This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Table of Contents
The holiday meal might be finished, but that turkey and ham can still make a good dinner. Turn cooked turkey into a biscuit-topped cobbler, put diced ham into a pot of beans, or use a little of everything in crispy Thanksgiving egg rolls.
Start with what you have and how long it has been refrigerated. These recipes give your leftovers a clear job, with separate notes for recipes that already use cooked meat and a slider adaptation for thinly sliced holiday ham.
Quick Look
- Best for: Cooked holiday turkey, cooked ham, and a safely stored ham bone
- First move: Decide what you will eat soon and freeze the rest promptly
- Storage: Refrigerate at 40°F or below and use cooked leftovers within three to four days
- Reheating: Check for 165°F in the center; bring reheated soups and gravy to a rolling boil
- Full recipes: Follow the linked recipe cards for measurements and complete methods
Pick a Recipe for the Leftovers You Have
- Cooked turkey plus dressing or sides: Thanksgiving Egg Rolls
- Shredded cooked turkey: The cooked-turkey variation of Cajun Chicken Cobbler
- Diced fully cooked smoked ham: AB’s Southern Navy Beans with Ham
- A meaty holiday ham bone: Navy Bean Soup with Ham
- Ham plus smoked sausage: Cajun Ham and Sausage Bean Soup
- Thin slices of fully cooked holiday ham: The labeled Breakfast Sliders adaptation below
Turkey and Ham Recipes to Make Next
Thanksgiving Egg Rolls
Thanksgiving Egg Rolls are built around cooked holiday leftovers. Turkey, ham, dressing, greens, and a little cranberry sauce can all have a place, depending on what you have available.
Choose a balanced filling instead of packing every leftover into each wrapper. Chop the meat small, avoid a wet filling, and do not overstuff. Serve gravy alongside for dipping rather than flooding the wrapper.
Follow the wrapping and frying method on the recipe page, but check the filling temperature as well as the wrapper’s color. A golden outside does not prove a cold center has reached 165°F. Work in manageable batches and serve while crisp.
Cooked-Turkey Cajun Cobbler
Cajun Chicken Cobbler with Cheddar Garlic Biscuits starts with cooked chicken and explicitly includes a cooked-turkey variation. That makes it a useful route for shredded holiday turkey without borrowing a raw-chicken cooking method.
Use the cooked-turkey variation with the recipe’s vegetable filling, gravy, and biscuit topping. Check the center of the casserole for 165°F and make sure the biscuit topping is baked through. Turkey that was already strongly seasoned may need less additional seasoning, so taste the filling before its final bake when all its ingredients are safe to taste.
This is the choice for a full dinner that feels different from another reheated holiday plate.
AB’s Southern Navy Beans with Ham
AB’s Southern Navy Beans with Ham explicitly calls for fully cooked smoked ham and allows leftover ham. It is a strong choice when you have diced meat but no large ham bone.
The recipe browns the ham, cooks the onion and garlic, then builds a slow-simmered pot of beans. The diced ham returns later in the method. Follow that order instead of cooking the ham for extra hours simply because you are using leftovers.
The beans should be tender all the way through before you mash some to thicken the broth. Taste before adding salt; ham and broth already bring plenty of seasoning.
Navy Bean Soup with a Holiday Ham Bone
Navy Bean Soup with Ham gives a safely stored ham bone another use. This version has its own hot-soak and simmering method, along with other ham ingredients, so check the full recipe before you start.
Use this option when you want a brothy bowl with cornbread on the side. Remove the bone before serving and check the returned meat carefully for small bone fragments. Store the bone promptly after the original meal just as you would the sliced ham.
Cajun Ham and Sausage Bean Soup
Cajun Ham and Sausage Bean Soup combines a ham bone and diced ham with beans, vegetables, seasoning, and sausage. It is a different direction when you want more heat and a bigger mix of flavors.
Follow the recipe’s bean-soaking instructions and add the sausage at the stage specified in its method. The long simmer is for developing the soup and cooking the beans, not a reason to use leftovers that are already past their safe storage window.
Breakfast Sliders with Leftover Ham
Breakfast Sliders use deli ham in the original recipe, along with scrambled eggs, cheese, and a buttery topping.
Leftover-ham adaptation: Replace the deli ham with thinly sliced, fully cooked holiday ham. Thick carved pieces heat differently, so slice them thinly and do not assume the original baking time will be enough. Cover if the bread browns too quickly and continue until the center reaches 165°F. The eggs are scrambled before assembly, just as the original method directs.
This adaptation keeps the same sandwich idea while accounting for the colder, thicker meat that often comes out of a holiday storage container.
Simple Sides to Finish the Meal
You do not need to rebuild the entire Thanksgiving menu. Choose one side that fits the main dish.
- With ham and bean soup: Southern Cornbread catches the broth and makes the bowl feel like a complete meal.
- With turkey cobbler: Southern Style Green Beans add a vegetable side; follow their own full recipe rather than treating them as another turkey dish.
- With a pot of beans: Southern Mixed Greens are another Southern-style pairing when you want a larger meal.
If you already have safely stored sides, use those first. Check their original preparation dates along with the meat.
Store First, Then Plan the Next Meal
Divide cooked turkey and ham into shallow containers and refrigerate within two hours of cooking or removal from hot holding; make that one hour above 90°F. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below. Do not leave a big pot or a carved turkey on the counter waiting to cool completely.
Use refrigerated cooked leftovers within three to four days, or freeze them sooner for another meal. Label containers with the original cooking date. Turning older meat into soup or sliders is not a reason to give it an extra week in the refrigerator.
Thaw frozen leftovers in the refrigerator. Reheat to 165°F, checking several places in dense dishes; bring reheated soups, sauces, and gravy to a rolling boil. USDA’s Leftovers and Food Safety guide explains storage and reheating in more detail.
Tools That Help with Leftover Meals
Use the containers and cookware you already have. A few useful tools can make the prep and temperature checks easier:
- SnG Food Thermometer: Check the center of sliders, cobbler, and egg-roll filling rather than judging by the outside.
- Chef Knife: Cut cooked turkey into small pieces, slice ham, and prepare vegetables on a stable board.
- AB’s Premium Garlic Press: Useful for fresh garlic in your bean or cobbler prep when you prefer pressing to mincing.
- High Heat Resistant Silicone Basting Brush: Spread the buttery topping evenly over breakfast sliders.
- AB’s SPG — Salt, Pepper, and Garlic: An optional finishing seasoning when a savory dish needs it. Taste first; holiday ham and seasoned turkey may already have enough salt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use cooked turkey in any chicken recipe?
Not without checking the method. A recipe that starts with raw chicken may depend on browning, released juices, and a longer cooking stage. The cobbler here is a better fit because it starts with cooked poultry and already provides a turkey variation.
Can I use glazed ham in bean soup?
A sweet glaze will change the broth’s flavor. Trim away excess glaze if you want a more savory pot, then taste before adding seasoning. Use fully cooked ham and follow the selected soup’s method.
Can I freeze the meat before deciding what to make?
Yes. Freeze promptly in meal-size portions while the leftovers are still within their safe storage window. Pack turkey, ham, and the ham bone separately so you can thaw only what a recipe needs.
Is a browned slider or crisp egg roll hot enough inside?
Not necessarily. Bread and wrappers can brown before a refrigerated filling gets hot. Check the center with a food thermometer and cook until it reaches 165°F.
Save Your Leftover Plan
Pick one meal for the next day, freeze what you will not use soon, and save this list for the next holiday.
