Leftover Turkey Ideas: White, Black, and Green Chili

Thanksgiving is still several weeks away but I have already been cooking a few turkey recipes for clients.  That means I have also already been coming up with ideas for leftover turkey recipes.  This one is my spin on a classic - White, Black, and Green Chili.

I cooked this one in a Dutch oven over direct heat on a Big Green Egg kamado grill but you could cook it on a stove top in a heavy bottomed pot.  When using the grill, keep the lid closed when not stirring or whisking to keep the temperature under control.

White, Black, and Green Chili

Published 11/6/2017

This smooth and mildly spicy turkey chili is loaded with white beans, black beans, and Hatch green chiles.

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 stalks celery, washed and finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon Ba'Cock Seasoning recipe, divided
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 quart turkey stock
• 2 cups chopped turkey
• 15 oz can Bush's Seasoned Black Beans, drained
• 15.8 oz can Bush's Great Northern beans, drained
• 1/4 cup roasted red bell pepper, finely diced
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon Albukirky Green Chile Seasoning
• sea salt to taste (about 1 teaspoon)
• 2 cups heavy cream

Instructions

1. Preheat grill to 325-350°f.  Add the Dutch oven to preheat once the grill is stable.
2. Add 3 tablespoons of butter to the Dutch oven and saute the onion, celery, and carrots until tender, about 5-8 minutes.  Season with about 1 teaspoon of the Ba'Cock Seasoning while they saute.
3. Make a roux by adding the remaining butter and once melted, sprinkle in the flour while whisking continuously.   Now slowly add the turkey stock while whisking until fully combined.  
4. Add the turkey, black beans, Northern beans, bell pepper, cumin, Albukirky Green Chile Seasoning, and the rest of the Ba'Cock Seasoning.  Allow to simmer until thick and bubbly, about 15-20 minutes.  
5. Remove the Dutch oven from heat and stir in the heavy cream.  Taste for seasoning and add sea salt to taste.  

Yield: 6 servings

The base of this great chili is a homemade turkey stock.  You can use store bought chicken stock but the turkey stock really sets it apart.  

The turkey carcass that I used for this stock was from this Dry Brined, Fire Roasted Turkey Breast with Maple Honey Bourbon Glaze.  I cooked this on my SABER® 1500 Elite SSE (sponsor) on Sunday.

I seasoned the carcass, some carrots, celery, and a quartered onion with some more Ba'Cock seasoning.

I topped that off with water, brought it up to temp and then let it simmer for a couple of hours.  The key is an active simmer but never boiling.  Boiling makes it cloudy.  I strained it but didn't skim the fat off because 1) there was hardly any and 2) I wanted the fat in my chili.

I make it a point to use my Craycort cast iron grates when using a Dutch oven on kamado grills for 2 reasons.  First, they are sturdy enough to hold the weight.  I had a mild stainless grate warp from using a Dutch oven a few years ago.  Second, this is a camp style Dutch oven and the flat grate bars accommodate the Dutch oven legs whereas they slip off of round grate bars.

This specific Dutch oven is a #12 Lodge camp style that my parents bought me eons ago for Christmas or a birthday.  Since Christmas is coming up, just remember that if you have a cook to buy for - cast iron cookware makes great presents.

Making the roux and adding the stock requires the kamado grill lid to be open.  That can jump the cooking temperature up so during this time, I completely shut down the bottom to stave off the lower air flow.  Just don't forget to open it back up when you are done with this step.

I'll put the lid on at this point just long enough to bring it back to a simmer quickly.  Otherwise I leave the lid off to aid in thickening the liquid.

Now I just cook it until the base gets thick and bubbly like this.  It should seem like the bubbles are starting to struggle to pop through the surface.  It needs to be thick because we're still going to add some heavy cream once it comes off.

You can do lots of things for garnish.  Drop a corn bread muffin in there.  A dollop of Mexican crema works nice, especially a chipotle crema. Some chopped cilantro or green onion works. Those multi-colored tortilla strips are a great addition too. 

What are your favorite leftover turkey ideas?  I also like Kentucky Hot Brown sandwiches or turkey enchiladas.  Our family reunion used to always be the weekend after Thanksgiving and it wasn't a reunion until I had turkey tetrazzini.