Description
A hearty and comforting turkey soup featuring tender shredded turkey breast simmered in a flavorful broth with fresh vegetables, enhanced by fluffy sweet potato dumplings that bring a delightful texture and sweetness. Perfect for a cozy meal rich in savory spices and wholesome ingredients.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Turkey Soup:
- 2 pounds turkey breast tenderloins
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 celery hearts, chopped
- 2 medium carrots, chopped
- 1 medium white onion, finely chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 6–8 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon Jamaican allspice
- 8 cups (2 quarts) turkey or chicken stock/broth
- 1 cup frozen peas
For the Sweet Potato Dumplings:
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 3/4 cup whole buttermilk
- 1/4 cup mashed sweet potato or sweet potato puree
Instructions
- Season Turkey: Place the turkey tenderloins into a large bowl and season generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover and let sit for 30 minutes to reach room temperature.
- Brown Turkey: In a large dutch oven or stock pot, heat butter and olive oil over medium-high heat until sizzling. Add turkey tenderloins and brown them for 3 minutes on each side until golden. Remove turkey and set aside on a clean plate.
- Sauté Vegetables: Add chopped celery, carrots, and onion to the pot. Stir and sauté for 5 minutes until softened, scraping up any browned bits. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Add Herbs and Spices: Stir in fresh thyme sprigs, bay leaves, dried oregano, smoked paprika, and Jamaican allspice. Toast the spices for 1 minute while stirring continuously to release aromas.
- Combine Turkey and Stock: Return the browned turkey to the pot and pour in the turkey or chicken stock, fully submerging the turkey pieces. Stir to combine.
- Simmer Soup: Reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer gently for 50 minutes to fully cook and tenderize the turkey.
- Shred Turkey: Remove turkey from the pot onto a cutting board. Use two forks to shred into bite-sized pieces. Return shredded turkey to the pot and stir well. Keep the pot uncovered.
- Prepare Dumpling Dough: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, and baking powder. Add melted butter, buttermilk, and mashed sweet potato. Stir gently until the dough just comes together. Let sit 2 minutes to activate the baking powder and fluff the dough.
- Add Peas and Dumplings: Stir frozen peas into the hot soup. Using a spoon or scooper, drop 2-3 tablespoons of dumpling dough evenly over the soup surface. Spoon broth over dumplings to moisten.
- Simmer Dumplings: Cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes until dumplings are cooked through and fluffy.
- Serve: Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Ladle the soup with dumplings into bowls and finish with freshly ground black pepper to taste. Serve immediately and enjoy.
Notes
- Read the full blog post for additional tips and variations.
- For a gluten-free version, substitute the all-purpose flour with an equal amount of gluten-free flour.
- Do not overwork the dumpling dough to keep it light and fluffy.
- Use fresh herbs for the best aromatic flavor.
- If you don’t have sweet potato puree, mash cooked sweet potato well before adding.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl (about 1.5 cups)
- Calories: 350 kcal
- Sugar: 5 g
- Sodium: 700 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 30 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Cholesterol: 75 mg
