Hello friends, how was your Thanksgiving? Are you still working your way through those Thanksgiving leftovers? Did you make the required day-after-Thanksgiving turkey sandwich, piled high with all your favorites? Still looking at some turkey in your fridge and wondering what to do with it?
Well, after a day of indulgence – followed by an epic turkey sandwich battle – we were craving something light and healthy to put us back into the daily routine.
Having had something similar in the past, I put together a Greek lemon and egg soup using up some of the cooked turkey from Thanksgiving. Also known as avgolemeno (pronounced av-go-lem-ono), this soup uses a simple combination of shredded chicken (or turkey), rice, chicken broth, lemon and is thickened with eggs.
There are many different ways to make this soup and some versions involve many hours and many steps. But the version I put together for you guys is as simple as can be and takes only about 30 minutes. Light and lemony, but still hearty and filling – it’s the perfect way to use up that turkey and get yourself back on track.
avgolemono – greek lemon and egg soup with shredded turkey and brown rice
makes four servings
6 cups turkey stock (or chicken stock)
2 cups cooked brown rice
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 eggs
10-12 ounces shredded turkey breast (or chicken breast)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
salt
black pepper
Place the stock in a large pot and bring to a boil. Once the stock comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and add the rice. Simmer the rice in the stock for 15 minutes.
In a medium sized bowl, whisk the lemon juice and eggs together. Add one cup of the stock/rice mixture to the egg bowl, whisking continuously so that the eggs do not scramble in the hot liquid but instead emulsifying the eggs into the liquid to thicken the soup.
Add the whisked egg mixture back to the large pot and continue to whisk to incorporate the eggs into the soup. Add the parsley, a pinch of salt and pepper and stir to combine. Taste the soup and adjust the seasonings as needed.
Divide the shredded turkey into each of the four bowls, ladle the soup into the bowls, and serve.
my notes: I made this soup with shredded turkey breast as that’s what I grabbed first – but you can certainly substitute shredded thigh or leg meat. You can also make this with grilled or roasted turkey or chicken, just dice it up into bite-sized pieces and add it in place of the shredded meat.
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