Easy Turkey Soup

This turkey soup is designed for the day after a big roast when you’ve got leftover turkey and want dinner on the table fast. Chicken broth, elbow macaroni, frozen mixed vegetables, and chopped cooked turkey. One pot, 35 minutes, done.

The orange juice concentrate is the wild card here, and it works. Three-quarters of a cup stirred in at the end adds a citrusy sweetness that brightens the whole pot. It’s not an orange-flavored soup. It’s a turkey soup with a subtle warmth and acidity that keeps the broth from tasting flat. Think of it the way French cooks use a splash of wine.

The pasta and vegetables cook directly in the broth, not separately. The macaroni goes in first for 3 minutes, then the frozen vegetables join for another 5 to 7 minutes. This staged approach means both finish tender at the same time instead of one being overcooked while the other catches up.

The turkey goes in last since it’s already cooked. You’re just heating it through. Simmering leftover turkey too long makes it stringy and dry.

Kitchen Tips

• Use low-sodium broth if you have it. The orange juice concentrate adds its own sweetness and can push a salty broth over the edge.
• Small shell pasta works as well as elbows. Any small shape that fits on a soup spoon is a good choice.
• Add the orange juice concentrate thawed, not frozen. Frozen concentrate drops the soup temperature and takes longer to incorporate.
• Leftover rotisserie chicken works just as well as turkey.

Variations

• Creamy version: Stir in ½ cup of half-and-half with the orange juice concentrate for a richer, creamier soup.
• Asian twist: Swap the thyme for ginger and add a tablespoon of soy sauce with the orange juice for a sweet-savory, almost teriyaki-style broth.