This Thanksgiving, I’m sharing my favorite go-to turkey recipe, Smoked Turkey Legs. Instead of frying a whole bird in my own backyard, this easy giant turkey leg recipe comes together in my smoker.
A sweet and salty overnight brine ensures the giant turkey legs stay moist and delicious throughout the cooking process. The best part is that no one will ever complain that the smoked turkey meat is too dry!
This smoked turkey leg recipe shares a lot in common with the Disney turkey leg recipe but kicks up the flavor a few more notches with a spicy seasoning rub and a hot honey glaze that is so freakin’ delicious.
Turkey legs are an underrated and often overlooked part of the bird. With their higher fat content, legs remain incredibly moist juicy and flavorful after cooking.
If you find yourself with leftover turkey legs after the big holiday meal, don’t toss them out! There are so many delicious ways to use up turkey legs. Read on for 12 recipes and ideas.
Make Soup
One of the easiest ways to use up turkey legs is to simmer them into a flavorful soup or stew. Try adding legs along with classic soup vegetables like onions, carrots, celery and potatoes. Season the broth well with herbs and let it simmer until the meat falls off the bone
Some soup ideas:
- Turkey Noodle Soup
- Turkey and Wild Rice Soup
- Turkey Posole
- Turkey Chili
Bake a Pie
For an easy dinner, cover chopped turkey leg meat with gravy and bake in a pie crust. Or make it more of a pot pie by adding veggies like peas, carrots and celery.
Make Sliders
Grind or mince turkey leg meat and shape into patties. Cook the patties in a skillet until browned and top with cheese, lettuce, and condiments to make turkey sliders. They’re perfect for snacking or a game day spread.
Tacos
Shredded turkey legs make fantastic taco meat. Heat the shredded meat in a skillet with taco seasoning and serve in warm tortillas or taco shells. Top with all your favorite taco toppings.
Stir Fry
Slice turkey leg meat into strips and stir fry with vegetables and a savory sauce. Try pairing with broccoli, bell peppers, mushrooms, snap peas, baby corn and carrots.
Pasta Sauce
Chop or shred turkey leg meat and simmer into your favorite pasta sauce, like marinara or alfredo. Toss the sauce with cooked pasta for a hearty and comforting meal.
BBQ Sandwiches
Shred turkey leg meat and mix with your favorite bbq sauce. Pile onto buns for easy bbq sandwiches. Or try smoking the whole turkey legs for even more flavor.
Turkey Salad
Chop turkey leg meat and mix into a classic chicken salad by combining it with mayo, celery, onion, grapes or cranberries, and toasted nuts. Enjoy on bread, lettuce wraps or crackers.
Turkey Fried Rice
Stir bite-sized pieces of turkey leg into fried rice along with veggies like peas, carrots, bean sprouts and eggs. Quick and easy.
Casserole
Layer shredded turkey, vegetables, stuffing and cheese into a baking dish for a comforting casserole. You can also mix in pasta or rice.
Quesadillas
Warm tortillas, sprinkle with shredded turkey leg meat, cheese, beans, peppers and onions. Fold over and cook until the cheese melts for easy turkey quesadillas.
Turkey Enchiladas
Fill tortillas with shredded turkey, top with enchilada sauce and cheese. Bake until melted and bubbly for amazing turkey enchiladas.
Don’t Toss the Bones!
After removing all the meat, save the turkey leg bones to make a nourishing bone broth. Simmer the bones for hours to extract all the collagen, minerals and flavors. Sip the broth on its own or use as the base for soups, stews and gravies.
As you can see, turkey legs are endlessly versatile. With a little creativity, you can transform leftovers into all sorts of mouthwatering dishes. Next time you roast a turkey or find turkey legs on sale, pick up a few extra. You’ll be glad to have easy, tasty meals ready-to-go.
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The hot honey glaze adds a touch of heat and a whole lot of flavor to your juicy smoked turkey leg. However, feel free to get creative and use your favorite BBQ sauce or any other sauce that your taste buds fancy.
Smoked Turkey Leg Ingredients
- Turkey Legs – Most butchers offer fresh or frozen turkey legs, especially around Thanksgiving and Christmas. If you’re lucky enough to have a local turkey farm nearby, give them a holler to reserve your turkey legs.
- Big Bad BBQ Ale – The key flavors of my favorite seasoning rub (in an awesome beer can!) are brown sugar, cinnamon, paprika, garlic, and onion.
- Canola Oil – This neutral vegetable oil is what helps the rub stay on the legs, however, feel free to use a high-smoke point olive oil instead.
- Sesame Seeds – These tiny flavor bombs add the perfect finishing touch to the glazed turkey legs, and they are easy to source at your local grocery store or online.
- Chives – These slender green onion-like herbs add flavor and the perfect splash of green to contrast with the red smoked turkey legs.
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- Water – For the wet brine, I suggest using filtered water instead of chlorinated tap water.
- Dark Brown Sugar – The hints of sweet molasses add depth and richness to the brine.
- Kosher Salt – These fat flakes of salt bring out the best in all my dishes. Table salt will also work.
- Pepper – Pepper ground from fresh black peppercorns adds the perfect pungent and earthy kick to the brine.
- Garlic Powder – Few of my recipes are complete without my favorite garlic powder, which I always keep in my pantry staples.
- Onion Powder – In certain contexts, such as for the brine mixture, dehydrated onion works better than fresh chopped onion.
- Dried Thyme – This aromatic French herb is one of my favorites, which you can easily pick up in the spice section of your grocery store, either dried or fresh.
- Local Honey – If you can’t source any local honey there are, however, some great choices online.
- FYR RED Hot Sauce – This is fast becoming one of my most popular hot sauces. It features a cayenne pepper mash, dried Guajillo pepper, and blood orange concentrate.
- Red Chili Flakes – Adds even more flavor and heavenly heat to the sweet glaze.
Get stoked for life
Smothered Turkey Leg Recipe!
FAQ
What are turkey legs used for?
Is turkey leg meat good for you?
Do you cook a turkey legs up or legs down?
What to serve with turkey legs?
The flavors come together perfectly with garlic, red pepper flakes, and fresh basil. This fresh salad is an elegant, tasty, and beautiful side dish to pair with turkey legs. It has a delightful fresh, fruity taste, thanks to the strawberries and basil. This sweet and savory salsa is great for topping grilled meats or as a dip.
What are the health benefits of ground turkey?
Ground turkey has multiple benefits. It is a good source of minerals, and B vitamins, rich in proteins, low in fat and it is lower in calories than common turkey.
What to do with smoked turkey leg?
Dice up some smoked turkey leg meat to top off a Cobb salad. Generally speaking, flavorful smoked turkey meat is a great swap for grilled chicken or chicken breast meat in so many main dish salad recipes . Photo by Derrinae Smith. Save some smoked turkey leg for this red beans and rice recipe. Treat the turkey just like you would ham.
What to do with leftover turkey thighs?
Look no further than these herb-seasoned turkey thighs roasted with potatoes and onions. Use your Thanksgiving leftovers to make Chef John ‘s creamy comfort food creation. A 3-ingredient salsa — made with green onions, red pepper, and cilantro — is the perfect finishing touch.