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As my friend heads home to the Midwest for Thanksgiving dinner this year, she and her extended family of about 30 aunts, uncles and cousins will be sitting down for a dinner of roast turkey, ham, and all the fixings at around noon. After a leisurely afternoon of football watching and siestas, her family will reconvene for supper in the evening and feast on sandwiches from the still moist leftover turkey and ham before heading off to bed.
In my part of the world, Thanksgiving dinner actually occurs in the evening. Our mid-day meal, known as lunch, is a light affair consisting of cheese and fruit to save room for the gut-busting main event. If we are lucky, a post-dinner nap revives our appetites for a late night turkey sandwich snack, but more likely we save those leftovers for meals to be eaten through the days to follow.
So who has it right? Is it dinner and then supper, or lunch and then dinner? The truth is that neither is wrong. Dinner typically means the biggest meal of the day. Supper means the last meal of the day. So in the case of the Midwestern family, their turkey sandwich at 6 pm qualifies as supper. And my evening dinner qualifies as the biggest meal of the day.
In the spirit of getting the juiciest leftovers, eating supper is probably the right idea. When the leftovers are resurrected mere hours after coming out of the oven, the meat is probably still at its juicy best, not having had time to dry out overnight in the refrigerator. But for the rest of us lunch eaters who eat dinner in the evening, getting the most flavors out of your turkey without drying it out during reheating can be a challenge.
Assuming that one managed to keep the turkey moist during the initial roasting, reheating the leftovers can turn what might have been perfectly juicy meat to begin with into something not far removed from chewy cardboard. The trick then is to add moisture back in during the reheating process. This can be achieved any number of ways but each involve some sort of liquid, as in the broth in a turkey soup, or sauce, as in punched up turkey gravy.
Just like chicken soup, turkey soup can be a belly warming and healthful way to use up all of those leftovers. By putting the turkey into a broth, even unfortunate instances of overcooked breasts will go unnoticed when the shredded leftover turkey soaks up all that delightful, nourishing liquid. In addition, leftover veggies from the Thanksgiving feast such as green beans, corn, and unused cubed sweet potato can make their way into the pot for a day-after supper featuring everything but the kitchen sink.
Soup-like but on the heartier side, a turkey chili is another great way to keep the bird moist while reintroducing the turkey into a whole new meal. After a day of slaving in the kitchen, a day-after meal of turkey chili is refreshingly simple as most of the ingredients can come right from a can. Try sautéing peppers and onions with a diced green chilies or a minced chipotle pepper. Then add fire-roasted canned tomatoes, white beans, and the cooked chopped turkey. The result is a near effortless full flavor bowl of tender turkey leftovers.
The classic French supper dish, Croque Madame, is another great way to use up leftover ham, or turkey for a twist, by saucing up a sandwich. In its pure form the Croque Madame is a grilled ham and cheese sandwich topped with béchamel and a fried egg. Ham is the classic but I think turkey works just as well with the béchamel and the oozing yolk of the fried egg adding just enough richness and moisture to enhance the reheated meat.
In the same vein as the Croque, a turkey sandwich supper needs a little sauce to save it from turning into a rubberized, reheated disaster. Think about making “reubens,” swapping the corned beef for turkey and topping with Thousand Island dressing and sauerkraut.
Or use both your turkey and ham leftovers in one shot with a grilled turkey Cuban sandwich. Make a spicy mayonnaise out of chili sauce, lime juice, and a pinch of sugar mixed with store bought mayo. Spread the mixture on French bread and layer the leftover meats with a good melting cheese like gruyere. Weigh down the sandwich with those leftover canned green beans and corn and the result is a saucy, cheesy pressed sandwich using up all the best from the Thanksgiving meal.
When Thanksgiving dinner is lunch or dinner is supper, at some point those turkey leftovers will need to find new life in a new dish. Whether reheating a few hours after dinner for supper or a few days later for dinner, a sauce and some liquid will go a long way towards ensuring that that turkey is just as good the second time around.
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Succulent Post-Thanksgiving Supper
In my part of the world, Thanksgiving dinner actually occurs in the evening. Our mid-day meal, known as lunch, is a light affair consisting of cheese and fruit to save room for the gut-busting main event. If we are lucky, a post-dinner nap revives our appetites for a late night turkey sandwich snack, but more likely we save those leftovers for meals to be eaten through the days to follow.
So who has it right? Is it dinner and then supper, or lunch and then dinner? The truth is that neither is wrong. Dinner typically means the biggest meal of the day. Supper means the last meal of the day. So in the case of the Midwestern family, their turkey sandwich at 6 pm qualifies as supper. And my evening dinner qualifies as the biggest meal of the day.
In the spirit of getting the juiciest leftovers, eating supper is probably the right idea. When the leftovers are resurrected mere hours after coming out of the oven, the meat is probably still at its juicy best, not having had time to dry out overnight in the refrigerator. But for the rest of us lunch eaters who eat dinner in the evening, getting the most flavors out of your turkey without drying it out during reheating can be a challenge.
Assuming that one managed to keep the turkey moist during the initial roasting, reheating the leftovers can turn what might have been perfectly juicy meat to begin with into something not far removed from chewy cardboard. The trick then is to add moisture back in during the reheating process. This can be achieved any number of ways but each involve some sort of liquid, as in the broth in a turkey soup, or sauce, as in punched up turkey gravy.
Just like chicken soup, turkey soup can be a belly warming and healthful way to use up all of those leftovers. By putting the turkey into a broth, even unfortunate instances of overcooked breasts will go unnoticed when the shredded leftover turkey soaks up all that delightful, nourishing liquid. In addition, leftover veggies from the Thanksgiving feast such as green beans, corn, and unused cubed sweet potato can make their way into the pot for a day-after supper featuring everything but the kitchen sink.
Soup-like but on the heartier side, a turkey chili is another great way to keep the bird moist while reintroducing the turkey into a whole new meal. After a day of slaving in the kitchen, a day-after meal of turkey chili is refreshingly simple as most of the ingredients can come right from a can. Try sautéing peppers and onions with a diced green chilies or a minced chipotle pepper. Then add fire-roasted canned tomatoes, white beans, and the cooked chopped turkey. The result is a near effortless full flavor bowl of tender turkey leftovers.
The classic French supper dish, Croque Madame, is another great way to use up leftover ham, or turkey for a twist, by saucing up a sandwich. In its pure form the Croque Madame is a grilled ham and cheese sandwich topped with béchamel and a fried egg. Ham is the classic but I think turkey works just as well with the béchamel and the oozing yolk of the fried egg adding just enough richness and moisture to enhance the reheated meat.
In the same vein as the Croque, a turkey sandwich supper needs a little sauce to save it from turning into a rubberized, reheated disaster. Think about making “reubens,” swapping the corned beef for turkey and topping with Thousand Island dressing and sauerkraut.
Or use both your turkey and ham leftovers in one shot with a grilled turkey Cuban sandwich. Make a spicy mayonnaise out of chili sauce, lime juice, and a pinch of sugar mixed with store bought mayo. Spread the mixture on French bread and layer the leftover meats with a good melting cheese like gruyere. Weigh down the sandwich with those leftover canned green beans and corn and the result is a saucy, cheesy pressed sandwich using up all the best from the Thanksgiving meal.
When Thanksgiving dinner is lunch or dinner is supper, at some point those turkey leftovers will need to find new life in a new dish. Whether reheating a few hours after dinner for supper or a few days later for dinner, a sauce and some liquid will go a long way towards ensuring that that turkey is just as good the second time around.
Turkey and White Bean Chili
Made with chopped roasted turkey, vegetable oil, white onion, green bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, green chiles, diced tomatoes, white beans
Made with chopped roasted turkey, vegetable oil, white onion, green bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, green chiles, diced tomatoes, white beans
Serves/Makes: 4
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1/2 large white onion
- 1/2 green bell pepper
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1/4 cup canned minced green chiles
- 2 cans (14.5 ounce size) fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 can (15 ounce size) white beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 cups chopped roasted turkey
- 1 cup chicken or turkey broth
- salt and pepper
***Optional Garnish***
- grated Cheddar cheese
- sour cream
In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Finely chop onion and bell pepper. Add onion and pepper to oil and saute for about five minutes until both are softened. Add garlic and saute for another two minutes.
Add green chiles, chili powder, and cumin and stir to combine. Add canned tomatoes, beans, turkey and broth. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Let the mixture simmer for about 15 minutes until the liquid has reduced.
Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Top with optional cheese and sour cream to serve.
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©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/amy-powell/985-post-thanksgiving-supper/