Chinese Recipes Using Leftover Turkey

Dec 30, 2011
Steve Rogerson

Chinese Turkey Fried Rice - YinYang/iStockphoto.com

Turkey Fried Rice, Turkey Noodle Soup, and Turkey and Cashew Nut Chow Mein are Chinese-inspired classics that creatively use leftover holiday turkey meat.

Roast turkey is a traditional Western dish for Easter, Christmas or Thanksgiving, but the leftovers can be given a distinct Eastern feel with these Chinese-inspired dishes for Turkey Fried Rice, Turkey Noodle Soup, and Turkey and Cashew Nut Chow Mein.

Turkey Fried Rice

As with most Chinese dishes that involve cooking with a wok, it's a good idea to have all your ingredients peeled, chopped and ready to use before starting the preparation of the dish. A heavy frying pan can be used in place of a wok.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

4 cups water
Pinch of turmeric
2 cups uncooked brown or white long-grain rice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large egg, lightly beaten
4 cups cooked turkey (breast or thigh meat), chopped into bite-size pieces
2 cups chopped vegetables, such as green bell pepper, green beans, mushrooms, etc.
7 whole cashew nuts
1 small green or red chile, chopped (or more, if desired)
2 teaspoons soy sauce

Directions:

Place water in a large saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Add the turmeric and rice to the water. Cover the saucepan and return the water to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer rice until the water is almost absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in the wok over high heat until the oil is hot. Add egg to wok and cook, stirring rapidly and breaking egg into small pieces with a metal spatula. Transfer cooked egg from wok to a plate and set aside.
Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in the wok. Add the turkey, vegetables, cashew nuts and chile. Stir-fry mixture for 2 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium-high and add the cooked rice to the wok. Cook, stirring to warm rice, for 1 minute.
Add the cooked egg to the wok. Stir to combine egg with rice and vegetables. Pour soy sauce over rice mixture.
Cook, stirring for 30 seconds, until the soy sauce has spread evenly over the rice mixture. Remove fried rice from wok and transfer to a serving bowl. Serve immediately.

Turkey Noodle Soup

This is fairly easy to make and different vegetables can be used to add variety. Ideally, the stock should be chicken or turkey, but if those varieties of stock are not available, vegetable stock will suffice. This soup requires both a spoon and a pair of chopsticks for serving.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons light-brown sugar
2 teaspoon water
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
4 cups cooked turkey (breast or thigh meat), chopped into bite-size pieces
4 cups homemade chicken, turkey or vegetable stock, or canned low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups chopped mushrooms
2 cups chopped celery
2 cups chopped green beans
2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1 teaspoon rice-wine vinegar
1 teaspoon cognac (optional)
2 cups cooked rice vermicelli noodles
1/2 teaspoon coarsely chopped fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, combine the five-spice powder, olive oil, hoisin sauce, light-brown sugar, water and 1 tablespoon soy sauce. Add turkey to bowl and stir well to combine turkey with seasonings. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and allow turkey to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
In a large saucepan over medium heat, bring chicken, turkey or vegetable stock (or chicken or vegetable broth) to a boil. Add mushrooms, celery, green beans and peas to saucepan.
Return liquid to a boil and add 1 teaspoon soy sauce, vinegar and cognac, if using. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.
Add noodles and parsley to saucepan. Cook for 2 minutes.
Add marinated turkey mixture to the saucepan. Return soup to a boil and cook for 3 minutes. Divide soup among 4 serving bowls and serve immediately.

Turkey and Cashew Nut Chow Mein

Make sure you have all of your ingredients prepared before you start to cook.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

2 cups uncooked egg noodles
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large white or yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, cored, seeded and sliced into thin strips
1 stalk celery, coarsely chopped
4 cups cooked turkey (breast or thigh meat), chopped into bite-size pieces
2 tablespoons whole cashews
1 large scallion, chopped

Directions:

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over medium heat. Add egg noodles to water, return water to a boil and cook according to package directions. Drain noodles and set aside.
In a small mixing bowl, combine 3 tablespoons water, soy sauce and black pepper; set aside.
Add olive oil to wok and warm oil over high heat. Just before oil starts to smoke, add onion to wok, and stir-fry for about 30 to 40 seconds.
Add green bell pepper and celery to wok. Stir-fry for 1 minute.
Add turkey to wok and stir-fry for 1 minute
Add the soy sauce mixture to wok and stir well to combine with vegetables and turkey.
Add cashews, scallion and cooked egg noodles to wok. Cook, stirring well for 30 seconds. Transfer mixture to a large platter and serve immediately.