Smoked Buffalo Turkey Dip

4.93 from 14 votes
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The absolute BEST leftover turkey idea is this Smoked Buffalo Turkey Dip! Classic Buffalo flavor, with the easy addition of leftover smoked turkey. Add cheese and you have one heck of an appetizer or meal. This is one of our favorite leftover turkey recipes we make. Don’t have smoked turkey to use? It is just as good with oven roasted turkey too.

Smoked Buffalo Turkey Dip
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Traditionally I grew up with leftover turkey used in a Green Chili Turkey stew. Which is great on its own or smothered over enchiladas. But adding leftover turkey to a Buffalo wing inspired cheese dip is a great way to use up all that meat.

Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey

It’s inevitable, if you’re going to cook a turkey for Thanksgiving or any holiday, you’re going to find yourselves with leftovers.

And that’s a good thing. A really good thing. I’m convinced there are more fun things to do with leftover turkey, then the whole bird.

That is unless you’re making this Smoked Turkey. In that case, it’s a tie. That turkey is incredible!

Buffalo Wings Meets Leftover Turkey

One of the most genius uses for leftover turkey we’ve come up with is this Smoked Buffalo Turkey Dip.

Buffalo Turkey Dip
Chips and celery sticks are a great combination to dip.

Skinny Buffalo Dip

The best part (as if this could get any better?) was that this is a much lighter version than the hundreds of recipes you find online filled with cream cheese and sour cream.  I was inspired by a “skinny” Buffalo Chicken Dip I saw on Pinterest years ago and used Greek yogurt instead of the traditional sour cream. Hubby didn’t even realize until after we ate the entire bowl!  It’s “light” and nobody will ever know.

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How to Make Buffalo Turkey Dip

  1. To make the dip, simply combine leftover turkey with cream cheese, Greek yogurt, cheddar cheese, seasonings, and the very necessary Frank’s RedHot hot sauce (it’s gotta be Franks!), into an oven safe bowl and mix together.
  2. Place into a cast iron pan or oven safe dish and then top with the blue cheese crumbles.
  3. Then place in the oven for about 15-20 minutes, to heat up and allow the cheese to get nice and bubbly.

Variations

A friend of mine noted she makes this (with chicken) weekly, and puts some ranch dressing and chopped celery into the mix. Sounds like a great plan and I’ll definitely try that next time. If you do add ranch, I suggest to cut the Greek yogurt in half to keep the liquid proportions the same (so it doesn’t come out watery).

If you don’t have Frank’s, you can use other medium spiced hot sauces. But Frank’s is the original flavor to Buffalo style wings.

More Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes


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This recipe was first published in December, 2013 and updated in November 2021 with new photos and details on the recipe steps.

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Buffalo Turkey Dip
4.93 from 14 votes

Smoked Buffalo Turkey Dip Recipe

The ultimate leftover turkey idea is a Smoked Buffalo Turkey Dip. Cheesy and delicious.
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 25 minutes
Servings: 6 people
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Ingredients 

  • 3 cups leftover smoked turkey, shredded, (can use roasted turkey or shredded chicken. But the smoked flavor is unbeatable!)
  • 4 ounces light cream cheese, softened, About a half pack. You can use regular cream cheese as well.
  • 1 cup Greek yogurt
  • ½ cup Frank's RedHot, (hot sauce. No substitutions. It has to be Franks!)
  • ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon celery salt
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon coarse black pepper
  • ½ cup blue cheese crumbles

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 
  • Mix all ingredients (except blue cheese!) together in a large bowl. When everything is well combined, transfer into a small oven safe baking dish. Top with blue cheese crumbles and place in oven, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes, or until the dip starts to bubble.
  • Serve with chips or celery sticks.

Notes

Check out our complete recipe for smoked turkey.
Variations: A friend of mine noted she makes this (with chicken) weekly, and puts some ranch dressing and chopped celery into the mix. Sounds like a great plan and I’ll definitely try that next time. If you do add ranch, I suggest to go a wee bit lighter on the Greek yogurt to keep the liquid proportions the same (so it doesn’t come out watery).

Nutrition

Calories: 1237kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 123g | Fat: 73g | Saturated Fat: 39g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 21g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 396mg | Sodium: 3395mg | Potassium: 1476mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 1882IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 1186mg | Iron: 4mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: BBQ, Barbecue, holiday, Thanksgiving
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 1237
Keyword: Buffalo Turkey Dip, Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey
Like this recipe? Leave a comment below!


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Vindulge

About Mary


I'm Mary, a wine/food/travel writer, Certified Sommelier, mom of twins, former vegetarian turned BBQ fanatic, runner, founder of Vindulge, and author of Fire + Wine cookbook. Thanks for stopping by!

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4.93 from 14 votes (11 ratings without comment)

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11 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    There how I do it 8oz sour cream 1 can rotel one block cream cheese one pkg ranch seasoning sprinkle scallions on top serve with corn chips or bread that been crisps oh and of course couple handfuls of left over Turkey