Learn to make Instant Pot Turkey Stock from a leftover Thanksgiving turkey carcass, leftover bones, and veggies. The flavorful broth is so nutritious, delicious, and easy to make.
Stock was one of the first things I learned how to make as it is the foundation of so many dishes and it is an excellent way to use kitchen scraps and prevent food waste.
Homemade Stock is such a great thing to have on hand as it is used in nearly everything – it’s so versatile. I love that you can control what goes in it and it is SO cheap.
You basically use things that would otherwise go in your compost pile and it really just costs your time. I even make a homemade broth recipe for my dog to make her homemade dog food, so I leave out onions and salt when I do that.
Table of Contents
- Broth, Stock, or Bone Broth?
- Ingredients Needed to Make Turkey Stock
- Don’t Have Turkey Bones or a Turkey Carcass?
- How to Make Instant Pot Turkey Stock
- Tip: Don’t Manually Release Pressure
- What Makes Stock Cloudy?
- How to Store Homemade Turkey Stock
- Pressure Canning Turkey Stock
- Does Pressure Cooker Turkey Broth Gel?
- Instant Pot Turkey Stock (or Broth) Recipe
- Ways to Use Homemade Turkey Broth
Broth, Stock, or Bone Broth?
The terms stock and broth are often used interchangeably but they are slightly different.
- Stock – Stock is made from only animal bones, vegetables, water, and aromatics like peppercorns, bay leaves, and a few fresh herbs. It shouldn’t be salted as it will likely be reduced and can leave the final product a bit salty. (I usually add a small sprinkle of salt to my stock because I like the taste and less than half a teaspoon of salt in 8 cups of water is pretty negligible.) Stock is usually more brown in color than broth, especially if you roast the bones.
- Broth – Broth is made with both animal bones and meat, vegetables, water, aromatics, and more seasoning, like salt and flavorful herbs. It should be able to stand alone as a soup base. Broth can sometimes be more opaque in color than stock, especially if you leave fatty pieces of meat behind. The fat will emulsify and cloud the broth as it cooks. There’s nothing wrong with this and it is perfectly safe to eat. It is actually quite delicious.
- Bone Broth – Bone broth actually a confusing name as it is generally made from just bones – it’s more like a bone stock. It is generally made from roasted bones and water and is cooked for a long time to pull more collagen from the bones.
Ingredients Needed to Make Turkey Stock
This is just a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need to make this recipe. As always, specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- A Turkey Carcass, Leftover Turkey Bones, Turkey Necks, or Raw Turkey Wings, Legs, or Necks –
- If you are not using turkey bones after Thanksgiving, turkey wings are great for making broth. I recommend roasting the wings for about 30 minutes for a more flavorful broth.
- If you are using a wild turkey carcass, soak it in salt water for 24-48 hours until the water is mostly clear, then roast it for 30-45 minutes. It might not fit in an Instant Pot. I’ve used my 8-quart Instant Pot for parts of the wild turkey, but the rest require my large stock pot.
- I like to buy a whole turkey when they are on sale (hello, 49 cents a pound!) to roast and cook after the holidays! It makes so many cheap meals and then I can make tons of stock that will last us for months.
- Onions, Celery, Carrots, and Garlic – I like to keep a bag in my freezer to save veggie scraps, like the peels of onions and carrots, the ends of celery, garlic peels, the parts of leeks that don’t get eaten, etc. Seriously almost every vegetable scrap that isn’t a potato peel (I even throw pepper scraps in my stock – though I’ll leave that up to your discretion!) Parsnips, shallots, red onions, green onions – all the scraps and all the peels can be used!
- Herbs – I like to use parsley, thyme, and whole black peppercorns. Use fresh herbs if you have them, but dried herbs work fine too. Sometimes I have parsley stems in the freezer so I throw those in.
- Bay Leaves
- Kosher Salt – This is optional, but I like to add a small sprinkle of salt to mine. (It is not necessary.)
- Apple Cider Vinegar – This helps pull the nutrients from the bones.
Don’t Have Turkey Bones or a Turkey Carcass?
If you don’t have leftover turkey parts, you can use raw turkey wings, turkey legs, or turkey necks. Turkey wings are great for making broth.
I recommend roasting the wings for about 30 minutes at 350°F for a more flavorful broth. Once roasted, throw them in the pot – skin, juices, bones, meat, and all.
Do NOT use smoked wings or legs as they are pretty salty and will give the broth a pretty strong flavor. Save those for your collard greens or hoppin’ john.
How to Make Instant Pot Turkey Stock
- Add all of the ingredients to your Instant Pot or pressure cooker – a turkey carcass and turkey bones, carrots, onions, celery, etc. I leave the peels on everything and cut the vegetables into large chunks. (Pictures 1-2)
- I don’t really measure, I just toss in what I have, but I generally use about 2 onions and 4-5 carrots, 4-5 stalks of celery, and several handfuls of veggie peels from my freezer scrap bag.
- Add the peppercorns, herbs, salt, and apple cider vinegar, then top with cold water up to the Max Fill line. (Picture 3)
- I use an 8-quart Instant Pot because it makes more broth, but a 6-quart Instant Pot will work as well, you just won’t get as much broth.
- Cook the broth on Manual Mode at High Pressure for 120 minutes (or 2 hours) or 3 hours at Low Pressure. I know it seems like a long time, but I prefer the flavor when cooking it for a longer time. (But not having to babysit it on the stove!) The Instant Pot will take 15-20 minutes to come to pressure, then 30 minutes or so to depressurize. (Picture 4)
- Let the pressure release naturally, then carefully open the Instant Pot and strain the stock through a colander covered with a cheesecloth. (If I’m pressure canning my broth, I strain it with a cheesecloth later, before canning.)
Tip: Don’t Manually Release Pressure
Don’t manually release the pressure – let it release naturally. Since the Instant Pot is filled with extremely hot liquid, quickly releasing the pressure can cause a boiling hot eruption.
- Let the stock cool, then refrigerate it or use it right away.
Note: I’ve found that I can sometimes cook the bones twice and get a double batch of broth. I will pressure cook them several times until the bones are crumbly, then they go into the compost. If I do a second batch, I add more peppercorns, herbs, salt, apple cider vinegar, and water.
What Makes Stock Cloudy?
Stock or broth can turn cloudy if there are fat droplets in the liquid. The fat will emulsify and cloud the broth as the water boils. There’s nothing wrong with this and it is perfectly safe to eat. It is actually quite delicious.
It used to be recommended that you strain the fat out before making stock – and some people do – but it is not required for home cooking.
If you look closely at the pictures below, you can see the jars in front are a bit cloudy – that broth was made from our Thanksgiving turkey. The 25 containers of stock in the stacks that I later pressure canned are almost completely clear – those were made from a wild turkey that was quite lean. (I ended up canning more than 15 quarts 😂)
How to Store Homemade Turkey Stock
Once it cools, I like to store turkey broth in mason jars in the fridge. Instant Pot turkey broth will keep for about a week or it can be frozen. Do not freeze it in mason jars unless you use jars that are meant for the freezer. There are straight-sided jars made for freezing. (If the jars have shoulders, they can shatter as the broth expands.)
Be sure to leave room for the broth to expand. I usually leave the lid off, then cover once the broth is frozen.
You can also freeze broth in Souper Cubes. But my favorite method is pressure canning to make the broth shelf stable.
The Presto Electric Canner is my favorite invention.
Pressure Canning Turkey Stock
After the delicious broth is strained, I like to pressure can the stock. I use these directions from the National Center for Home Food Preservation and can the stock at 10 pounds of pressure (with a weighted gauge) in quart jars for 25 minutes.
Though I am OBSESSED with the Presto Electric Canner!
- Sterilize the jars, heat the broth, and fill quart jars with 1 inch of head space.
- Wipe the rims clean, then place lids and rings on the jars and tighten the rings until they are just finger-tight.
- Pressure can the jars for 25 minutes. The Presto Canner walks you through all the steps.
- Remove the jars from the canner and allow them to sit undisturbed for 12-24 hours. Remove the rings for storage.
When you’re done, you’ll have shelf-stable jars of delicious stock to use whenever you need it!
If you have any more questions about how to pressure can homemade stock, including how to adjust for your altitude, I use these directions from the National Center for Home Food Preservation for hot packed meat stock.
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Does Pressure Cooker Turkey Broth Gel?
If you are using a leftover turkey carcass that has already been cooked, you might not get tons of collagen from the bones – it’s likely a bit of the good stuff seeped out while the turkey cooked.
While a roast turkey carcass will add a lot of flavor to the stock, it has also already cooked for a long time, so it loses a bit of nutrients in the oven!
If you want your stock to jiggle, adding chicken feet will add extra collagen.
Have You Tried This Recipe?
Please rate it and leave a comment below. I would love to hear what you think!
Instant Pot Turkey Stock (or Broth)
Ingredients
- a turkey carcass and leftover turkey bones or raw turkey wings, legs, or necks
- 2 large onions unpeeled and quartered
- 4-5 large carrots unpeeled, cut into large chunks
- 4-5 stalks celery cut into large chunks
- 6-8 cloves garlic smashed with the side of your knife but not peeled
- 1 teaspoon peppercorns
- 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme add more if desired – use 1 tsp dried
- 3-4 sprigs fresh parsley add more if desired – use 1 tsp dried
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt optional
- 6-8 cups water use cold, filtered water from your fridge
- 1-2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (use more if using an 8-quart IP)
Instructions
- Add all of the stock ingredients to your Instant Pot or pressure cooker, then fill it to the Max Fill line with water.a turkey carcass and leftover turkey bones, 2 large onions, 4-5 large carrots, 4-5 stalks celery, 6-8 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon peppercorns, 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme, 3-4 sprigs fresh parsley, 2 bay leaves, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, 6-8 cups water, 1-2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- Pressure cook using Manual Mode at High Pressure for 2 hours or 120 minutes (or Low Pressure for 3 hours.)
- The Instant Pot will take 15-20 minutes to come to pressure, then 30 minutes or so to depressurize.
- Allow the pressure to release naturally, then carefully strain the stock through a colander covered with a cheesecloth.
- Allow the stock to cool, then refrigerate or use right away.
How to Pressure Can Homemade Stock
- Sterilize the jars, heat the broth, and fill quart jars with 1 inch of headspace.
- Wipe the rims clean, then place lids and rings on the jars and tighten the rings until they are just finger tight.
- Pressure can the jars for 25 minutes at 10 pounds of pressure. (The Presto Canner walks you through all the steps.)
- Remove the jars from the canner and allow them to sit undisturbed for 12-24 hours. Remove the rings for storage.
Notes
Special Equipment Needeed
- quart mason jars if canning, be sure to buy jars that are safe for canning
Nutrition
Nutrition information is approximate and is automatically calculated, so should only be used as a guide.
Ways to Use Homemade Turkey Broth
I use turkey stock in any recipe that calls for chicken stock. There really isn’t much difference in the flavor. Here’s some great ways to use the stock:
- Crockpot Boneless Turkey Breast
- Turkey and Sausage Gumbo
- Crockpot Turkey Tenderloins with Honey Mustard Gravy
- Quick & Easy Stuffing
- Instant Pot Homemade Dog Food (Leave out the onions and salt)
- Southern Collard Greens
- If you have leftover turkey meat, you can use your newly made broth to make turkey noodle soup.
Turkey Stock is excellent to have on hand for making turkey soup, gravy, turkey gumbo, and stews.
