drippings or broth over the top of the meat before refrigerating it.
- To Freeze. The best way to freeze leftover turkey is in an airtight, freezer-safe storage container for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Tip!
To avoid another influx of turkey, freeze your leftovers in smaller portions. This allows you to thaw and enjoy your extra turkey a little at a time.
Reheating Leftover Turkey
For those of you who’ve tried to reheat turkey in the past, you know how easily it can go from moist and tender to dry and tough.
Here are my best tips for keeping your leftover turkey as tasty as the day it was prepared:
- To Reheat. Low and slow is the name of the game here to ensure your leftover turkey is tender.
- Wrap leftover turkey in aluminum foil, creating a sealed pouch around the meat. Place the pouch in a baking dish.
- Before sealing the pouch, add moisture to your turkey by pouring a little broth (or turkey drippings) over it.
- Place the turkey in a 300 degrees F oven until warmed through.
Tip!
While you can reheat the turkey in the microwave, it’s not my first choice. If you need to use the microwave, make sure you add plenty of moisture to the turkey before reheating it so it doesn’t dry out.
How to Know When Leftover Turkey Is Bad
Determining whether leftover turkey has gone bad comes down to four of your five senses (if you can somehow hear when leftover turkey is bad, please teach me your ways).
- Sight. If your leftover turkey looks discolored or has signs of mold, it is no longer safe to eat and should be discarded.
- Smell. If your turkey smells sour, off, or otherwise unusual, throw it out.
- Touch. Turkey that has gone bad will typically feel slimy to the touch.
- Taste. If your turkey has passed the three other senses but tastes off in any way, assume it is bad and toss it.
