Turn your leftover Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey into a flavorful and satisfying meal. This leftover turkey curry is utterly delicious, creamy, comforting and packed with delicious aromatic flavors.
This Indian curry is perfect for a quick and easy dinner idea! It's a brilliant way to use up your leftover roast turkey or air-fried turkey leg.
Leftover turkey curry with coconut milk
After the holidays, you have made your first turkey sandwich, now what? There are many other ways to enjoy leftover turkey, but transforming it into a curry takes the top. It’s a great way to make your leftovers more exciting.
You get a wholesome new meal using storecupboard ingredients and enjoy this curry's wonderful aromas. All it takes are a few spices and some ingredients like garlic, ginger, onions, tomato paste, and coconut milk.
I like serving curry with warm naan bread, fluffy basmati rice or jeera rice for a delicious dinner. This is always a hit with my family, and I hope you enjoy it too.
I want you to paint the picture of you scooping the silky and creamy curry with freshly made naan bread or slopping some over a bowl of steamy basmati rice. It is so good, right? I thought so, too, so now let's make some.
Never let your leftover roast go to waste. Make them into curries like these recipes: leftover lamb curry and leftover pork curry.
Why you will love this recipe
Hearty and filled with delicious aromatic flavors you can't resist. It’s creamy, satisfying and healthy.
Simple ingredients and minimal prep: I used two spice blends, curry powder and turmeric to achieve the great flavor. Curry powder contains other ingredients your curry needs to give it that robust flavor.
Ready in 30 minutes: Not only would you reduce waste by using up your leftover turkey to create a new dish, but you will also get dinner fast to the table. It's a perfect meal for a busy weeknight.
Healthy: Turkey is low in fat and a good source of protein, so this curry is light yet filling.
What you will need
You will use the following ingredients to make your creamy leftover turkey curry with coconut milk.
Leftover cooked turkey: cubed or shredded, get as much meat as possible from the carcass.
Coconut milk: I used full-fat coconut milk for richness. Substitute with low fat coconut milk, heavy or half-and-half cream (double or single cream).
Coconut oil: Substitute with ghee, vegetable, or olive oil.
Curry powder: I used hot Indian curry powder. You can substitute it with any curry powder or a mild curry if you don't like heat.
Turmeric
Low-sodium chicken stock
Tomato paste: Substitute with passata or chopped tomatoes if you want the curry chunkier.
Onions: I used brown onion; it is sweet, and the color blends in well into the curry. You can substitute brown onions with red onions.
Garlic paste: Substitute with finely chopped garlic or garlic powder
Ginger paste: Substitute with finely chopped ginger or ginger powder
Chili paste: Substitute with Kashimir chili, red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper.
Fresh cilantro: You will need this to add flavor to the curry and also to serve it.
Frozen peas: It is one of my favorite vegetables to add to curries. Substitute with sweet potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, spinach or kale.
Salt to taste
How to make leftover turkey curry
Heat coconut oil in a shallow skillet over medium heat.
Add chopped onions to the coconut oil and saute until the onions are soft and translucent. Add chopped garlic and ginger paste, and cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant, stirring occasionally.
Next, add curry powder and turmeric powder and cook for another 30 seconds, just until fragrant.
Add tomato paste and chili paste to the aromatics, stir to combine, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly so it does not burn.
Pour chicken stock into the pan and stir to combine, deglazing the bottom of the pan to remove any brown bits.
Add coconut milk to the sauce and stir to combine. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add cubed cooked turkey and stir to combine, taste, and adjust seasoning to taste with salt. Simmer for 5-10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened to your liking.
Add chopped cilantro and frozen peas. Stir to combine and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove the heat, and serve warm over boiled basmati rice, naan bread, or roti. Enjoy
What to serve with curry
There are other things you can eat with curry other than rice. Here are a few suggestions you could try.
- Boiled pasta
- Cauliflower rice
- Roasted broccoli and cauliflower
- Boiled potatoes
- Roasted potatoes
- Homemade oven chips
- Serve with any chutney of choice for additional sweetness
- Make a quick raita
How to store
Store leftover curry in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. You can also freeze turkey curry, as coconut milk freezes well. Freeze it for up to 3 months for maximum freshness.
More simple and easy curry recipes you will love
Sweet potato and chickpea curry
Leftover Turkey Curry With Coconut Milk
Ingredients
- 500 g cooked turkey cubed or shredded
- 400 g Coconut milk
- 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 Tablespoon curry powder
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- ½ cup low-sodium chicken stock
- ⅓ cup tomato paste
- 1 cup onions chopped
- 1 Tablespoon garlic chopped
- 1 Tablespoon ginger paste
- 1 teaspoon chili paste optional
- 1 cup frozen peas
- Fresh cilantro
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat coconut oil in a shallow skillet over medium heat.2 Tablespoons coconut oil
- Add chopped onions to the coconut oil and saute until the onions are soft and translucent. Add chopped garlic and ginger paste, and cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant, stirring occasionally.1 cup onions chopped, 1 Tablespoon garlic chopped, 1 Tablespoon ginger paste
- Next, add curry powder and turmeric powder and cook for another 30 seconds, just until fragrant.1 Tablespoon curry powder, ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- Add tomato paste and chili paste to the aromatics, stir to combine, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly so it does not burn.⅓ cup tomato paste, 1 teaspoon chili paste optional
- Pour chicken stock into the pan and stir to combine, deglazing the bottom of the pan to remove any brown bits.½ cup low-sodium chicken stock
- Add coconut milk to the sauce and stir to combine. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.400 g Coconut milk
- Add cubed cooked turkey and stir to combine, taste and adjust seasoning to taste with salt. Simmer for 5-10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened to your liking.500 g cooked turkey
- Add chopped cilantro and frozen peas. Stir to combine and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove the heat, and serve warm over boiled basmati rice, naan bread, or roti. Enjoy1 cup frozen peas, Fresh cilantro, Salt to taste
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional data: Please note that the nutrition label provided is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients and brands you use. Under no circumstances will thedinnerbite.com be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information.
And there you have it, a simple and delicious leftover curry recipe you can make at home in 30 minutes. As always, if you made this recipe, I would love to hear from you! Kindly rate the recipe 5 star and leave me feedback in the comment section below. Tag me @thedinnerbite on Instagram and save it away to your Pinterest. Please subscribe to the blog if you haven’t for free new recipes in your inbox
Mary says
This curry is delicious. Made it with leftovers from a half turkey breast that we grilled on the BBQ. Used S&B curry powder, substituted chopped peeled tomatoes instead of tomato paste and a little bit of sriracha sauce instead of chili paste. Excellent recipe!
Ajoke says
Thank you so much, Mary, for the feedback. I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe and that you were able to make smart swaps without compromising the taste of the dish.