Old Timber Outdoors
More wild turkey recipes

Wild turkey legs and thighs, bone-in

Campfire Wild Turkey Leg and Green Chile Stew

Wild turkey legs browned and simmered for hours in a Dutch oven over the coals with green chiles and cumin, then pulled and finished with potatoes.

Serves
6
Hands-on
1 hr
Total
4 hr 50 min
Skill
Some experience

Cooks on: Campfire · Dinner

Ingredients

  • 3 lbWild turkey legs and thighs, bone-in
  • 1½ lbPotatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1Onions, chopped
  • 4 clovesGarlic, minced
  • 1Lime, cut into wedges
  • 2 tspSalt, divided, plus more to taste
  • ½ tspBlack pepper, ground
  • 2 tbsp neutral oil
  • 2 cans (4 oz each) diced green chiles
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
  • ¼ cup chopped cilantro

You'll need

  • Dutch oven
  • Campfire with grate or coals
  • Instant-read thermometer

Check labels

Store-bought stock can contain soy or other allergens. Check the label.

Method

  1. Build a hardwood fire and let it burn down to a steady bed of coals. Keep a small side fire going so you have fresh coals for the long simmer.
  2. Set the Dutch oven on a grate or trivet over the coals and heat the oil. Season the turkey legs and thighs with 1 tsp of the salt and brown them well on all sides, about 10 minutes. Set them on a plate.
  3. Add the onion and cook 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, cumin and oregano for 1 minute, then add the green chiles and stock and scrape up the browned bits. Return the turkey and cover.
  4. Keep the pot at a gentle simmer, adding coals under it as needed, until the meat slides off the bones and the thigh meat falls apart at a fork, 2½ to 3½ hours. Over a fire the heat varies, so tenderness decides, not the clock. If the liquid drops below the meat, add hot water.
  5. Lift the turkey onto a clean plate and let it cool until you can handle it. Pull the meat and discard the bones, skin and tendons. Skim the fat off the top of the pot with a ladle.
  6. Add the potatoes and the remaining 1 tsp salt to the pot, cover, and simmer until tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Return the meat, add the pepper, and heat until the stew reads at least 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.
  7. Taste and add salt until the chile flavor comes forward. Serve topped with the cilantro, with lime wedges to squeeze over each bowl.

When it's done: fork-tender: the meat slides off the bone

Wild turkey legs and thighs pass 165°F early in the simmer but stay tough for hours. They are done when the meat pulls away from the bone with a fork and the thigh meat falls apart. If it is still tight, it needs more time at a bare simmer, not more heat.

If it goes wrong

Boiling hard
Pull some coals out from under the pot. A hard boil toughens the meat and drives off the liquid.
Meat still tight on the bone after 3 hours
The simmer was too low. Add fresh coals and give it another 30 to 45 minutes.
Tastes flat
It needs salt and acid. Salt to taste at the end and squeeze lime over each bowl.
Stew thin
Mash a few potato chunks against the side of the pot and stir them in.

Leftovers. Cool leftovers quickly and refrigerate or put them on ice in the cooler within 2 hours. Reheat to 165°F.