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–+ servings
Overhead shot of a diced turkey taco with rice and bowls of toppings to the side
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Leftover Turkey Tacos

Leftover turkey tacos are a fun and easy way to use up leftover Thanksgiving turkey and give it a whole new flavor! Just a few ingredients needed and ready in 10 minutes!
Prep Time2 minutes
Cook Time8 minutes
Total Time10 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 cups leftover chopped turkey (skin removed)
  • 1 ½ tablespoons taco seasoning
  • 1 cup steamed brown or white rice (optional)

Optional toppings:

  • Shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, chopped cilantro, sliced avocado or guac, salsa or pico de gallo, Greek yogurt or sour cream, hot sauce, pickled red onions, fresh lime juice, etc.

Instructions

  • Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.
  • Add the turkey and stir to heat through, about 2 minutes. Add the taco seasoning and ¼ cup of water. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 5 minutes, until the turkey is well seasoned and the liquid is absorbed.
  • Serve the turkey and rice in hard or soft taco shells with your favorite toppings. (And see below for notes on extra add-ins like beans or veggies.)

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Notes

Turkey: The turkey for this recipe needs to be cooked, so please plan accordingly. (The idea is this is an easy recipe for leftover turkey from Thanksgiving or the holidays, but just wanted to point out that it needs to be already cooked and ready to use.)
Taco seasoning: Homemade taco seasoning is super easy to make and so much more flavorful, but of course, store-bought is fine, too.
Taco shells: You can use hard or soft taco shells. I prefer the stand-and-stuff taco shells because they are larger and easier to fill.
Rice: The rice is optional, but makes these a bit more filling. Brown rice is what I use, but white rice is fine, too. It needs to be cooked and ready to use for this recipe, so please plan accordingly.
Other add-ins:
  • You could add some onion, bell pepper, zucchini or wilted spinach to give these tacos a veggie boost. Sauté any vegetables in the pan before adding the turkey to warm through.
  • Use black beans along with the rice in this recipe. Or spread some warmed refried beans in your taco shell before adding the rice and turkey.
  • Add in some corn, whether fresh, canned or frozen (thawed).
  • Add in a small (4.5 oz.) can of diced green chilies with the turkey to warm through.
Leftovers: You can save any extra turkey filling and rice that hasn’t been used. It’ll keep, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. You can reheat it in the microwave and use to stuff some freshly warmed taco shells or to stuff into wraps or soft corn or tortilla shells. Or just serve it over some steamed rice for a little taco bowl.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 148kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 301mg
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