Caribbean Smoked Turkey Soup
A beloved comfort dish in Caribbean homes, Caribbean Smoked Turkey Soup is steeped in tradition and flavor. Using smoked turkey legs, necks, or wings, this soup delivers a rich, smoky broth that’s thickened with hearty root vegetables like dasheen, eddoes, and sweet potato.
Ingredients · Servings 6
- 1 smoked turkey leg (or necks/wings)
- 10 cups water
- 1 cup black-eye peas (rinsed)
- 1 sweet potato (chopped)
- 4 cloves garlic (chopped)
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano
- 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 pack Grace Flavored Soup mix (or 1 tbsp chicken bouillon)
- 4 okra (sliced)
- 1 ear sweet corn (chopped)
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- pinch of sugar
- water (enough to form dough)
Method · 1 h 25 min
- Heat vegetable oil in a large soup pot over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic, scallions, thyme, and oregano. Sauté for 3–5 minutes until fragrant and softened.
- Stir in black eye peas and carrot. Add smoked turkey leg and pour in 10–14 cups water. Add scotch bonnet pepper, salt, and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
- Simmer uncovered for 45–60 minutes, or until peas are tender. Meanwhile, peel and cube the dasheen, eddoes, potatoes, and sweet potato. Remove stems from okra. Cut corn into pieces and rinse well.
- Once peas are tender, remove smoked turkey leg and set aside to cool. Add prepared vegetables, corn, tomato paste, and Grace cock soup mix to the pot. Add more water if needed to cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil.
- Strip meat from the turkey leg and return both meat and bone to the pot. Simmer for 25–35 minutes, until vegetables are soft and soup has thickened. Avoid over-stirring to prevent the soup from becoming too starchy.
- Taste and adjust salt if needed. If using dumplings, mix flour, sugar, and water to form dough. Pinch into small pieces and add in the final 7 minutes of cooking.
- Remove and discard the scotch bonnet pepper before serving.
