The best recipe ideas for Christmas leftovers
Jazz up your Christmas leftovers with these fun and flavoursome recipes.
If you're left with a fridge full of leftover Christmas dinner, but can't bear to eat another bite of roasted turkey or gammon, then fear not - we've taken the hard work out for you and have compiled all our favourite leftovers recipes to transform your Christmas meal into something even further.
Don't let all your hard work go to waste and throw out any unused food - try our delicious and unique recipes like our turkey chilli, roast potato bubble and squeak, or a Christmas pudding ice cream for a twist on the classic.
Turkey Coq au Vin
No more boring curries post Christmas - this leftover turkey idea is perfect for those chilly, winter nights. We particularly love the crispy nut dumplings on top!
Recipe: Turkey Coq au Vin
Cranberry-Glazed Chicken Wings
If you always have leftover cranberry sauce, this is the perfect way to use it up - picky dinners here we come!
Recipe: Cranberry-Glazed Chicken Wings
Boxing Day Focaccia
Leftover roasted veg? This is easily the best way to use them up! It even has blue cheese dotted throughout. Drool..
Recipe: Boxing Day Focaccia
Leftover Turkey and Ham Pie
This delicious pie is very quick to assemble and is a great way to use up leftover cooked meat.
Recipe: Leftover Turkey and Ham Pie
Turkey & Squash Sri-Lankan Inspired Curry
Creamy coconut and hearty squash make the base of this fragrant turkey curry - ready in just over an hour.
Roast Potato & Smoked Salmon Gnocchi
Homemade gnocchi is so much better than shop-bought and the combination of creamy gnocchi with smoked salmon is heavenly.
Christmas Cake Strudel
Dare we say this is even more delicious than Christmas cake? Plus, it has a brandy cream ice cream on the side..
Recipe: Christmas Cake Strudel
Christmas Pudding Blondies
Fudgy blondies are our weakness and these are made using leftover Christmas pudding and zesty clementines.
Recipe: Christmas Pudding Blondies
Turkey chilli
Recipe: Turkey chilli
Rich and full of flavour, this turkey chilli is sure to become a family favourite.
Turkey curry
Recipe: Turkey curry
This turkey curry is ideal for leftovers and comes together quickly with store cupboard ingredients.
Turkey bubble and squeak
Recipe: Turkey bubble and squeak
Love your turkey leftovers with this comforting bubble and squeak recipe.
Vietnamese turkey noodle soup
Recipe: Vietnamese turkey noodle soup
This restorative broth is fast to prepare, perfect for using up leftover turkey, and sure to warm up grey and chilly days.
Quick turkey and pork stir-fry
Recipe: Quick turkey and pork stir-fry
This healthy dish will be on the table in 15 minutes!
Turkey tagine
Recipe: Turkey tagine
This quick and easy tagine is very adaptable – try using fish or pork fillet next time (adapting cooking times as needed).
Turkey and cashew nut stir-fry
Recipe: Turkey and cashew nut stir-fry
Lean turkey meat is a great choice for those watching their weight, and it tastes great with salty cashew nuts.
Turkey, pepper and haricot casserole
Recipe: Turkey, pepper and haricot casserole
Use lean cuts of turkey for this satisfying dish with dried beans, peppers and courgettes.
Bubble and squeak cakes
Recipe: Bubble and squeak cakes
Bubble and squeak is great for using up leftover cooked meats and these are truly delicious.
Curried bubble & squeak toastie
If you find yourself with leftover roasties after Christmas (lucky you), then try this curried bubble and squeak toastie that uses up leftover roasties!
Recipe: Curried bubble & squeak toastie
Roasted vegetable frittata
Recipe: Roasted vegetable frittata
This quick and tasty frittata is a great way to use up leftover roasted vegetables.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
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