Comment from mikemax
Time: October 28, 2009, 11:39 am

A lot of Thanksgiving food–turkey, especially–tends to get wasted because people don’t know how to deal with it, or just don’t do it.

In the evening, when I’m cleaning the kitchen, I cut and tear all of the meat off the bones. It’s easy to remove the breast whole (or nearly so) simply by running a sharp knife around the breast bone. I decide what I want to keep for sandwiches and another meal and refrigerate it.

Then, I cut or tear all of the remaining meat into cubes or bite-size pieces. I use zip-loc freezer bags to package this in 2 cup bags (most recipes call for 2 cups, but if you normally use less or more, go ahead). I suck the air out of the bag with a straw as I am sealing it. Then I freeze the meat for future use. It’s good in any recipe calling for turkey or chicken…and it makes GREAT enchiladas!

The bones and skin go into the biggest pot I’ve got. (Sometimes I do this the next morning). I cover it with water, add onion, garlic and celery, and simmer for soup. When it is done, I let it cool and pour the broth into a big bowl (leaving the residue in the bottom of the pot). I skim the fat, which can either be done by refrigerating it or by using a gravy separator. And I pick the bones…one of the more disgusting jobs, but you’ll be amazed how much meat is there. Then I make a pot of soup to eat over the weekend. Leftovers go in the freezer in the appropriate quantities to be made into fresh soup as needed.

This is like money in the bank. You will probably end up with enough food for several meals. Somehow, I ended up with a 22 lb. turkey last year for 3 people. I had a lot of 2 cup baggies of turkey–just ate the last one last month!

Note: when I was growing up, we just ate turkey until we were so sick of it we didn’t want it until next Thanksgiving. And my mother never made soup. I actually look forward to having a freezer full of cubed turkey and soup broth, ready to make into my favorite recipe.

Now, here may be the best tip of all–freeze the bones or anything else you can’t put down a garbage disposal. On garbage day, put the bag of frozen bones and skin in the garbage. No smell!

Comment from Paula Wethington
Time: October 28, 2009, 12:38 pm

I have one of those hand pump vacuum sealers – it requires special bags but is just the thing for meat. You absolutely do have to divide and freeze cooked meat right away to be able to use it later. But most of you are already used to splitting up and freezing portions from a family pack of pork chops or a five-pound roll of hamburger when you get home from the grocery store.

Another trick is divide and freeze as many of the leftover desserts and breads as possible. I sliced and froze half a cake last week – my daughter then took those slices back with her to college.

And when I’m making homemade bread I freeze half the loaf for another time.

Comment from mikemax
Time: October 28, 2009, 1:05 pm

One last thought on the bird–use some of the broth you’ve made for soup to make extra gravy to eat with the leftovers. Just use flour and water thickening. No, it isn’t as good as gravy made with good pan drippings, but it’s mega-better than anything that comes out of a jar, can or envelope…and it’s FREE. I usually freeze a couple of jars of the broth to use for gravy later, too. Then I use the rest to make soup. I don’t have any specific recipe for soup–if I’ve got leftover pasta or rice, it becomes turkey noodle or turkey with rice; leftover veggies (with maybe a carrot from the fridge) make it turkey vegetable. Your soup meals can be basically free, or close to it. No recipes needed!