Turkey Stock: A Perfect Substitute

If you're like me, you've been standing in the kitchen for the past two days. You're ready to take time off from the stove and hibernate with your turkey sandwiches and pecan pie for as long as you can stand it. We totally understand. But there's one thing left to do and in a month or so when you're in the thick of soup-simmering season, you'll be glad you went this extra mile.

Once you and your family have whittled down, used, and abused that turkey in every way possible, we invite you to turn on that burner once more. Don't take that carcass and toss it in the trash. Take it and turn up the heat! Honestly, is there any other occasion where you know you're going to have turkey bones lying around? Turkey bones perfect for making stock? Stock that would be perfect to use whenever a recipe asks for chicken broth!? We thought you'd see it our way.

Basic Turkey Stock
Makes about 3 quarts
1 turkey carcass, stripped of the meat, if possible
1 raw turkey neck, if you have one reserved from yesterday's bird
1 onion, halved
2 carrots, chopped in half
3 celery stalks, halved
2 cloves garlic
1/2 bunch parsley stems
cracked black pepper
2 bay leaves

1. Toss the turkey carcass and neck in a big stock pot along with the rest of the ingredients above.

2. Fill the pot with about a gallon of cold water, then turn heat to low and simmer for an hour or two or even up to four hours.

3. Strain the broth and cool to room temperature before putting in the fridge or freezer. The broth will keep for two or three days in the refrigerator or in the freezer for six months.

Need a few tips for storing and freezing stocks or soups? Click here for pointers!

Tips on Freezing, Storing, and Reheating Soup

To help prepare for the upcoming soup swap, we've compiled a list of tips about freezing and labeling soup. We hope you find these savvy soup solutions useful not only for the swap but for any future soups you freeze.

Chilling Soup

To cool down your soup, you can place the uncovered pot in a sink or another bowl filled with ice water. Stirring occasionally will help it cool faster. Don't put hot or warm soup directly into the refrigerator or freezer.

Once it’s relatively cool, you can place it into the refrigerator to chill. Any excess oil will rise to the top and solidify making it easier for you to skim it off before freezing.

Freezing & Storing Soup

First of all, the swap requires six individual quart containers. Dividing a soup into single quart containers works well in any case, because it freezes evenly and more quickly. It's also great because you can pull out a single quart for a meal and still have more frozen soup left in the fridge for another day.

1 quart = 2 pints = 4 cups = 32 fluid ounces

Once chilled, quickly transfer the soup into your containers. Ideally, you’ll want to use moisture-proof, vapor-proof, freezer-safe vessels to minimize freezer burn, avoid leaks, and prevent the transference of any other smells from your freezer. In this case, we picked up 42 ounce packs of Rubbermaid TakeAlongs. Each pack costs about $3.69 and includes 5 sets of containers with lids. These are a little larger than 1 quart, but that's okay since you want a bit of extra room. You could also use Gladware or any other brand available. Even some chinese takeout containers are 1 quart, so if you've got six lying around in your cabinets, you're set.

When freezing any liquid you want at least ¼ inch of extra space in the container to allow the liquid to expand as it freezes. (If you were to use bags, you want to make sure you get as much air out of the bag as possible, but, again, have room for it to expand).

You can also use jars, but it's imperative you have a good deal of space left in the jar so when the soup expands, it doesn't break the glass. You'll want these standing upright in your freezer to avoid leaking.

For an extra airtight seal, you can also take a piece of saran wrap and flatten it over the top of the container before securing a tight lid.

Labeling Soup

To label your containers you can get creative or just write the name of the soup directly on the container or on freezer tape adhered to the lid. It’s up to you. In any case, be sure to include the date the soup is placed into the freezer. For the swap, it’s helpful to label it vegetarian if it is and include any ingredients that could be an issue with allergies.

Reheating Soup

To defrost the soup, never do so at room temperature. Instead, completely thaw it in your refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop in a sauce pan or pot.

Cream-based soups don’t freeze as well as others and can separate when being reheated. If this happens you can whisk vigorously to remix or blend it in a blender for a minute or two. Frozen potato soups can change in texture, but not so much in flavor. Pasta in soups tends to be softer when reheated. One way to guard against this is to undercook the pasta by a couple of minutes or make the soup sans noodles and add the dried pasta when you reheat.

Make sure to enjoy your soup within 2-3 months, otherwise you risk losing flavor.

If we missed anything or you have any other pointers for freezing and storing soup, please leave a comment!

Chicken & Sausage Gumbo

Who'd have thought it would take three months for a girl from Baton Rouge to post GUMBO on her soup blog?? I'm embarrassed it's taken so long, but here it is! Finally!

My plan was to feature Seafood Gumbo at the end of December because we have it every year at my mom's house for Christmas dinner. And every time I go home I have to eat at The Chimes--I think they have the best Seafood Gumbo in town, besides mom's of course!

But let's face it, seafood is expensive, especially up here in DC, away from the Gulf Coast where shrimp are jumping around like water on a pancake griddle! My wallet just won't let me make it this week, but I've made my second favorite gumbo of all time: It's Chicken and Sausage Gumbo!

Interested in delving a little further into the history of gumbo? Check here for more detailed information. I love Chuck Taggart's site called the gumbo pages. He's got a wealth of excellent information plus it's fun to read!

Most Louisiana recipes begin like this: "First you make a roux..." For gumbo, I like to make a dark roux. And you can't burn it or else you'll have to start over! This is the foundation for the gumbo so take your time! Like my mom says, you've got to keep stirring it and bring it to the point where it's almost about to burn, then it's just about perfect. About the color of dark milk chocolate. Or coffee with a touch of cream. Speaking of stirring, I got a roux spoon last year for Christmas! It's squared off on the edges so you can get to the roux in the sloped curves of your pot! Check out my spoon and note the evolution of my roux in the photos to the left.

I promise you'll love it! Special thanks to Jennifer at Weekly Dish for the inspiration!

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
Serves 8 (at least)

1 small chicken, quartered and seasoned with salt and pepper
1 lb andouille or any smoked sausage (I used turkey sausage!) sliced

1 cup flour
1 cup vegetable oil

2 medium yellow onions, medium dice
2 bell peppers, medium dice
4 stalks celery, medium dice
6 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (careful!)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried parsley
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper

1 1/2 quarts water
2 chicken bouillon cubes
OR chicken stock
4 Tbsp hot sauce (I love Crystal!)
4 green onions, thinly sliced

Boiled White Rice, about 1/2 cup per person

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and sear the chicken in vegetable oil until golden brown, about 8 minutes total. Remove the chicken from the pot. Brown the sausage the same way and remove.

2. Add flour, stirring constantly over medium heat with a wooden spoon until the roux is the color of dark milk chocolate. Scrape the sides and the bottom frequently, because it will burn easily! The roux should take about 20 minutes total. If you burn it, there's no way around it. You must start over!! This is the hardest part!

3. Once you've got the roux chocolate brown, add all the vegetables and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the herbs and spices and season with more salt and pepper. Slowly add the water and crumbled bouillion cubes (or chicken stock) while stirring constantly to avoid lumps.

4. Add the chicken and sausage and bring to a boil, then simmer for about 2 hours, skimming away any excess fat that rises to the top of the gumbo. When the meat is falling off the bones, remove the skin and bones from the pot and make sure the chicken is broken up into smaller pieces. If you like your gumbo thicker, just let it simmer a while longer to let it reduce a bit.

5. Stir in the sliced green onions and serve over boiled white rice. I like less rice, more broth and sometimes I like no rice! It's up to you!

6. Serve with hot sauce, Tony Chachere's cajun seasoning, and file powder.