Getting through Thanksgiving leftovers can be a slog. You always make so much food, and then you’re eating the same stuffing and sweet potatoes for a week.
I don’t know about you, but what I really want to eat after Thanksgiving is something completely different: no thyme or sage, no gravy, and no more heavy, stodgy food. I also don’t want all that food to go to waste, especially the big old turkey. That’s why I always make a Mexican-inspired recipe for turkey carnitas the weekend after Thanksgiving.
The Best Way to Use Up Leftover Turkey
We’re not big turkey eaters in my family. Sure, we eat a little on Thanksgiving because it feels sacrilegious if we don’t, but it’s the leftovers we’re really after. Turkey sandwiches loaded with cranberry sauce and mayo use up most of our leftover turkey breast, and the carcass goes in turkey pho, but the dark meat is always earmarked for turkey carnitas.
I found the recipe and its genius use of leftover dark meat on Serious Eats many years ago. It takes its inspiration from Mexican carnitas, which is pork slow cooked in its own fat until it’s falling apart tender, then usually eaten with tortillas. Since making the turkey version for the first time, we look forward to it almost as much as the main Turkey Day feast itself, and definitely more than the boring roasted bird.
If your family isn’t really into dark meat on the day of, be sure to check this recipe out, because it requires leftover dark meat — breast just won’t work right. The fat in the dark meat is necessary for keeping the carnitas moist and flavorful.
How to Make Serious Eats’ Leftover Turkey Carnitas
This recipe cooks your leftover turkey legs and thighs a second time, but don’t worry — it’s really easy and all done on the stovetop.
Pile your leftover dark meat — bones, skin, and all — into a pot with a lid that just barely holds it all. Then add some water, only coming up about halfway so that some of the turkey is sticking out. You’ll mostly want to steam the turkey, not boil it.
Then add a few key ingredients that really push this into carnitas territory: an onion, an orange, and a couple bay leaves. You won’t be eating any of them, so just chuck them in the pot in big chunks. They’ll flavor the turkey — and make your house smell amazing.
The turkey will be ready once it’s falling-off-the-bone tender. Then it’s time for the thing that pushes this recipe over the top: crisping the meat. You do that in a screaming hot cast-iron skillet, turning it into a mix of tender, supple meat with lots of brown, crispy bits.
You can eat it however you like, but our go-to is in hot corn tortillas with diced onion, cilantro, and plenty of lime squeezed over the top. Avocado slices, hot sauce, and salsa verde are all delicious additions.
My Tips for Turkey Carnitas
After making turkey carnitas from my leftover Thanksgiving turkey for at least a decade, I’ve picked up a few things. Here are my tips if you’re trying this recipe.
- Fry your turkey in animal fat. That could be leftover turkey fat, lard, or the thing I use most: bacon fat. If you’d rather use oil, just make sure it’s not extra virgin olive oil, which has too low of a smoke point for this recipe.
- The right kind of salsa is important. Something green and perhaps creamy is the best. I make a creamy, smooth jalapeno salsa in my blender out of only four ingredients, and I highly recommend trying it.
- Fresh squeezed lime juice is a must! Thankfully, fresh limes are pretty cheap this time of year.
- If you want to serve turkey carnitas with easy sides (because who wants to do that much more cooking on Thanksgiving weekend?), head to your local Mexican grocery store and pick up a couple containers of premade rice and refried beans from the deli or hot bar. They’re cheap and they’ll help save your sanity.
More Thanksgiving tips from Cheapism
- Underrated Costco Essentials Shoppers Swear By for Thanksgiving Prep — Discover the underrated Costco Thanksgiving finds that Reddit users and reviewers swear by for pulling off a feast with ease.
- 16 Creative Thanksgiving Leftovers Recipe Ideas That Will Make You Drool — Yes, there are sandwiches to be made, but there is also a world to discover beyond that post-Thanksgiving staple.
- How Long Can You Really Keep Thanksgiving Leftovers — Find out how long you can safely keep your leftovers and what happens when we don’t love them enough to save them.
