Turkey Noodle Casserole
Last updated on February 28th, 2026
It’s officially that time where we are heavily trying to repurpose those Thanksgiving leftovers into anything…that doesn’t feature a mashed potato or a gravy! We want creative, we want different, and we HAVE a ton of turkey left! It can’t be frozen so…what to do!? Ya do what the Midwest does, and ya make a casserole! This Turkey Noodle Casserole brings a whole new spin on Thanksgiving leftovers! It’s creamy, it’s cheesy, it’s heavy on the veggies, it’s herby and crunchy! This was so good! My family demolished it! It was like a whole new dish with that same ole comfort!
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So, what’s the vibe of this casserole and why make it?
This turkey noodle casserole is like chicken noodle casserole meets mac and cheese! The corn brings a fun twist, and the elbow macaroni is a little something different! That buttery Ritz Cracker topping was also the perfect finish! This casserole has two types of cheese and all those fresh herbs that I hadn’t used yet from Thanksgiving! It was such a feel-good dinner! And with the cold weather, casseroles just totally fit! It actually just snowed by me (kinda here for it…but not) but just because of that, I was totally feeling those holiday hot dish vibes.
Did you know?
The word “casserole” actually comes from the French version of the word “saucepan”, which refers to the vessel the meal is carried in as well as the food inside of it! Pretty neat! In New Zealand, Australia, and the UK, the word casserole is used to describe something closer to a stew, where in America the word casserole refers to something that has been baked! In the Midwest we eat casseroles like, all the time! We will seriously take any ingredient and try to make a casserole out of it, and – it’s pretty great!
What ingredients do I need to make this?
For the turkey noodle casserole:
Leftover Turkey – try my recipe or use store-bought
Homemade Turkey Stock – try my recipe or use store-bought
Carrots
Celery
Onion
Garlic
Corn
Elbow Macaroni
Half and Half
Sour Cream
Butter
Dijon
Mozzarella Cheese
Cheddar Cheese
Flour
Thyme
Rosemary
Salt
Garlic Powder
Chili Powder
Onion Powder
Oregano
Black Pepper
Cooking Spray
For the topping:
Ritz Crackers
Butter
For serving:
Parsley
What equipment do I need?
- Cutting Board
- Chef Knife
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Large Skillet
- 9×13 Baking Pan
- Whisk
- Mixing Bowl
- Spatula
- Stockpot
- Strainer
How do I make it?
To prep the ingredients:
To get started, preheat the oven to 375F. Now, let’s get started on washing and prepping all of the veggies! Thinly slice the celery, dice the onion, mince the garlic and herbs. Peel and slice the carrots into coins.
Take the frozen corn out and set it to the side to thaw. Sort through your leftover turkey and compile several cups of white or dark meat, whatever you like. Shred between two forks or just use your hands!
To make the turkey noodle casserole:
In a stockpot, boil pasta in some salted water until al dente. Drain and set aside. Next, in a large skillet, melt butter on medium heat. Sauté the onions, celery, and carrots for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.
Season with some of the salt and pepper, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the broth, herbs, and flour and cook a few minutes more, stirring constantly to cook that flour.
Move mixture to a large mixing bowl along with some of the shredded mozzarella and cheddar, sour cream, corn, Dijon, turkey, and the rest of the seasonings.
Mix well to combine. Then pour in the half and half and carefully fold in the pasta. Stir well and transfer to a greased 9×13 baking dish.
Use a spoon to spread the mixture into an even layer and sprinkle the rest of the shredded cheeses on. Set aside until ready to bake!
To make the topping and bake:
In a small dish, melt butter for the topping and crush up the Ritz Crackers. Whisk the crackers and butter together, then sprinkle it all over the casserole!
Bake it for a while, then broil for a few minutes on high until top is golden and bubbly!
To serve:
Serve Turkey Noodle Casserole hot with some freshly minced parsley on top, if desired! Enjoy!
Tips:
- You could use egg noodle for this recipe, cavatappi, rotini, even penne would be amazing! Any short pasta would shine here!
- Add some peas to this, fresh mushroom, some diced tomato – whatever you want!
- You could also whisk some breadcrumbs and melted butter for the topping instead of the Ritz. And feel free to swap out the cheese for whatever kind you have!
- If you don’t have fresh herbs on hand, the dried versions are a great substitute!
- Don’t have sour cream? Use a can of cream of mushroom soup instead! Just skip the flour and use milk instead of half and half!
Looking for other ways to use up Thanksgiving turkey? Check these out!
Looking for more noodle casseroles? Try some of my other recipes!
Turkey Noodle Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
For the turkey noodle casserole:
- 3 cups Leftover Turkey – try my recipe or use store-bought
- 4 Garlic Cloves minced
- 3 Medium Carrots peeled, sliced into 1-inch coins
- 3 Celery Ribs thinly sliced
- 1 Yellow Onion diced
- 1 cup Frozen Corn thawed
- 1 cup Half and Half
- ¾ cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese divided
- ½ cup Homemade Turkey Stock – try my recipe or use store-bought any broth will work
- ½ cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese divided
- ½ cup Sour Cream
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 1 tbsp Dijon
- 1 tbsp Flour
- 4 Thyme Sprigs minced
- 1 Rosemary Sprig minced
- 1 ½ tsp Salt divided
- ¾ tsp Black Pepper divided
- ½ tsp Dried Oregano
- ¼ tsp Garlic Powder
- ¼ tsp Chili Powder
- ¼ tsp Onion Powder
For the topping:
- ½ cup Ritz Crackers crushed
- 1 tbsp Butter
For serving:
- Parsley
Instructions
To make the turkey noodle casserole:
- Preheat the oven to 375℉ and grease a 9×13 baking pan.
- In a stockpot, bring some salted water to a boil and cook pasta until al dente. While the pasta cooks would be a good time to prep and get your mise en place in order. When the pasta is done, drain and set aside.
- Next, in a large skillet, melt butter on medium heat.
- Sauté the onions, celery, and carrots for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Season with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute.
- Add the broth, herbs, and flour and cook 2 minutes more, stirring to cook the flour.
- Move mixture to a large mixing bowl along with 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella and 1/2 cup shredded cheddar, sour cream, corn, turkey, Dijon, and the rest of the seasonings. Mix well to combine.
- Pour in half and half and carefully fold in the pasta. Stir well and transfer to prepared baking dish.
- Use a spoon to spread the mixture into an even layer and sprinkle the rest of the shredded cheeses on. Set aside until ready to bake!
To make the topping and bake:
- In a small dish, melt butter for the topping.
- Whisk the crushed crackers and butter together, then sprinkle it all over the casserole!
- Bake for 20 minutes until bubbly.
- Next, broil for 2-3 minutes on high until top is golden!
To serve:
- Serve Turkey Noodle Casserole hot with some freshly minced parsley on top, if desired! Enjoy!
Nutrition
Please be aware that nutritional values are approximate and intended as a helpful guide
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Loved this! Used some of our leftover thanksgiving turkey and it came out so yummy and was so easy (necessary after so much cooking for thanksgiving). Thank you!
I’m so glad! Thanks for sharing, Jen!