What to Do With a Whole Turkey: 19 Creative Ideas Beyond Roast Dinner

As the holidays approach, many of us look forward to cooking and eating a beautifully roasted whole turkey. However, roasting an entire bird is time and labor intensive, and not always practical for smaller gatherings. If you find yourself with a whole turkey outside of the holidays or want to prepare it in a new way, you have options! In this article, I’ll share 19 creative ideas for cooking a whole turkey beyond the traditional roasted dinner.

Try Cooking Methods Beyond Roasting

Roasting certainly produces a juicy and flavorful turkey, but other cooking methods can put fun twists on the bird. Here are some methods to try:

• Grill it – Get crispy skin and smoky flavor by spatchcocking the turkey and grilling it over indirect heat. This cuts down the cooking time substantially.

• Smoke it – For the ultimate moist and tender bird with amplified flavor, smoke the turkey in a smoker or grill with a smoking box attachment. Apple, cherry, pecan, and hickory wood chips are all excellent options.

• Deep fry it – Deep frying is the fastest way to cook a turkey and yields insanely crispy skin. Take proper safety precautions and fry outside.

• Steam it – Steaming keeps the turkey incredibly moist and tender Use a vegetable steamer or rig a steamer setup with a pan, rack, and lid

• Poach it – Simmer the turkey in an aromatic poaching liquid like chicken broth wine, herbs, and vegetables. It will turn out succulent and infused with flavor.

• Sous vide it – For the juiciest turkey ever, seal it in a bag and cook it for hours in a precisely temperature controlled water bath. Finish it off by searing the skin.

Get Creative With Stuffings and Rubs

Take your turkey to the next level by loading it up with flavorful aromatic stuffings and spice rubs:

• Herb butter under the skin – Slathering the turkey flesh with a compound butter made with fresh herbs, garlic, citrus, and Parmesan boosts moisture and adds so much flavor.

• Aromatic stuffing – Stuff the cavity with fragrant ingredients like lemons, garlic, herbs, chopped vegetables, dried fruit, or edible flowers.

• Sausage and cornbread stuffing – For a savory, ultra moist interior, fill the cavity with a cornbread based stuffing loaded with sausage, sage, celery, and broth.

• Spice rubs – Coat the skin with bold spice rubs featuring flavors like harissa, jerk seasoning, ras el hanout, za’atar, or garam masala.

• Brine it – Soaking the raw turkey in a saltwater brine ensures seasoned, juicy meat from the inside out. Add aromatics to the brine like citrus, herbs, peppercorns, and allspice berries.

Serve It Whole In Unique Ways

Rather than carving up the bird, try these fun ways to serve a whole turkey for dramatic presentation:

• Turkey enchiladas – Shred the meat and stuff it into tortillas covered with mole, tomatillo salsa, or red chili sauce.

• Turkey porchetta – Debone the turkey, stuff it with aromatics, then roll it, tie it and roast it for ridiculously juicy meat.

• Turkey galantine – Debone the turkey, layer the meat with stuffing, then roll it up into a spiral, wrap in cheesecloth and poach. Slice to serve.

• Turkey ballotine – Pound the meat thin, then wrap around a forcemeat stuffing into a log shape, tie it up and braise or roast it.

• Turkey wellington – Wrap turkey tenderloins or a deboned turkey breast in prosciutto, stuff with duxelles mushrooms, then encase in puff pastry and bake.

Get Creative With the Leftovers

A whole turkey will inevitably lead to leftovers. But you can give the leftovers new life in so many ways:

• Turkey sandwiches – Slices of roasted turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing and mayo on bread is the classic. Get creative with fillings like avocado, bacon, pesto or sun dried tomatoes.

• Turkey salad – Shred and toss the meat with mayo, celery, nuts, and grapes or dried cranberries. Enjoy over greens or on sandwiches.

• Turkey soup – Simmer the carcass with veggies, beans and pasta or rice for a hearty, nutritious soup.

• Turkey tetrazzini – Toss spaghetti with turkey, mushrooms, peas, Parmesan and a sherry cream sauce. Top with breadcrumbs and bake.

• Turkey pot pie – Roast turkey and veggies in gravy stuffed into a flaky pie crust is supremely comforting.

• Turkey enchiladas – As mentioned before, enchiladas are a fantastic way to use up leftover turkey.

• Turkey hash – Cook turkey shreds with potatoes, onions, peppers and spices for a delicious next day breakfast.

So next time you have a whole turkey on hand, don’t feel limited by the standard roast turkey dinner. With a little creativity, you can take that bird in many delicious directions! Which of these ideas are you excited to try?