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After the holiday, transform your leftover Thanksgiving turkey into this Leftover Turkey Salad made with the yummy fall flavors of fresh apple and pecans.

This recipe is very similar to a traditional Waldorf Salad but is a complete meal!

leftover turkey salad on a piece of lettuce
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In a little over a week from now, you’re gonna have leftover turkey. Its almost a given. When I host any meal, I always produce more than enough food for everyone. I would rather have leftovers than run out of food while my table is full of a bunch of hungry people. Thanksgiving leftovers are usually my favorite! Not only do I like to recreate that wonderful Thanksgiving meal over and over again, but I love to make other delicious meals like turkey and wild rice soup as well as this turkey salad.

ingredients for leftover turkey salad on a cutting board

I added a few ingredients that are perfect for a fall recipe including fresh apple and pecans. You can definitely moisten everything up with mayo, but I prefer to use greek yogurt (or even a combo of yogurt and mayo) because its healthier but also gives it a nice zip. The apple with the celery give the turkey salad a fantastic crunch. You can totally enjoy this stuff in a sandwich but I prefer to have it with crackers for a perfect little lunch. Enjoy!

leftover turkey salad and crackers on a plate

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Leftover Turkey Salad

Prep15 minutes
Total15 minutes
Servings 4 servings
After the holiday, transform your leftover Thanksgiving turkey into this Leftover Turkey Salad made with the yummy fall flavors of fresh apple and pecans.

Equipment

Ingredients 

  • 4 cups cooked turkey chopped
  • 3 green onions with the whites and start of the greens sliced
  • 2 stalks celery chopped
  • 2 sprigs parsley stems removed, diced
  • 1 small apple chopped (skin on, honey crisp recommended)
  • 1/4 cup raw pecans
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme if using dried, reduce amount by half
  • 1 cup greek yogurt or mayonnaise or a combination of both
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Instructions 

  • Combine all ingredients except the yogurt/mayonnaise in large bowl and stir to combine.
  • Add yogurt and/or mayonnaise and mix well.
  • Season with salt and pepper, if desired.

Nutrition

Calories: 199kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 27g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 74mg, Sodium: 147mg, Potassium: 418mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 285IU, Vitamin C: 5.2mg, Calcium: 83mg, Iron: 1.1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Did you make this? Leave me a comment below

Hi! I’m Krissy.

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19 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    My turkey salad contains chopped toasted walnuts, sliced green grapes, diced celery and leaves (lots), minced shallots, lemon zest and juice, Kewpie mayonnaise, sumac and za’atar. I fill lettuce leaves and roll them up so bread is unnecessary, although it’s terrific on a seedy rye or whole wheat bread, too. Sometimes I change the spices around by using dried tarragon and celery seeds, in which case I use dried cranberries instead of grapes and orange zest and juice instead of lemon.

  2. Super idea with the left over turkey! I also add pecans and dried cranberries. It just gives the salad a little sweet zing.

    1. Doh! You are right. I added them to the ingredient list. So sorry about that! The nuts could be considered optional, but I definitely like the crunch.

  3. 5 stars
    I thought this was a great and easy recipe. One thing my wife and I didn’t care for was the thyme. Next time I make this we are leaving the thyme out. I also added some white and red grapes cut in half and about a tablespoon of celery seed. We will make this again.

  4. 5 stars
    This looks like a perfect way to use leftover turkey! I love that it has apples, I bet they add a yummy sweetness and crunch.