Why You’ll Love This
No canned soups in this turkey tetrazzini. It’s all from scratch. And it tastes 100 times better! Don’t know what to do with all the turkey leftover from Thanksgiving or Christmas? This is the leftover turkey recipe for you! It’s a great recipe that delivers the perfect comfort food. A quick and easy meal with fabulous flavor! We also love making Italian sausage rigatoni with spicy cream sauce, crockpot manicotti, and broccoli alfredo lasagna roll ups for easy pasta meals!
What is Turkey Tetrazzini
Tetrazzini is a pasta dish made with turkey (chicken) and baked in a rich and creamy sauce. Usually made with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Ingredients
Spaghetti, Cooked Turkey, and Frozen Peas – The base of the casserole.Olive oil, onion, and garlic – For added flavor.Unsalted butter and all-purpose flour – For making the roux. This easy tetrazzini recipe does not use any “cream of” soups!Turkey stock – Or chicken broth.Milk and parmesan cheese– To make the sauce creamy and rich. This recipe doesn’t use cream cheese to thicken the sauce, it doesn’t need it.Nutmeg, kosher salt, and pepper – To boost the flavor!
How to Make Easy Creamy Turkey Tetrazzini Recipe
First, chop the leftover turkey into bitesize pieces and set them aside. Preheat the oven to 350º. In a large pot of salted water, boil the spaghetti al dente. You can also use egg noodles if you like. Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, and saute onions until tender, 5-10 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute or two. Add the butter to the pan, and once melted, whisk in the flour, and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the turkey stock (or chicken broth), milk, nutmeg, pepper, and salt. Cook and whisk until it comes to a boil and starts to thicken. Stir in 1 1/4 cups of Parmesan cheese and remove from the heat. Stir the turkey, cream sauce, and sweet peas into the drained noodles. Pour into the baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan cheese and bake for 25-30 minutes, until bubbly. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired. Who doesn’t love a good pasta casserole for those cold winter nights? My husband and I loved this recipe!
Tips
Double the recipe and bake in a large casserole dish. Freeze leftovers for another easy weeknight meal. Or separate it into two 8×8 pans, cook one and freeze one. Be sure to cook the pasta al dente because you will be baking this turkey casserole, and you don’t want the noodles to be mushy.Reserve some of the pasta water (about 1 cup) to thin the cream sauce if it seems too thick. I’ve never had this issue, though.It should look “saucy” when you pour it into the casserole dish. The sauce will thicken as it cooks and cools. You want plenty of sauce, so the casserole isn’t dry.I highly recommend making your own turkey stock from the remaining turkey carcass. It gives this dish so much more turkey flavor. This is the key to a flavorful dish. But you can use chicken stock.Be sure to taste the cream sauce before adding in the turkey and vegetables. Salt and pepper to taste.
Variations
You can also sneak in some more vegetables like diced carrots, green beans, broccoli, and mushrooms.If adding mushrooms, saute with the onions until they release all the moisture, then continue the recipe.Swap the spaghetti noodles for any past shape.If you want a crunchy topping, use bread crumbs or panko breadcrumbs mixed with a little melted butter.Use leftover rotisserie chicken instead of turkey.
