Leftover Turkey and Ham Rissoles

Turkey and ham rissoles are the perfect tasty answer for using up any turkey or ham that wasn't gobbled up during your festive feasting. These delicious fried patties can be made with a combination of turkey and ham, or with only turkey or only ham.

This simple recipe for using up leftover turkey ensures no Thanksgiving or Christmas goodness goes to waste.

A combination of leftover turkey and ham is used in this recipe, rather than turkey mince.

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Leftover Turkey Recipe

If you’re planning a big holiday meal or celebration, then more likely than not you're going to have leftovers. My holiday menu always includes a whopping big turkey and a hunk of ham.

It's the Irish in me! I always worry about not having enough, so I swing the pendulum all the way over to the excess range, and buy way too much. Who has time to calculate portion size when people need to celebrate.

So, when your holiday dinner leaves you with a little or a lot of extras, then this recipe can be one of your go-to options.

These turkey and ham patties are great served in a bun like a burger or just by themselves with a few delicious sides. You can serve them with cold salads like coleslaw or a spinach salad or a goat cheese and beets salad. I love to serve them with a homemade cranberry sauce.

Turkey rissoles are patties made with chopped up cooked meat, mashed potatoes, garlic, onions and herbs. They're dusted in flour and then fried until crisp, but succulent inside.

You can even prepare these patties or rissoles up to a day in advance before cooking. They can be kept in the fridge then fried up when you're ready to eat.

What is a rissole?

Rissoles are made all over the British Isles.

A rissole is a small patty made from chopped up meat, fish or cheese combined with savory filling ingredients. They can be covered in pastry or dipped in flour or breadcrumbs. They can be served as a main course or side dish.

The name comes from the Latin word russeolus, which means reddish. This refers to the color of the mixed filling used to make the patties. In French it comes from the word "rissoler" which means "to redden."

Rissoles originated in France, but appeared in British cooking during the 1700's.

During World War II, economical cooking became extremely important in a time of rations and limited supplies. As a result rissoles became very popular in Great Britain.

As a budget friendly menu item, they could be made with leftovers and cheap mashed potatoes. They are even served in some chip shops in England.

Fried rissoles are popular in parts of Ireland, especially County Wexford. They are often served with chips, chicken or battered sausages. They are often made without meat and resemble a potato cake.

The main difference between a rissole and a patty is their size and shape. Rissoles are rounder and thicker than a patty. They also have an outer layer of pastry, breadcrumbs or dredged flour.

Croquettes vs Rissoles

What about a croquette I hear you say? Well a croquette is usually served in a tubular shape rather than a rounded patty. Both are very similar but in Ireland croquettes have less savory ingredients in their filling and are primarily filled with mashed potatoes.

Now that you know what a rissole is, let's move on with using up our Thanksgiving leftovers.

Ingredients for Ham and Turkey Rissoles

Here's what you'll need to make these delicious savory rissoles. You'll find exact quantities in the printable recipe at the end of the page.

• cooked ham
• cooked turkey (or chicken)
• chopped fresh thyme
• chopped fresh sage
• fresh parsley
• salt
• black pepper
• mashed potatoes
• shallots (peeled and finely chopped)
• garlic (finely minced)
• egg (beaten)
• all-purpose flour
• olive oil
• butter

Ingredient tips and substitutions

I like fresh thyme and sage to add flavor to this recipe. You can substitute other fresh herbs if you wish. Rosemary works well. You could also try some tarragon, which adds a distinctive licorice like flavor.

If you don't have fresh herbs at hand, you can substitute dried herbs. You will need less dried herbs than fresh, since they're far more potent. The rule is one teaspoon of dried herbs for every tablespoon of fresh herbs.

I use mashed potatoes to bind these rissoles together. If you have other soft, mashed vegetables such as rutabaga or parsnips, you could substitute it for some of the potatoes. However, I don't recommend eliminating the potatoes altogether.

Directions for Turkey and Ham Rissoles

Here you'll find step-by-step photographic instructions to help you make perfect rissoles.

Prepare the rissoles

Chop the cooked ham and turkey until finely diced.

Add to a large mixing bowl.

Remember, if you only have turkey then double the amount.

And if you only have ham then double the amount.

Add the thyme, sage, parsley, seasonings, potatoes, shallots, and garlic to the large bowl, and mix well to combine.

Add the beaten egg and stir to bring the mixture together to form a loose dough.

Divide and shape into 12 equally sized round patties (known as rissoles which are about 1 and ½ inches thick).

The patties should be round and a little thicker than a regular stye American patty.

You could form the mixture into meatballs if you wish, but they are more difficult to fry and heat through.

Cook the patties

Sprinkle the flour onto a plate.

Toss the rissoles in the flour, making sure to turn them completely to coat them in flour.

Add half the oil and butter to a large skillet and heat over medium high heat. We are going to pan-fry these rissoles.

It's important to use a large frying pan so that the rissoles won't be touching as they cook.

Add half the rissoles and fry for 2 to 3 minutes on each side until golden brown.

Repeat with the remaining oil, butter and rissoles.

Remove the cooked rissoles from the pan and stand them on a plate lined with paper towel. This will drain away any excess oil or fats.

Serve hot with homemade cranberry sauce. I hope you like my version of cranberry sauce with a hint of orange flavor.

Recipe Card for Homemade Turkey Rissoles

Here's a short video outlining the steps.

Here's the printable recipe for your kitchen files.

I hope you enjoy this leftover turkey and ham recipe. My kids love them. They're delicious served with homemade orange cranberry sauce.

I love to use every last morsel and let nothing go to waste. And don't forget you can use your turkey bones to make a lovely stock. Simply adapt this chicken stock recipe.

Please feel free to share this recipe on Facebook or Pinterest. These healthy turkey rissoles are simply delicious.

Happy holiday cooking to all!