What do you do with all that leftover turkey? My family is happy to eat turkey and dressing for a few days. But, when the dressing and gravy are finished off, and it’s just turkey, I start making casseroles. A few of our favorites are my Mexican Casserole, Turkey & Cornbread Casserole, and my kids’ absolute favorite I just call Leftover Turkey Casserole.
This Leftover Turkey Casserole is an old recipe full of cream of chicken soup and pasta. It usually has wide egg noodles, but with my baby having an egg allergy, we avoid those as they give her a reaction. So, I’ve taken to using orzo pasta.
It’s almost like rice, but it does a great job soaking up moisture to turn this dish into casserole from a soupy mixture. In fact, if you want to make this casserole and you have rice on hand, go ahead and use it. It will work beautifully as well.
I have literally made this casserole twice with our leftover turkey just this week from Thanksgiving, and it has been devoured. It’s such a comfort food when it’s cold outside or you’re feeling sick. I sent some of it home with my college kid, so she could easily just heat up dinner while studying for finals. M other kids like to take it to school in their thermoses, too.
Your kids will love this recipe. It’s a little reminiscent of creamy mac and cheese, but full of turkey. Everybody who tries it, loves it. In fact, my baby loves it as much as my big kids.
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Leftover Turkey Casserole
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings. 1x
Description
This Leftover Turkey Casserole is so easy to put together, and it takes just 20 minutes to bake. Your family will love this comfort food for a simple weeknight meal.
Ingredients
- 3 cups shredded turkey
- 1 lb of orzo pasta
- 1 cup of shredded cheese (cheddar or colby jack)
- 2 10 oz cans of cream of chicken soup
- 1 can of water
- 1 can of half and half
- 1 sleeve of Ritz crackers
- 1 stick of butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees.
- Boil 4 cups of water in a dutch oven.
- Add the orzo pasta and let it boil on high for 4-5 minutes. Then, turn off fire and cover with the lid. Let it sit for about 10 minutes, until most the water is soaked into the pasta.
- Shred the turkey.
- If the orzo pasta is still watery after 10 minutes, drain it. If the water is mostly soaked up, then skip this step.
- Add the cream of chicken soup and cheese to the pasta and mix.
- Using the empty cans, fill one with water and one with half and half and add to the pasta mixture.
- Add the turkey and mix up until completely combined.
- Spray a 9 x 13 pan with olive oil spray.
- Transfer the turkey casserole mixture to the pan.
- Melt the butter.
- Crush the Ritz crackers.
- Combine the butter and Ritz crackers.
- Spread the cracker mixture over the top of the casserole.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
Need more casserole ideas? Here are a couple of our family favorites:
Easy Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole