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This Thai turkey soup recipe is irresistibly flavorful with a creamy coconut curry broth. It’s really easy to make and the tastiest way to use up leftover turkey!
If you like Thai-inspired recipes, try my Easy Thai Shrimp Curry or this Thai Green Curry Soup next.
Why you’ll love it
I hope those of you who celebrated Thanksgiving had a good one! If you made a Roast Turkey, chances are you have some leftovers. This Thai turkey curry soup is the perfect thing to ease you out of your turkey coma. It’s also a super low effort alternative to sandwiches.
This turkey soup recipe is warm and cozy but also fresh and fairly light! That’s what I love about making Thai-style food. We’ve got creamy coconut milk, fresh herbs, and vibrant flavors. Such a good combo, and you’ll having a piping hot bowl ready in just 30 minutes.
What you’ll need
- Olive oil – for sautéing
- Onion and garlic – tasty aromatics. I like using sweet (Vidalia) onions.
- Thai red curry paste – it’s a ready-made paste that has fragrant spices and lemongrass. I recommend Thai Kitchen brand, which is not what I’d consider spicy (some brands are).
- Chicken broth – for more savory flavor
- Lime juice & wedges – for a pop of acidity and brightness
- Turkey – we’re using cooked leftover turkey
- Rice noodles – they’re those translucent ones that come in different sizes; I prefer thicker noodles here to vermicelli
- Red bell pepper – it adds some veggie goodness
- Coconut milk – definitely use full fat for the most flavor and best texture
- Basil, cilantro, scallions – classic fresh ingredients in Thai-style recipes
Pro Tip
Naturally, this soup works well for Thanksgiving leftovers, but it could also be made on another occasion where you have leftover Roast Chicken or rotisserie chicken. Or just cook a turkey breast if you want something a little different. I’ve done that before.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- I recommend this ladle for easily dishing up this soup.
- This Staub Dutch oven is the one I use.
- Store the other half of your onion in this cute onion saver.
How to make Thai turkey soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
In a soup pot or Dutch oven, sauté the onion in the oil until softened. Stir in the garlic and curry paste, and cook for about 30 seconds. Add in the broth, water, lime juice, turkey, noodles, and red bell pepper.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat. Stir in the coconut milk. Simmer until the noodles are cooked through. Add in the fresh herbs and scallions. Taste, and season with salt & pepper as needed.
Substitutions and variations
- This turkey curry soup is flavorful but not what I’d call spicy. If you do want to make it spicier, add some grated ginger, sriracha, and/or chili paste. Play with the flavor, and taste and adjust until you think it tastes perfect!
- Are you a salt fiend like me? Add in a splash of soy sauce.
- If you’re not feeling some of the fresh herbs, simply don’t include them all.
What to serve with turkey curry soup
- I like to serve each bowl with a lime wedge for an additional burst of fresh flavor.
- It’s pretty hearty, so pair it with a slice of fresh crusty bread, and you’re good to go.
- For more Thai flavors, make my Thai Quinoa Salad as a fresh complement.
Leftovers and storage
- Store leftover soup for 3-4 days, but keep in mind the noodles will soak up the broth fast. You may need to add a splash more chicken broth when reheating.
- You could freeze leftovers for up to 3 months if you’d like, but I don’t really recommend it. The turkey is cooked twice already, so that could make it dry out even more upon thawing and reheating, and the noodles can change texture.
More leftover turkey recipes
I hope you’ll give this leftover turkey soup a try! Questions? Ask me in the comments below. Please leave a star rating and review, or tag me #saltandlavender on Instagram.
Thai Turkey Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3 heaping tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- 2 cups cooked turkey
- 7 ounces rice noodles see note
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 1 (13.5 ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 handful fresh basil torn/chopped, to taste
- 1 handful fresh cilantro chopped, to taste
- 1 handful chopped scallions to taste
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Lime wedges for serving
Instructions
- Sauté the onion in the olive oil in a large soup pot for 5 minutes over medium-high heat.
- Add the garlic and curry paste and cook for 30 seconds.
- Stir in the chicken broth, water, lime juice, turkey, rice noodles, and red bell pepper. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low, stir in the coconut milk, and let the soup simmer for 10 minutes.
- Stir in the basil, cilantro, and scallions. Season with salt & pepper as needed and serve immediately with lime wedges.
Notes
- Serves 4-6.
- I use Thai Kitchen red curry paste, and it isn’t particularly spicy. Some brands are spicy, however. Want to make this spicier? Add some grated ginger, sriracha, and/or chili paste.
- Rice noodles come in a variety of brands and package sizes, so you don’t have to be super precise with the weight as you may need to use only part of a package. I buy the thicker ones (3 mm) vs. the super fine ones that are almost like angel hair pasta. I like to buy Thai Kitchen’s stir fry noodles when I can find them.
- I used Thai Kitchen red curry paste and coconut milk. I recommend their coconut milk because it’s not too watery unlike some other brands I’ve tried.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
© Salt & Lavender Inc. Content and photographs are copyrighted. Sharing this blog post is much appreciated, but copying and pasting full recipes without authorization to social media is strictly prohibited.
This recipe was originally published on November 23, 2018. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
This was delicious! It was a perfect way to use up a bunch of turkey— end it brought much needed, bright flavors post-Thanksgiving. I added more peppers, more lime, ginger, and a bit more chili paste. I’m excited to have more for lunch tomorrow!
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it!!
What a delicious use of leftovers! My hubby and kids were suspicious at first, then gobbled it up!
Wonderful!!
What can be used as a substitute for coconut milk? I want to make this recipe however I am allergic to coconut.
Hmmm honestly it’s kinda what makes the soup what it is. I’m not sure there is a sub that’ll taste similar with the Thai flavors. Maybe try a splash of heavy cream?
You could try cashew cream or almond milk. My mom is Thai and doesn’t use the most of the coconut milk because it’s very fatty and the flavors are pretty much the same with almond milk. It’s a little thinner. Coconut milk is really high in saturated fat
Made this last night for dinner, the kids loved it, not too spicy. I ate the small bowl of leftovers for lunch and it was even better the next day so don’t be afraid to make a larger pot.
Yay that’s great!! Thanks for letting me know, Kim! XO
We celebrated […] with a giant 25 lb roast turkey for four of us. Leftovers galore.
This was delicious!!! A very different take on typical leftover dishes. Loved it!
Haha I like your style! So glad the leftovers were yummy too! (I edited your comment because bloggers are being told not to use buzzwords associated with current events because it may impact search engine rankings).
This recipe was super yummy! I was lacking a lot of ingredients… thanks […] (no lime juice… so I used lemon juice, no fresh basil or cilantro, no rice noodles so I use cooked up some fettuccine noodles and added them) and just added some carrots & broccoli as I had no red peppers. The flavor of the soup was so good and what a great way to use up leftover turkey. Will definitely be adding to my soup repertoire and plan to make it again!
Hi Adele! I’m so glad that you were able to adapt it based on what you could get. Thanks for leaving me a comment! (I edited your comment because bloggers have been told not to use buzzwords associated with the current events because it may affect our search rankings, so I am erring on the side of caution)
This is SO yummy! I added zucchini, sweet potatoes, and carrots to bulk it up a bit! LOVED IT! I also used lite coconut milk, still turned out amazing!
I’m so glad to hear that!
Hello, when did you add in the sweet potatoes and zucchini and how long did they take to cook? Thanks
Not sure if she will see your comment, but if you chop everything fairly small, you could just add them in when you’re cooking the onions. Perhaps give it another 5-10 minute or so on top of the indicated recipe time prior to adding in the noodles.
Excellent soup recipe – one can do a lot with it!
My son likes more robust soups so I made Thai meatballs with ground turkey to include – they were really a great addition and can use when there is not enough turkey to add (my dilemma because a lot of extra turkey goes with the family after!) or if it’s not around Thanksgiving. I used turkey carcass stock and made a big batch. Included water chestnuts, too and diced yellow potatoes and sliced baby carrots to bulk it up. Thanks for the great idea for a different kind of turkey soup than the standard versions……
I am so happy you like it so much, Linda! I think that’s a great idea making turkey meatballs… mmm!
This is a Brilliant recipe and very forgiving. I followed the recipe pretty accurately but played around with the amount of red curry paste, used all homemade stock and no water, added a bit of soy sauce and hot sauce as per your suggestion, used chicken and threw in a big bag of greens near the end.
The daughter and husband proclaimed it was the best soup they’ve ever had.
That’s great!! I am so happy it was a hit!
I followed your recipe but increased everything proportionally for a huge pot of soup. Tastes great over rice too.
My dilemma? My son and his wife are vegetarians (but they do eat fish and shrimp). How to prepare your recipe so it is just as tasty without chicken or turkey stock?
So glad you liked it! Hmm… how about a combo of vegetable stock and fish sauce?