How to Make Easy Homemade Turkey Stock

Making homemade turkey stock is relatively simple after your Thanksgiving Feast. Homemade turkey stock is so worth the effort!

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Homemade Turkey Stock Recipe

So, you’ve spent the last couple of weeks planning and preparing for Thanksgiving, and now it is almost time to enjoy your beautifully crafted Turkey Dinner. You’re probably a bit exhausted from it all. But, it isn’t over just yet.

Making homemade turkey stock is relatively simple after your Thanksgiving Feast, even if it does feel like one more thing to worry about. And I’m telling you, homemade broth is so worth the work. It tastes absolutely delicious and rich.

Plus, you have complete control over what’s in it — that means no MSG and lots of flavor — when you make it yourself.

If you haven’t already removed the leftover meat from your roasted turkey after the meal is over, do that first. Then, you can use the extra meat to make homemade turkey soup using your homemade turkey stock if you’d like.

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Tools Used to My Favorite Turkey Stock Recipe

You’ll need a few different tools to prepare this flavorful stock from leftover thanksgiving turkey bones. Here’s what I recommend having on hand before getting started:

• Stock Pot – to make the turkey stock in.
• Measuring Spoons and Cups – to measure the ingredients.
• Fine-Mesh Sieve or Fine-Mesh Strainer – to strain the turkey parts and other scraps out after cooking.
• Storage Containers – and airtight container is idea for storing the stock for a later use if you don’t intend to use it all right away.

Turkey Stock Ingredients

One of the reasons I love making homemade turkey broth is because it uses up so many of my Thanksgiving leftovers! Here’s what you’ll need to make turkey stock:

• Turkey carcass
• Onions
• Carrots
• Celery
• Garlic
• Fresh herbs
• Peppercorns
• Bay leaves
• Water

For the complete ingredient list and detailed instructions for this basic stock recipe from a leftover turkey carcass, scroll to the bottom of this post for the FREE printable recipe card.

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How to Make Turkey Stock

Homemade turkey stock has so much flavor compared to store-bought stock. Here’s a quick overview of the process of making turkey stock from turkey carcass:

1. Add the turkey carcass to the pot along with the turkey wings, the neck piece, any leftover turkey skin or scraps of meat that are lingering on the bones, and the pan drippings.
2. Add plenty of aromatics such as onion, garlic, celery, and carrot to the pot.
3. Add fresh herbs. Parsley, Sage and Thyme are my personal favorites to add to the pot with the turkey carcass. I use a few sprigs of each.
4. Fill the pot with water and bring the turkey carcass mixture to a boil, then simmer it all day long. If you need to add more water to account for evaporation, do so. Taste your delicious homemade turkey broth after a few hours and adjust flavors to your personal preference.

Seasoning Homemade Stock

If you used a brine recipe (such as this Apple Cider Sage Turkey Brine), there will be plenty of residual salt leftover from the brining process and no need to add extra. If at the end of preparation your broth tastes saltier than you’d like, simply add more water.

When seasoning the turkey broth, remember that while you don’t want it to flavorless, you don’t want it to be too flavorful either. You want it to be neutral enough that it can be used in any number of soups and stews later on!

The above is simply a quick summary of this delicious homemade stock recipe. Check out the full recipe in the free printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for all the detailed instructions.

Tips for Making this Turkey Stock Recipe

• If necessary, you can disassemble the bones, breaking them into smaller pieces, so fit the bones nicely in your pot. Use a meat mallet or kitchen shears is a great way to break the ​leftover turkey carcass apart.
• Vegetable scraps work great (i.e. the ends of carrots that you cut off and don’t consume, celery ends and leaves, even onion skins). As you are preparing your Thanksgiving Feast, save any of these scraps in a large gallon sized zip top bag in your refrigerator.
• If you’ve saved up enough vegetable scraps, you might not need to buy fresh veggies to add to this homemade turkey stock. Use your best judgement!
• If you need to add more water to account for evaporation as the turkey carcass stock simmers, do so.
• Taste your delicious homemade turkey broth after a few hours and adjust flavors to your personal preference.

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How to Store Turkey Stock

After you’ve simmered your pot of turkey bones, aromatics, herbs and water all day, you’ll want to strain the mixture. I set a fine mesh strainer over another large pot and slowly pour the turkey broth mixture over the strainer. The strainer will catch and debris that you don’t want in the final product. Discard that debris.

If the turkey broth seems fatty, I chill the strained broth in the refrigerator overnight and skim the fat solids off the top the next morning.

Then, divide the stock into individual portions that suit your family’s needs. Make sure you use freezer-safe containers and leave about a 1/2 inch of head space in the container to allow for expansion in the freezer. Then, store the stock in the freezer.

Homemade turkey stock will store for at least 6 months. Use your homemade turkey broth anytime you need broth for soup recipes. Check out these 35 Soup Recipes for Fall to see some of our favorites!

Homemade Turkey Stock FAQs

Got questions about how to make this recipe? Here are the answers to a few commonly asked questions. Feel free to leave any other questions in the comments on this post and I’ll respond with answers.

Wondering how long to boil turkey carcass for stock?

Aim for at least 6 hours when cooking stove top. However, I like to get mine going in the morning and let it cook all day for extra flavor.

What’s the best way to remove fat from homemade stock?

After the straining the finished stock, return it to the stock pot and cool it to room temperature. Then, transfer it to the refrigerator and chill.

The fat rises as the stock cools. Once cool, you can use a wooden spoon to remove and discard the solidified fat.

Can I make turkey stock in a slow cooker?

Yes, if you have an extra large slow cooker or counter top roaster, you can make the turkey stock in that as well. Just allow it to cook on high for 2 hours, then on low for 6 hours (or more if you’d like).

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Can I make turkey stock in an Instant Pot?

Yes, you can make Homemade Turkey Stock in an Instant Pot.

Just make sure that your pressure cooker is large enough and none of the ingredients or liquid reach higher than the “max fill” line for your Instant Pot. I would recommend the 8 quart sized Instant Pot.

You will likely have to break down the bones so they take up less space rather than placing a whole turkey carcass in your Instant Pot. Add all of the ingredients into the pressure cooker and cook on High Pressure for 90 minutes. Then, let pressure release naturally (no quick release).

Do not open the Instant Pot lid until the pressure has fully released. Take care to follow all official Instant Pot safety procedures and precautions to avoid steam burns or any other injuries.

Can I make homemade stock using chicken instead?

Absolutely! When roasting a whole chicken, or purchasing pre-roasted whole chickens, keep the leftover bones in a Ziploc freezer bag in the freezer.

When you’ve collected 2-3, use them to make homemade chicken broth.

What to Do with Turkey Stock

Now that you know how to make your own stock from a leftover turkey carcass, here are a few ideas for using it:

Try this Homemade Stock Recipe at Home!

Next time you’re wondering what to do with a turkey carcass after your Thanksgiving dinner, give this how to make turkey stock tutorial a try!

Did you love the depth of flavor? Leave a comment below and give it a review for others to see what you thought of making your own stock.

On Instagram? Share your photo and tag me with @goodlifeeats and #goodlifeeatsrecipes. I’d love to see your photo of what you made with it!

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More Turkey Recipes

This Homemade Turkey Gravy is made using the pan drippings from your Thanksgiving turkey. It’s incredibly easy to make and can be frozen for later, if desired!

Don’t want to mess around with a wet turkey brine this year? Make this Garlic Herb Peppercorn Dry Brine Turkey instead. It’s so easy to make and is super flavorful.

This Rosemary Beer Smoked Turkey is another Thanksgiving favorite at our house. We love the smoky flavor our Traeger imparts!

Have leftover turkey meat you need to use up? Make this Green Chile Turkey Tetrazzini or Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwiches.

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