A Turkey Soup with a Difference
After Thanksgiving, after all the turkey meat that can be sliced or snitched has been eaten, is it really necessary to boil the turkey carcass into submission? The answer in our house, apparently, is yes.
And so it was that Judy put three quarts of meaty turkey stock into the freezer, a freezer already fit to burst with frozen homemade split pea soup, frozen homemade vegetable beef soup, etc. Not that I’m complaining, it’s delicious soup. But I do suspect that Judy believes that frozen soup will be the key to survival in the coming Zombie Apocalypse.
Anyhow, yesterday Judy decided to thaw out some of that stock to make turkey posole, using a recipe she found online.
Posole is a kind of Mexican soup made with hominy. Hominy is corn that has been soaked in lye or mineral lime, causing it to soften and greatly expand. In posole it is like eating little dumplings, slightly chewy and with only the slightest hint of a corn taste.
The soup was delicious. If you like your food spicy, you probably want to put in more peppers than the recipe calls for. Without adjustment it tasted a bit bland to us, but spiciness is in the tastebuds of the eater. Judy also added some greens into the soup, just on general principles.
Once ladled into a bowl, we put chopped fresh avocado, onion, and fresh cilantro on the posole. It’s hot and filling, a good winter meal.
Did you grow up eating hominy, or did you (like me) not even know what it was until fairly late in life?
gardeninacity 
Your post made me laugh as we’re finally finishing up our own turkey soup, frozen portions and all! Love the flavors you added — cilantro is a great touch!
We’ve still got a couple of quarts in the freezer, I think.
I love posole and I like hominy. I grew up eating it–mostly in posole, but sometimes just heated and buttered.
Mmm, that sounds pretty good.
We have not tried Hominy, but my goodness you are so lucky Jason to have a wife produce homemade delicious meals. I am drooling!
Very true!
I have never had hominy that I liked. Your soup looks delicious.
The soup is delicious. This is the first time I’ve eaten hominy, though I have eaten grits a number of times and have gotten to like it.
I’ve never had that particular type of soup, but I do love any kind of soup. And, you are lucky if Judy is making sure you have plenty of good food to eat under any circumstances. 🙂
True, which helps make up for the fact that she has to spend so much time on the road.
Here’s the recipe: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/turkey-posole
As Jason says, we found it a little bland. And I did add half a bag of frozen greens (collards, because that’s what I had) because I like greens in my soup.
Glad to be prepared for the Zombie apocalypse, you just never know.
Didn’t my link go to the right recipe?
I found out what hominy was in college, yea those many decades ago. I did not like it, but there were a lot of things I did not like back then. I now may have to try it in soup, maybe one that includes some of that zucchini puree I I filled the freezer with last summer. (I too plan for the apocalypse, although frankly the electricity would probably be the first thing to go in such a scenario.)
That is a good point about the electricity. I should talk to Judy about freeze drying the soup.
Hominy and grits were staples when I grew up in the south.
One big advantage of a southern upbringing.
Sounds delicious! Now if I only had some turkey stock in the freezer… Like you, I never tasted hominy until I was an adult. Okra is another food I never had until a trip south one year.
I also learned to like okra later in life. I love fried okra, of course, and then there is an Indian okra dish called bhindi masala that is one of my favorites.
I’ll have to try a veggie version of this when I run out of pumpkin, which is what I’ve been making soup out of… The posole has everything I love in it (chiles, cilantro, avocado is a great touch).
I’m sure there are many vegetarian dishes that can be made with hominy.
My mom was a pretty basic cook, so opening a can of hominy and heating it up with a few hunks of sausage was standard procedure. Posole is a much more elegant use of this Mexican staple. The added greens and avocado make it even better. You did well in choosing a wife.
Hominy mixed with hunks of sausage sounds kind of good. Maybe mix in some sauerkraut?
The Turkey posole looks tasty. I grew up eating hominy, but plain.
Not sure if I would like plain hominy. It seems like the kind of thing that you would mix in with other ingredients that have a stronger flavor.
The turkey posole does sound good, especially on a dreary day like this one. However, I have never acquired a taste for hominy but I don’t mind it’s dried and ground counterpart grits, especially cheese grits.
I learned to like grits before I ever tried hominy. I love shrimp and grits, and sometimes Judy cooks buttered grits as a side dish. The best shrimp and grits I ever had was at a restaurant in Charleston SC called (speak of the devil) Hominy Grill.
I haven’t heard of hominy before, you live and learn eh?
If Armageddon does strike I’ll be on a plane to your house!!!
I too would love to try the veggie version.xxx
I’m sure there are such versions out there. I wonder if hominy is something that is not to be found in the UK. Maybe it is sold under another name.
I’ve never had hominy but I’ve made a lot of turkey soup! It’s great food anytime.
Very true.
I never tried posole until I moved to Austin. Pretty yummy.
Yes it is. And there are so many different kinds of posole to try.
I have never heard of hominy but your soup looks good.
So when you have eventually finished up the last turkey remains do you start all over again for Xmas or do you eat something else at Xmas? I have often wondered about that.
I have eaten hominy, Jason. We cook corn porridge or hominy, with milk, sugar and butter. But we never cook soup with hominy, I’d like to taste it! Your wife is very good in cooking, Jason. The picture of turkey soup looks great!
What an interesting take on turkey soup…I have never tried hominy.