Coconut-Lime Turkey and Rice Soup

Coconut-Lime Turkey and Rice Soup is a great idea for leftover turkey, and you can make this soup with chicken if you don’t have any turkey!  Just substitute cauliflower rice for the rice to make this a low-carb soup! 

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I’ve offered up a lot of recipes using leftover turkey through the years, but this Coconut-Lime Turkey and Rice Soup was different than any leftover turkey soup I’ve made, with a slightly spicy broth, lime juice, and coconut milk as the base of the soup. I used cilantro but if you’re not a cilantro fan the original recipe used basil, and I’d love this with Thai Basil if I had some. If you don’t have any fresh herbs, I think thinly sliced green onions would also be nice. When I make this again I might shred the turkey apart into chunks instead of cutting it, but that’s the only thing I’d change, and this definitely going to be a repeater at my house!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

• canned chicken broth (affiliate link)
• fresh-squeezed lime juice
• slices of fresh ginger root
• garlic cloves, sliced in half
• soy sauce or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link)
• Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link)
• can of coconut milk
• leftover diced turkey
• Green Tabasco Sauce (affiliate link)
• cooked brown rice (or use frozen cauliflower rice)
• chopped cilantro (or use basil or sliced green onion)

Want More Turkey Soup Ideas?

Check out Low-Carb and Keto Turkey Soup Recipes for lots more ideas for tasty soups with turkey, chicken, or ground turkey!

How can you make this Turkey and Rice Soup lower in carbs?

Now that I’ve become a fan of low-carb recipes with cauliflower rice, I would absolutely switch out the rice that’s added at the end in this soup for frozen cauliflower rice to make this a low-carb soup! That would make this eligible to join my other Low-Carb Recipes for Leftover Turkey! 

How to Make Coconut-Lime Turkey and Rice Soup:

(Scroll down for complete recipe with nutritional information.)

1. I used 2 cups of leftover turkey, and next time I’d shred the turkey into pieces instead of cutting it.
2. You’ll need fresh ginger root to make this recipe (don’t even think of substituting ground ginger!) Slice about 6 slices of ginger.
3. The ginger is simmered with chicken stock, garlic cloves, lime juice, soy sauce, and Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) or sweetener of your choice to make a flavorful base for the soup.
4. Then remove garlic and ginger pieces and add the diced or shredded leftover turkey (or chicken), coconut milk, and some Green Tabasco Sauce (affiliate link), or use a fresh chile pepper if you prefer.
5. Simmer that for about 6 minutes without letting it come to a boil.
6. Add 1 1/2 cups of cooked rice or Cauliflower Rice (affiliate link) and cook a couple minutes more, just long enough that the rice is hot. (I first made this with Uncle Ben’s Brown Rice that I had in the freezer and just thawed it in the microwave. Now I would use frozen cauliflower rice that cooks in the bag in the microwave.)
7. While the rice simmers in the soup, wash and finely chop the cilantro, basil, or Thai basil, or sliced green onions whichever you’re using.
8. Stir in the chopped herbs or green onions, simmer a minute or two more and serve hot.
9. Sliced limes to squeeze into the soup would be nice for serving.

More Soups to Make With Leftover Turkey or Chicken:

• Slow Cooker and Instant Pot Turkey Soup Recipes
• Greek Egg-Lemon Chicken Soup with Cauliflower Rice
• Chicken Soup with Collards and Lemon
• Turkey Soup with Kale, Mushrooms, and Butternut Squash
• Turkey Soup with Zucchini Noodles

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe has been added to a category called Weekend Food Prep  to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

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Yield: 6 servings

Coconut-Lime Turkey and Rice Soup

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Coconut-Lime Turkey and Rice Soup is a delicious idea for leftover turkey (or chicken) and if you use cauliflower rice this will be a low-carb soup.

Ingredients

• 3 cups chicken broth (see notes)
• 3 T fresh-squeezed lime juice
• 6 thin slices fresh ginger root
• 2 medium garlic cloves, sliced in half
• 1 1/2 T soy sauce (gluten-free if needed)
• 1 1/2 T Golden Monkfruit Sweetener
• one 13.5 oz. can coconut milk (see notes)
• 2 cups diced turkey 
• 1/2 tsp. Green Tabasco sauce (see notes)
• 1 cup cooked brown rice (see notes)
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (see notes)

Instructions

1. Slice 5-6 thin slices of ginger root.
2. Peel 2 medium garlic cloves and slice in half.
3. Put homemade chicken stock or chicken broth into a heavy soup pot and bring to a low simmer, then add ginger root slices, garlic cloves, lime juice, soy sauce, and Golden Monkfruit Sweetener, or sweetener of your choice.
4. Let simmer on low for about 20 minutes, or until flavors are well blended.
5. While the soup base simmers, shred apart the leftover turkey into bite-sized pieces until you have 2 cups.
6. After 20 minutes remove the garlic and ginger pieces and add diced turkey, coconut milk, and Green Tabasco Sauce (affiliate link) or other hot sauce to the soup and let it continue to simmer on low about 6 minutes more.
7. Be sure the heat is low enough that the soup won’t boil after the coconut milk has been added.
8. After 6 minutes add the cooked brown rice or pre-cooked Cauliflower Rice (affiliate link) and let it simmer for a couple of minutes while you wash and chop the cilantro (or other herbs of your choice.)
9. Add chopped herbs or green onions and simmer for 1-2 minutes more.
10. Serve hot, with sliced limes to squeeze into the soup if desired.

Notes

I would use homemade chicken stock if you have some, but you can substitute 2 cans chicken broth if needed.

I love Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) but use any sweetener yo prefer.

Use light or full fat coconut milk, whichever you prefer.

Use more or less hot sauce to taste. Use any hot sauce you prefer if you don't have Green Tabasco Sauce (affiliate link).

If you don't like cilantro, use 1/4 cup chopped basil, Thai basil, or sliced green onions.

I used Uncle Ben’s Brown Rice. Use less rice or use Cauliflower Rice (affiliate link) for a low carb version.

Nutritional information is for the soup made with brown rice.

Recipe adapted from Coconut-Lime Chicken Soup from The Sunset Cookbook (affiliate link).

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 310Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 52mgSodium: 755mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 2gSugar: 2gProtein: 17g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

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Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:

When it’s made with cauliflower rice, this Coconut-Lime Turkey (or Chicken) and Rice Soup would be suitable for low-carb and low-glycemic diets. The cauliflower rice version would work for the original South Beach Diet Phase One or the brown rice version would work for the original South Beach Diet all phases, but South Beach would prefer light coconut milk.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Check out Soup Recipes for more tasty soups or use Thanksgiving Recipes for more ideas for leftover turkey. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe was posted in 2010. It was last updated with more information and the option to use cauliflower rice in 2021.

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