Wednesday, December 2, 2009

How long to you keep Leftover Turkey?

I was given strict orders to leave the leftover turkey alone, no cooking it up into casseroles or soups. Hubby insists that leftover turkey needs to be eaten slowly over the course of the next 2 weeks. TWO WEEKS!?!?! I don't think so, I told him he had ONE week to get his fill in then I was using it up, he has one more day. And as long as no one tells him I will let you all in on a little secret- I used some of his leftover turkey to make this-

I have been wanting to try this, I had actually been planning on making it with chicken but then remembered I had LOTS of leftover ready-to-go turkey in my fridge, begging to be used. And what Hubby doesn't know, won't hurt him :)

Turkey Basil Pate

Ingred;
1c. cubed white turkey meat/ or chicken
1/2c. mayo
1t. Mrs. Dash onion and herb seasoning
1t. onion powder
1/4t. each- salt & pepper
1t. minced basil

Put all into a food processor and blend until smooth. Line a small bowl with plastic wrap, press the mixture into the bowl, wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Tip it out of the bowl onto your serving dish and remove the plastic wrap, serve with crackers or toast points.

You can definitely trade out the turkey for chicken and all the seasonings are optional, you can sub other things or use only the salt and pepper. This was very quick, easy, super good and our little secret ;)

How long do you keep leftover Turkey around? What about leftovers in general?

18 comments:

Lee said...

I say 4 days. Then toss it. Of course, mine stays there until mold grows out of it, but that's just me.

Unknown said...

I think a week is too long, but maybe I'm in the minority? I pitched mine this morning. There wasn't a ton left, but...too scared to eat it!

Liz Mays said...

2 weeks? NO WAY! My husband told me today to throw ours out. I stopped eating it after the 3rd day though. I take no chances.

Menopausal New Mom said...

You are so creative! That looks delicious! I think keeping the turkey around for two weeks is really pushing it. I'm thinking 4 or 5 days tops!

My rule - When in doubt, throw it out!

Unknown said...

Oh dear sweet friend...any longer than a few days it's pretty risky unless you've frozen it. After Sunday, the dog got the leftovers!

Willoughby said...

I agree, two weeks is too long. I try to use leftovers within four or five days. I hate to throw food away, but I'd rather do that than have anyone get sick.

The turkey basil pate looks great!

Chicago Mom said...

I'm with the others, 4-5 days is the max, especially if it's meat. I learned my lesson the hard way one time with some bad pork chops. NOT fun, although I learned that our local hospital has a lovely ER.

Tracie said...

I pitched mine on Sunday. We're not big on leftovers.

Lissaloo said...

I have all kinds of back up now! Thanks!
Hubby hates me to throw out leftovers, after about 3 days if they aren't eaten I usually toss them. But he will insist they are fine and will eat some of them, it's his stomach I guess :)

Raoulysgirl said...

We tossed ours on Sunday. There wasn't much left!

This is kind of a take on chicken salad...at least MY chicken salad. I don't put grapes or anything strange in mine, so this is close. Parmesan cheese would add an awesome flavor (I know...'cuz it's in my chicken salad! LOL!)!!!

betty said...

my mom had some "strict" rules about food and food safety that I took to heart and so far we never had food poisoning but she said after 3 days things needed to be used up or frozen so if I had made a turkey that's what would have happened; what wasn't used would have been frozen after the third day. On other hand, that turkey basil dish looked scrumptious

betty

Monica H said...

I read somewhere that Thanksgiving leftovers should be eaten up by the folowing Sunday (which is 3 days).

We usually keep our stuff for about 4-5 days. I've kept things longer in the fridge but it ends up going in the trash.

That being said we dinished leftovers a couple days ago with the exception of the stuffing which we finished up tonight.

JennyMac said...

we are a non-leftover eating family. (Well, my Hub and I) we kept no turkey after one day. Two weeks? Oh boy that seems like 12 days too long. LOL.

The Mommyologist said...

I like to use leftover turkey to substitute for chicken in a chicken corn chowder recipe I make. Works just as well and is so good on a chilly day!

Kim said...

I love the turkey pate. I bet it was great on crackers :D Your husband must love turkey sandwiches ;D I bet turkey would last the week in a fridge, but I think I kept mine about 5 days.

Holly Lefevre said...

I am not a fan of leftovers (there are exceptions - somethings, like cold pizza and sweet potato casserole are better the next day). I am done with turkey after day 3 or 4, but must admit I just pitched th last remaining bits - no one has touched it in days...and it was about to get lost in th eabyss of the frig.
Recipe looks great!

AudreyO said...

Because I'm food handling certified here in California, the answer is no more than 3 days. I love leftovers, they're great to take to work the next day, but I really do try to make enough for dinner and then one left over lunch or dinner and then it's history.

whatthehekozit said...

Hey,
What do you think about making a turkey soup that's cooked for a LOOONNNGG time if the turkey is 10 days old? Does that exceed the peas porridge hot 9 days old or not? Seriously, if it's cooked a long time, doesn't this destroy any harmful bacteria? Kind of like boiling water for 5 minutes if it is contaminated?
Thanks for your opinions!

Thank you!!!

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