Instant Pot Turkey Giblet and Wing Broth. How do I make turkey broth as I prepare for my Thanksgiving dinner? I pressure cook the neck and giblets from my turkey, and add in some extra turkey wings.
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Here's another quick Thanksgiving week recipe, sharing one of my key prep steps - making Turkey broth.
I need lots of broth for Thanksgiving gravy and stuffing. Sure, I could make chicken broth, or wimp out and buy it at the store. On the one hand, using chicken feels like cheating. On the other hand…how do I get a batch of turkey broth without cooking a turkey first?
If I'm just making gravy, I use the neck and giblets - the parts stuffed into the cavity of the bird - so they don't go to waste. But that's not enough turkey parts to flavor a big batch of broth. The penny dropped when I saw the pack of turkey wings at my grocery store. Wings are cheap(ish), and mostly skin and bones, exactly what I need to bulk up the giblets and make a big pot of broth.
So, here is the turkey broth I'm making *before* Thanksgiving. Which brings me to my annual reminder - save the bones from your Thanksgiving turkey to make another big batch of broth for after thanksgiving turkey soup.
Ingredients Notes and Substitutions
- No giblets? No worries. Skip them, or add an extra turkey wing.
- Turkey wing substitute #1: Turkey Necks. If you're lucky enough to have a store that sells turkey necks, get extra necks instead of the wings. They work great, and are usually cheaper.
- Turkey wing substitute #2: Turkey Drumsticks. If you want to go with turkey drumsticks instead of the wings, that works too - but I like the higher ratio of bone and skin to meat that I get on the wings; it gives the broth more body. (That is, more gelatin - it comes from the connective tissue in the wings and the skin.)
- Onion, Carrot, Celery, Bay Leaf: Some or all of these are optional, except for the onion. The trio of onion, carrot, and celery make up the vegetables in my favorite Bread Stuffing Recipe, and give a nice flavor to the broth or gravy. But, if all you have is an onion, that's enough for a good broth.
- Fine sea salt: You can skip the salt if you want, but broth is bland without it. I use fine sea salt because it's what I keep in my salt pig in my kitchen, but you can use Kosher salt (3 teaspoons) or table salt (1 ½ teaspoons) instead.
Tips and Tricks
- Because of the long cooking time, these giblets are not really useable in gravy. I'm fine with that - I'll make my gravy and just skip the giblets. If you want to use the giblets in gravy, cook the broth at high pressure for 30 minutes.
- Small batch: If you only need 4 cups of broth, you can go with the neck and giblets from a turkey. (Or 2 pounds of wings).
- Large batch: Scale up to 12 cups of water by adding an extra onion and pound of wings. Scale up to 16 cups of water by doubling the recipe - but you'll need an 8-quart Instant Pot. Also, sub in an extra pound of wings instead of doubling the giblets, unless you're lucky enough to have two turkeys.
- If you want extra flavor, roast the chicken wings before making the broth. Put them on a rimmed baking sheet and roast in a 425°F oven for 45 minutes, turning them over halfway through. This should brown the skin on the wings, which adds a nice roasted turkey flavor to the broth. (Do I do this? Not often. Most of the time I toss the raw turkey in the pot and pressure cook everything.)
Instant Pot Turkey Giblet and Wing Broth
- Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
- Yield: 8 cups of broth 1x
Description
Instant Pot Turkey Giblet and Wing Broth. How do I make turkey broth before Thanksgiving? I pressure cook the neck and giblets from my turkey, and add in some extra turkey wings.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- Turkey neck, heart, gizzard, butt (Do not use the liver)
- 2 pounds turkey wings
- 1 large onion, halved
- 1 stalk celery, broken to fit in the pot
- 1 large carrot, scrubbed
- 8 cups water
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Brown the turkey giblets: Heat the vegetable oil in an Instant Pot set to sauté mode adjusted to high (medium-high heat in a stovetop pressure cooker). When the oil starts shimmering, add the turkey giblets - the neck, heart, gizzard, and butt. Cook without moving until browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes.
- Everything in the pot: Add the turkey wings, onion, celery, and carrot to the pot. Pour in the water, sprinkle in the salt, and float the bay leaves on top.
- Pressure cook for 60 minutes with a Natural Release: Lock the lid on the pot and cook at high pressure for 60 minutes. (That's "Manual" or Pressure Cook mode in an Instant Pot.) Let the pressure come down naturally, about 40 minutes. (If you're in a hurry, you can quick release any remaining pressure after 20 minutes.)
- Strain and save: Scoop out as much of the solids as you can with a slotted spoon and discard. (They've given their all to the broth - though I do occasionally save a wing as a chef's treat.) Strain the broth through a fine mesh stainer - if you have a second inner pot, it is the perfect size to strain into. Use the broth immediately, or pour into 2 cup containers and refrigerate for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 6 months.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 105 minutes
- Category: Building Blocks
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
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Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 38
- Sugar: 0.3 g
- Sodium: 72 mg
- Fat: 1.4 g
- Trans Fat:
- Carbohydrates: 2.9 g
- Protein: 4.8 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
Pressure Cooker Turkey Giblet Gravy
Instant Pot Turkey Bone Broth (Turkey Carcass Broth)
Instant Pot Turkey Back Broth
Pressure Cooker Day-After-Thanksgiving Turkey Carcass Soup
My other Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Recipes
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Amy Botticello says
I made this in the morning from the bag of turkey parts that was stuffed in my turkey. I did a pinch of Penzey Turkey Soup Base to the water. I cooked in a stovetop pressure cooker. This turned out SO flavorful that I used it ONLY (no turkey drippings) to make my gravy. Really, it was the FIRST gravy I really liked, mainly because it tasted "clean" and flavorful and was not greasy. It was wonderful to have this broth ready to go when it was time for me to make the gravy. Thanks so much!
Mike Vrobel says
You’re welcome!
Cindy S says
This sounds great! If I don’t have giblets to brown, but only turkey wings, do I need to brown them first? Or can I just skip the giblets and put the wings and rest of the ingredients in? Thanks!
Mike Vrobel says
You don’t have to brown them, but I recommend it - browning adds extra flavor to the broth.
Diane N says
I’ve been making a version of this Turkey broth for decades to use as the base for gravy. I do save the giblets in the broth and pulse in my food processor and add when finishing the gravy.
Mike Vrobel says
Great idea, thanks!
Nancy Antol says
This worked great. I really mashed the solids in the sieve to extract all the juices and it gave the broth a nice body.
Mike Vrobel says
Glad you enjoyed it!
Louise Samson says
Excellent turkey broth!
Fast, simple, delicious.
Thank you!
Mike Vrobel says
You’re welcome!