Leftover Turkey in gravy is the best and easiest way to use up leftover Roast Turkey meat. All you need are some leftover Dinner Rolls to soak up that sauce.
The mushroom gravy makes the turkey meat so tender and juicy all over again and it’s especially good served over Creamy Mashed Potatoes.
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What to do with Leftover Turkey:
We love Thanksgiving leftovers and it is impressive how much turkey meat you can rescue from your Juicy Roast Turkey even after you think there’s nothing left. We plucked away at my Mom’s turkey last year and got about 8 cups of turkey meat (this was after about 12 people ate it).
I made a big batch of this turkey in gravy for my sister’s house for lunch and everyone loved it! It was a big win across the board and they went on and on about how great the turkey gravy tasted over leftover Mashed Potatoes. Best of all, it never tastes like leftovers.
Ingredients for Leftover Turkey in Gravy:
The ingredients are so simple – mostly pantry staples: chicken broth, mushrooms, butter, onion, and flour.
- Mushrooms: Use white or brown mushrooms. Mushrooms add great flavor but if you aren’t a mushroom fan, you can skip the mushrooms.
- For gluten-free: substitute with a “cup-for-cup” GF flour
To Get the Most Turkey Meat: Focus on the underside of the turkey – this is usually the side that sits in all the turkey juices and much of it is dark meat which is so tender and tasty.
Can I Substitute with Chicken?
You can still make this recipe long-after Thanksgiving is over by using chicken. This is a great way to re-purpose leftover Rotisserie Chicken and you can use both white and dark meat.
Can I use Leftover Gravy?
If you were lucky enough to have leftover Turkey Gravy from your Thanksgiving dinner, here’s a secret trick – just combine the leftover gravy with the shredded turkey and it will be scrumptious!
What can I do with the Turkey Carcass?
If you want to make the most use out of your leftover turkey, be sure to keep the turkey carcass for an incredible turkey Bone Broth. It’s the same process using turkey bones instead of chicken and results in a rich broth to use in Turkey Noodle Soup.
How to Make Turkey Leftovers in Gravy:
1. Heat a large pan over medium heat with 2 Tbsp olive oil. Saute diced onions until golden (4-5 min). Add mushrooms saute until soft and golden (5-7 min), stirring often. Remove mushrooms and onions from the pan.
2. In the same hot pan, melt 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, then whisk in 3 Tbsp flour, whisking constantly until roux is golden brown (1 1/2 to 2 min), then whisk in 2 cups chicken broth. Bring to a simmer and season to taste (about 1/2 tsp sea salt and a pinch of pepper).
3. Add mushrooms/onions back to the pan. Stir in turkey and heat until turkey is just heated through. Garnish with finely chopped parsley if desired.
This is one of those recipes that makes us wish we had more turkey leftovers. This recipe can be even juicier and more flavorful than fresh turkey.
Leftover Turkey Recipes You’ll Love:
Whether you have leftover turkey breast or leftover dark meat, these turkey leftover recipes are our favorite ways to enjoy that turkey meat without tasting like leftovers.
- Turkey Noodle Soup – an easy twist on the classic
- Chicken Tetrazzini – make it Turkey Tetrazzini
- Pot Pie – make a savory Turkey Pot Pie
- Chicken Avocado Salad (sub with turkey)
- (Turkey) Bacon Avocado Sandwich
- White Sauce Lasagna – use turkey instead of chicken
Leftover Turkey in Gravy Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb mushrooms, sliced
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 4 Tbsp unsalted Butter
- 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour, gluten free flour works well too
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups chicken broth, (low sodium)
- 4-6 Cups leftover turkey meat, torn into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 tsp sea salt , or to taste
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper, or to taste
- 1 Tbsp Parsley to garnish, optional
Instructions
- Heat a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Add 2 Tbsp olive oil and diced onions and sauté until soft and golden (4-5 minutes, stirring frequently). Add mushrooms to the pan and sauté until soft and golden (5-7 min, stirring frequently). Remove mushrooms and onions from pan.
- In the same hot pan (no need to wash it), add 4 Tbsp unsalted butter. Once melted, whisk in 3 Tbsp flour. Cook, whisking continually until roux is a golden brown (1 1/2 to 2 min) then whisk in 2 cups chicken broth. Bring to a simmer and season to taste (I added 1/2 tsp sea salt and a pinch of black pepper).
- Add add mushrooms/onions back to the pan. Stir in turkey and heat until turkey is just heated through. Garnish with finely chopped parsley if desired.
Nutrition Per Serving
I’d love to hear your creative ideas for leftover turkey. Let me know about your favorite Thanksgiving leftover recipes in a comment below.
Delicious Natasha! I served it with rice because I could not face the daunting task of peeling more potatoes. LOL
Yum! Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Sandra! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Comfort food at its finest! So easy and oh so good. I did add a bit of Thyme because I love it and everyone devoured it. I used up some frozen leftover turkey and served it with mashed potatoes. A repeater for sure!
We LOVE our comfort food! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Pam!
JUST LOVED THIS RECIPE. I ADDED RE- HYDRATED PORCINI MUSHROOMS WITH ITS LIQUID. OMG!
Hi Irena, I’m glad you loved it! Thank you for the review.
Easy and flavorful way to use leftover turkey. I added thyme to the gravy and served over rice.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Just made the leftover turkey and gravy recipe. It was so good! My new favorite for left over turkey!
Great to hear that you loved it, Stacy. Thank you for the review!
In what sense is this “chili”? There are no peppers, no tomatoes, no oregano or cumin. It’s a nice hot turkey in mushroom sauce, kind of French and rather well mannered.
Hi Alissa, we don’t consider this a chili. But it is a great way to use leftover turkey like a gravy sauce. I hope you love it.
I don’t see anything regarding that this is ‘chili’. you must have pulled the wrong recipe. But, add your ingredients, and you got a yummy chili
I made this today. Amazing !!!
I’ve been doing Thanksgiving turkey for over 30 years
This recipe is far above any turkey I’ve ever cooked. We adore every recipe of yours we have tried. Thank you so much.
I’m happy to know that, Marie. Thanks a lot for your great comments and feedback. We appreciate it!
I made this tonight. I added 50ml sauvignon blanc to the onion/mushroom mix and 1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning. I also added1/2 teaspoon of italian seasoning to the gravy.
We thought it was very nice. served with mashed potato and green beans. We will use this recipe with the addons again next time we have turkey or chicken leftovers.
Sounds great, Martin. Thanks for sharing that with us, great to hear that it was a success!
Another 5 star recipe. I just got done making this, had to taste it before it is hot enough. It’s amazing!!!! Thanks again for another great recipe. Going to enjoy dinner now.
Fantastic! Thank you for your perfect rating and excellent review, Vikki. We appreciate you sharing your experience with us.
I used this recipe with the leftovers from my Christmas turkey, it was perfect ! Thanks for this easy recipe ! It was delicious.
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review, Cami!
Excellent recipe. I used baby Bella mushrooms for added flavor. I also increased the gravy by one half (3 cups broth) and served it over mashed potatoes.
Sounds great! Thanks for letting us now, Debbie!
Natasha,
I recently discovered your blog and love the recipes and your unique and animated videos!! Will definitely be coming back.
I’m so happy to hear you are enjoying my blog! Thank you for sharing that with us 🙂
Hi I love all your recipes
Can I use cake flour in Stead of regular flour for the Cranberry Bundt Cake With orange zest thank you
Hi Jacqueline, all-purpose flour works best. I haven’t tried using cake flour instead to advise.
I followed your recipe to a T and have to say that I will definitely make this with turkey or chicken leftovers again. Thank you!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Jackie!
This recipe is so good!! Even the kids loved it😜
That is the best when kids love what we moms make. That’s so great!
Natasha,
Thank you for this awesome recipe for Leftover Turkey and Gravy! The mushrooms enhance this dish so well! This will sure be a keeper recipe, we love it!!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review!
This was an absolutely terrific way to use Thanksgiving leftovers.
Yes, so perfect for the leftovers! I’m glad you liked it, Daniel.
Fabulous recipe. Will definitely make this again. I used one 14 oz can of chicken broth and about 2-3 cups dry white meat…yummy!
Hi Sue, I am so happy you loved the turkey in gravy! thank you for sharing your wonderful review.
That sounds delicious! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Served over noodles (all the mashed potatoes were gone). It was scrumptious!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review!
Hi Natasha,
Another great recipe!
Thanks so much
Please can you tell me how many grams go into the serving, in the nutritional information?
I’m glad you enjoeyd that, Meytal! Most of our recipes have a metric conversion option on the printable recipe card. We are currently working on adding metric measurements to all of our recipes, but it is taking some time to add them one at a time. Thank you so much for being patient! In the meantime, check out our post on measuring which should help.
Hi Natasha,
Thanks for that, I just meant for the serving in the nutritional values (calories, fat and so on) you mention 300 calories per serving, but could you advise on how much is 1 serving? in which ever units you prefer (gram, lb, cup?)
Hi Meytal, depending on how much turkey you are using, the serving size will be roughly 1 cup.