New England Turkey Chowder
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I love Thanksgiving leftovers! As much as I enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, I enjoy turkey leftovers the most – starting with this New England Turkey Chowder.
This easy turkey chowder recipe is a play on my husband Jack’s contest-winning New England clam chowder recipe – swapping in turkey stock instead of clam juice and chunks of cooked turkey instead of clams.
New England Turkey Chowder
Author: A Family Feast Prep Time: 30 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 1 hour Yield: 10 to 12 servings Category: soup Method: stovetop Cuisine: American
INGREDIENTS
1 cup salt pork (6 ounces) cleaned of any caked salt, then diced small (see our tutorial here)
1 ½ cups sweet onions diced, such as Vidalia
1/3 cup celery, diced very small
4 tablespoons butter
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
½ teaspoon white pepper
2 quarts turkey stock, see our homemade recipe here
2 pounds New Red potatoes, peeled and diced into half inch pieces
2 pound turkey meat diced into bite sized pieces (white and dark meat)
1 quart half & half
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium sauté pan, place salt pork and cook over medium heat until browned and crispy, about ten minutes. Add onions and celery and cook for three minutes to soften.
Add butter and once melted, add flour and stir to form a roux. Cook over medium low for about three minutes or until the raw flour smell is gone. Remove from heat and stir in the thyme and pepper.
Fill a 6-quart pot with the turkey stock and bring to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook for 5-10 minutes until tender.
Lower heat to medium and stir in the roux (salt pork mixture) with a wooden spoon.
Once the chowder is creamy and slightly thick, stir in the turkey and the half & half. Heat just to serving temperature, check for seasoning* and serve with oyster crackers.
NOTES
*Because of the salt pork used in this recipe, we don’t call for additional salt to be added at the end. However, after tasting, feel free to season with salt to suit your tastes.