Easy Leftover Curried Turkey Comfort Food

Learn how to make an easy curried turkey recipe with turkey leftovers. You can also use leftover turkey from the freezer. Whether you have leftover turkey from Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any other holiday, you are in the right place. This simple curried turkey recipe is comfort food at its finest. It’s delicious, warm, and feeds a crowd. It’s a terrific recipe for post-holiday entertaining. Win-win! Read on, everyone, to learn how to make one of my favorite crowd-pleasing recipes of all time.

The Curried Turkey Backstory

When I was growing up, this recipe was a holiday favorite. My parents enjoyed entertaining large groups, so I have many happy memories of passing this dish around a table filled with dear family and friends. I’ve scaled the recipe down slightly, although it still feeds 8-10 people. Now that my husband and I are empty-nesters, we don’t need to make the huge quantities of food we used to. If we do host a family gathering, this is definitely a favorite meal to serve our guests.

Equipment for Easy Curried Turkey

The main item you will need to make this leftover turkey recipe is a large stockpot. If you are serving the curried turkey over rice, a rice cooker is a handy thing to have as well.

Ingredients for Easy Curried Turkey

1 cup chopped onion

3 tablespoons butter, margarine or vegetable oil

3 cans cream of mushroom soup

2 teaspoons curry powder

1 cup milk

2 cups sour cream

1 to 1 1/2 pounds cooked, cubed turkey or chicken

Slivered almonds for garnish, toasted (optional)

Parsley for garnish (optional)

Directions for Easy Curried Turkey

Toast almonds and set aside.

Cook onion in butter, margarine or vegetable oil until tender, but not brown.

Add soup, milk, and curry powder. Heat and stir until the mixture is smooth.

Add cubed turkey or chicken and heat through. Just before serving, add sour cream. Cook until mixture is hot, but don’t boil. Garnish with toasted almonds and parsley, if desired.

Serve over rice, leftover mashed potatoes, or mashed cauliflower.

Common Curried Turkey Questions

How long does turkey last in the fridge?

Recipes made with leftover turkey can usually last in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. After that, you could freeze any remaining leftovers. This curried turkey recipe freezes well.

How long does leftover turkey last in the freezer?

For best quality, leftover cooked turkey pieces should be eaten within 4 to 6 months of being in the freezer. With this curried turkey recipe, even if your frozen leftover turkey has been in the freezer for months, the curry and onion flavors help disguise any lingering freezer taste.

One of the Most-Used Small Kitchen Appliances

Although people do cook rice in an instant pot, one of my most-used small kitchen appliances is my trusty rice cooker. I received it as a Christmas present years ago, and it has served me well. I love being able to put the ingredients in and let it do its thing while I prepare the rest of the meal. Here’s one similar to mine:

I will admit, I have not jumped on the instant pot bandwagon yet. If I didn’t have all of the other small kitchen appliances which work so well for me, such as my crockpot, I might consider it. One thing holding me back is I like to have dinner ready for me when I arrive home from work. I don’t want to scurry around putting ingredients in an instant pot, no matter how quickly it will cook the meal. I like to put the ingredients into my crockpot the night before and refrigerate the dish overnight. Before I go to work the next morning, I put the crockpot on low to simmer all day. Am I alone in this? If you are a big instant pot fan, I’d be happy to learn about your experiences. You just might convince me to take the plunge!

Easy Curried Turkey

This easy curried turkey recipe is delicious, warm, and feeds a crowd. Plus, it’s a terrific recipe for the holidays. One of the main ingredients is leftover turkey.

5 from 3 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 8

Calories 200 kcal

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup chopped onion
• 3 tbsp butter, margarine or vegetable oil
• 3 cans cream of mushroom soup
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 1 cup milk
• 2 cups sour cream
• 1 to 1½ pounds cooked, cubed turkey or chicken
• ⅛ cup slivered almonds for garnish (optional)
• 1 tsp dried parsley for garnish (optional)

Instructions

 

• Toast almonds and set aside, if using.
• Cook onion in butter, margarine or vegetable oil until tender, but not brown.
• Add soup, milk and curry powder. Heat and stir until mixture is smooth.
• Add cubed turkey or chicken and heat through.
• Just before serving, add sour cream. Cook until mixture is hot, but don’t boil.
• Garnish with toasted almonds and parsley, if desired.
• Serve over rice, mashed potatoes, or mashed cauliflower.

Keyword holiday leftovers, turkey

What Are Your Favorite Ways to Use Holiday Leftovers?

I know I’m not the only person out there who loves to find new ways to use leftovers from holiday meals. What are your favorite ways to use leftover food from holiday meals? If you have an abundance of turkey, try making turkey pot pie, a savory hand pie, or turkey corn chowder. I’d enjoy learning what your go-to strategies are.

Other Recipes to Warm You Up

Interested in other cozy, comfort food recipes? Try these!

• Easy Cola Chicken Recipe with 4 Simple Ingredients
• Raclette: More than Just a Meal, It’s a Fun Family Activity
• Easy Ham and Potato Hash
• Thai Curry Chili
• Greek Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
• Southwest Turkey Corn Chowder

More Food Inspiration

It’s always nice to have a plan when it comes to parties and meals. If you’re looking for a way to get more organized with your meal or party-planning efforts, I’ve got something for you. Free, editable meal planners! The templates can be used over and over, as often as you need them. You can make as many duplicates as you like, and you’ll be able to save old meal plans for future reference. I hope it simplifies things for you.

Get my digital, editable, printable templates!

Are You Excited to Make Easy Curried Turkey?

Ready to try the best curried turkey recipe ever? If you decide to try this recipe, I’d love to know how it turns out. Has it made you want to dash to the grocery store for an even bigger bird to cook? You might also be interested in reading about some of my other easy holiday recipes, like Easy Wassail to Warm Your Holiday Gatherings. If you would like even more recipe ideas, consider following my Easy Recipes board on Pinterest. I hope all of your holiday meals turn out splendidly, and I hope you have a great selection of leftovers afterward!