Rich and creamy turkey corn chowder with bacon, potatoes, carrots, celery, and, if you so choose, a bit of jalapeno to liven up the party. This luscious chowder is the perfect way to use up some of that leftover turkey (and gravy too!). Especially if you made broth with the bones.

Every year on the day after Thanksgiving, my sister picks most of the meat off the bones and puts the carcass in a big pot with water and cooks it to make turkey broth for soup. This year our gathering and our turkey were really small (only 5 people, including me!), but my sis still made the turkey broth. She made up 2 quart jars of broth with turkey meat for me and her to take home. And the rest was saved for my dad.

Dad made turkey noodle soup with his famous homemade whole wheat noodles and loaded the soup up with lots of veggies: lots of carrots, celery, bok choy, onion and tomatoes. Then we had that for dinner Saturday evening. Driving home that night, I was pondering what kind of soup I should make. I thought about all the turkey soups I’ve made over the years. And the idea of a turkey chowder sounded really good. My Irish Seafood Chowder is one of the absolute most popular recipes on my blog. (For good reason! It’s wonderful.) So why not make a turkey version of that?

So I did! This chowder is a little different from the Irish seafood one because it has corn, and not leeks. Plus a little jalapeno for kick. And of course the turkey broth in place of the seafood broth. But the two soups share a lot of the same characteristics. After all, they are both chowders.

How do you make homemade turkey broth?

In case you’re wondering, you’ll be pleased to know it’s really quite simple. All you need is a little time and patience. First you remove most of the meat from the bones. Keep in mind, though, it’s fine not to pick it completely clean. The rest of the meat will fall off during the cooking process.

Next, put the carcass in a large soup pot and cover it as best you can with water. If you can’t get the full thing covered with water, then simply break the carcass into multiple pieces. Don’t worry if you have a couple bones sticking out. Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce heat to a low simmer. Cover and cook for several hours. Finally, after cooling, remove all the bones and any connective tissue you don’t want in your soup. I usually strain the broth, then pick through the turkey bits to make sure I only have bits of meat and no bones or tendons left.

You can certainly take this one step further and make bone broth for additional health benefits. Making bone broth is the same process, except you add a little apple cider vinegar. And then you also cook it longer: 12 – 14 hours.

Turkey Corn Chowder with Bacon

Author: Ann
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield: About 6 servings 1x
Category: Soup
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free

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Ingredients

Scale

2 slices bacon
1/2 Tablespoon grass-fed butter
1/2 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled & chopped
2 – 4 cloves garlic, peeled & chopped
2 large carrots, peeled & chopped
2 large stalks of celery, peeled & chopped
1 – 2 medium potatoes, chopped
3 cups turkey or chicken broth
1 bay leaf
4 oz. Neufchatel (light cream cheese)
1 cup frozen sweet corn
1 1/2 – 2 cups leftover turkey, chopped or shredded
1/4 cup leftover gravy – see notes if you don’t have leftover gravy
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or a few small sprigs of fresh thyme leaves
Optional, for a spicy kick: 1/2 – 1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped fine
Better than Bouillon, chicken flavor, to taste
For garnish: fresh thyme or parsley leaves and/or a bit of extra cooked/chopped bacon

Instructions

In a large saucepan or small soup pot over medium heat, cook the bacon, then remove and chop the bacon. Add the butter and olive oil and scrape up any fried bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir in the onion and saute until the onion is soft and translucent.
Stir in the carrots and celery and cook until slightly softened. Stir in the potatoes, broth and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 20 – 30 minutes or until the potatoes are nice and tender. Remove the bay leaf.
Scoop out about a cup of this hot mixture, put in a smoothie blender up or mini food processor with the cream cheese and blend until smooth. Pour back into the pot, reduce heat to medium low and stir in the corn, turkey, gravy, bacon, thyme and, if desired, chopped jalapeno pepper. Cook until warmed through, but DO NOT BOIL.
Taste and if it needs more flavor/salt, stir in a spoonful or two of Better than Bouillon until it tastes right to you. Serve hot.

Notes

If you don’t have leftover gravy, add 1- 2 teaspoons of cornstarch into the blender cup when blending the soup with the cream cheese to help thicken the chowder.

To lower the carbs: use 1 1/2 cups chopped cauliflower in place of the potatoes

Nutrition

Serving Size: About 1 cup
Calories: 266
Carbohydrates: 24g
Fiber: 3g
Protein: 17g

What to serve with Turkey Corn Chowder?

As with most soups, turkey corn chowder goes great with a good salad. People will also love biscuits, corn muffins, rolls or crackers on the side. Here are a few suggestions. Look below the image gallery for the links to the recipes.