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Creamy, cozy, and super easy, my turkey corn chowder is a great way to use up leftover turkey. It’s a one pot meal that takes 40 minutes or less, making it a great choice for a quick weeknight meal or a cozy weekend when you don’t feel like doing too much.  Delicious, filling, and healthy too!

I’ve been on a mission lately to get through some of our surplus pantry items. Out with the old, in with the new, if you know what I mean?

Surprisingly, this process has meant we’ve been eating well as I find all sorts of forgotten about bits, and pop them together as creatively as I can.

Our grocery bills are way lower, and I love seeing all these shelves in the pantry and freezer empty out. There’s something very satisfying about it! 

Recently, I dug out a 14 pound turkey from our freezer and made a full Thanksgiving spread. We had corn casserole, stuffing, broccoli casserole, mashed potatoes, rolls and more! All without going to the store!!

Since there’s only 4 of us, we had a lot of leftover turkey. After a meal of leftovers the next day and taking some to my parents, I still had quite a bit of turkey.

So I made a huge stockpot of Turkey Corn Chowder.

It was so creamy and good, and honestly I think my family loved that even more than the original meal! My daughter took it for lunch the rest of the week!

What’s Inside This Turkey Corn Soup Recipe?

I had some large cans of corn and potatoes that I wanted to use up.

You need around 2 to 3 cups of whole kernel corn for this recipe, which may be one large can of corn or a couple of medium cans, depending on brand.

I also swear by canned potatoes when making soup. I use canned whole potatoes, which I drain, rinse, and dice before using. Rinsing them before adding them to your soup helps lower the sodium content and make this turkey corn soup healthier.

Of course you can use fresh potatoes (peeled and diced), but that’s a lot more work. If you use fresh, choose waxy potatoes, Yukon Gold, red potatoes or small new potatoes because they are lower in starch and will hold their shape better than Idaho potatoes, Russet potatoes, or baking potatoes.

I also threw in veggies for flavor and texture: chopped celery, sliced carrots, and chopped onion.

Optionally, you could throw in some cooked bacon (turkey and bacon is always a great combo in my books).

And you could garnish it all with fresh green onions or scallions.

My Best Tips for Making Creamy Turkey Corn Soup

One of the things I love about this recipe is how flexible it is.

When cooking for my family, I’m a dump and pour kind of cook. And in this instance, since I was trying to use things up, I was just adding whatever vegetables I could find that needed to be used up.

But this recipe is super versatile. You can change it up to make it to your preferences.

Not a fan of carrots?? Don’t add them.

Love red bell peppers? Swap ’em in!

Do you love corn? Throw in an extra cup or two.

Even the base of the broth can be altered. If you want yours thicker, add a little extra flour. If you want it more soup-like, omit some of the flour or add more milk.

Use my example recipe and make it how you like it!

Yield: 8 to 10

Creamy Turkey Corn Chowder

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Creamy, cozy, and super easy, my turkey corn chowder is a great way to use up leftover turkey. It's a one pot meal that takes 40 minutes or less, making it a great choice for a quick weeknight meal or a cozy weekend when you don't feel like doing too much. 

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 lbs. potatoes (peeled and diced)
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 4 stalks celery (chopped)
• 2-4 carrots (sliced)
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 4 cups milk or half and half
• 2-3 cups turkey (chopped or shredded)
• 2-3 cups whole kernel corn

Instructions

1. In a large stockpot over medium low heat, melt butter and then add onion, celery and carrots. Cook until translucent, about 8 minutes.
2. Sprinkle the flour over the butter mixture and stir constantly until it becomes a paste, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the chicken broth and milk slowly, and let simmer for about 5 minutes, whisking frequently. It should thicken nicely during this time.
4. Add the potatoes, turkey and corn and continue to simmer over low heat for about 15-20 minutes. Stir occasionally.
5. Season with salt and pepper and serve!

Notes

I like to use canned potatoes when making soup, but you can use fresh. If you use fresh, choose waxy potatoes, Yukon Gold, red potatoes or small new potatoes because they are lower in starch and will hold their shape better than Idaho potatoes, Russet potatoes, or baking potatoes.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

10

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 488Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 109mgSodium: 303mgCarbohydrates: 59gFiber: 6gSugar: 7gProtein: 34g

Nutritional information is calculated via a third party service and is meant as a rough estimate only. I can't confirm whether the nutritional information is accurate or not.