Hunting for Tasty Wild Turkey Recipes?

The 2021 turkey season is coming to an end across the country – but the fun and community doesn’t have to stop quite yet. If you love to turkey hunt, chances are you have lots of fresh turkey in the freezer after hunting season. Here are a few of our favorite recipes to try that are full of flavor and simple to create.

Wild Turkey Leg Gumbo by Dave Campbell at NRA Family

If you’re looking for a delicious recipe that can feed several people, and use more than just the turkey breast, this Wild Turkey Leg Gumbo is the recipe for you.

Ingredients List:

1 1/8 cups vegetable oil

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

1 pound smoked sausage, cut into 1/2-inch slices

3 bay leaves

6 cups turkey stock

3 1/2 cups coarsely chopped leftover turkey

1 tablespoon filé powder (If you like your gumbo really spicy, you can double this)

1 3/4 cups uncooked long-grained and wild rice

2 cups water

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup chopped green onions

Recipe Instructions:

Stir oil and flour together in a large, heavy-bottomed pot—Campbell uses a 5-quart Dutch oven to spread out the heat and keep the roux from burning—over medium heat. Cook, stirring slowly and constantly to keep the roux from burning, until the mixture becomes a dark chocolate brown, about 25 minutes. In the meantime, put the turkey stock in a slow cooker or crock pot and begin to heat it slowly. Add the onions, celery, bell peppers and the roux all at once to the turkey stock, and continue to stir until vegetables are wilted, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and cayenne pepper.

Stir in the smoked sausage and bay leaves, and continue to stir for 3 to 4 minutes. Put on high heat until the gumbo comes to a soft boil; then reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. Stir in the turkey and the filé powder; simmer for 2 hours.

About 30 minutes before serving, bring the rice and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, and the liquid has been absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes. If you have one, a rice cooker helps a lot and does the job much quicker.

Skim off any fat that rises to the surface of the gumbo; remove from heat. Stir in the parsley and green onions. Remove the bay leaves, and serve the gumbo in deep bowls with rice.

Whiskey Glazed Wild Turkey Breast by Georgia Pellegrini

What’s better than a wild turkey recipe? A wild turkey recipe that uses whiskey. Now that’s a dish we can get behind.

Ingredients List:

2 tablespoons butter

1 turkey breast, skin on and brined

Salt and black pepper

1 cup turkey stock

4 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons honey

6 tablespoons whiskey

1 tablespoon grated orange rind

2 tablespoons orange juice

½ teaspoon cayenne

Recipe Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In an ovenproof skillet or Dutch oven, heat two tablespoons of butter over medium-high until it begins to bubble. Sprinkle the skin of the turkey breast with salt and pepper. Place the breast skin-side down into the butter, sprinkle the underside with salt and pepper, and let the skin brown for about 5 minutes. Turn it over and add the stock. Cover with foil or a lid and transfer to the oven.

In a separate skillet, melt the 4 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Whisk in the honey until well incorporated. Add the whiskey along with the orange juice, orange rind and cayenne and whisk together. Set on low heat and let the mixture reduce by half. Turn off the heat and set aside.

Once the turkey has cooked for 10 minutes, brush with half of the glaze and cover with the foil. 20 minutes later, brush the remaining glaze on, leave the foil off and increase the temperature to 400 degrees F. Cook for 15 - 20 minutes more, or until the internal temperature reads 140-150 degrees F.

Remove the turkey from the oven. Cover with foil and let sit for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Wild Turkey Poppers by National Wild Turkey Federation

Bring the heat with this wild turkey recipe. This one is great for football Sundays or cookouts. See below for a new twist on the classic jalapeno popper.

Ingredients:

Wild Turkey Breast

12 jalapeno peppers, halved and seeds removed

Italian dressing

Bacon

Cream cheese

Recipe Instructions:

Marinate a wild turkey breast in your favorite brand of Italian dressing for 24 hours.

Cut the turkey meat into pieces that will fit easily inside the pepper halves.

Spread cream cheese inside the pepper halves and place the turkey strips on top of the cream cheese.

Wrap a bacon strip around the outside and secure with a toothpick.

Grill until the bacon is done.

Yummy tip: Use banana peppers as a less tongue-torching alternative!

Turkey Recipe for Your Hunting Dog: Limited Ingredient Formula

We couldn’t include all these tasty recipes for humans without thinking about our four-legged friends. Our Limited Ingredient Formula dog food features easily-digestible ingredients including turkey meal, rice, oatmeal, peas, beet pulp, chicken fat, and natural flavors plus the proper amounts of vitamins and minerals for pure satisfaction and results. Plus, it is built with the same protein and fat requirements as our Premium Formula 26/18, and it includes no corn, wheat or soy.