So how many people only breast out a turkey and throw the legs, thighs and wings away?

A couple years ago I started keeping them and man I got to tell you I have been wasting a lot of delicious meat in the past. I pretty much double my turkey meat since I have started to keep them.

IMO since I have learned this it would be equivalent to just ripping the backstrap out of a deer and leaving the rest in the woods.

How do you cook the legs/thighs? I kept the ones off of this last turkey to try. I was thinking crock pot?

Almost have to par boil thighs and legs... Then into turkey salad ...

I do cook mine in a crock pot. So simple. Put leg and thigh in little bit of water and turn on. Come back few hours later and the bones and ligaments pull right out. I typically make a turkey pot pie, gumbo, turkey and dumplings, turkey and rice. Options are almost endless and it is just as tasty if not even better. Heck I have even started cooking breast the same way.

I used to keep the legs and give them to my grandma..... She told me to quit saving them for her because they weren't fittin....

Just a waste that out of all those turkeys you killed your throwing half the meat away. You could have probably fed an a small Somalia village

X10! Crock pot for few hours, then through the food processor, add egg, mayo, dill relish, salt and pepper and it makes dang good sandwiches! It's good by itself or on a cracker also. A good ol ripe tomato on a sammich with it makes it even better!

I wouldn't say that the wings and thighs equal 50% of the meat on a wild turkey. I have kept some but by the time you get the tendons and bones out there isnt much left, and to me it isn't worth fooling with.

I always said if my momma couldn't cook it there ain't no way I could. I hate to waste. I crock pot it. It's ok. I'll usually feed it to the dogs.

I put the hips and legs in a pressure cooker; the meat will fall off the bone and damn good in camp stew, bbq, soups, dressing or just whatever the wife feels like making with it.

I've always heard the legs are like trying to eat the tounge out of a leather boot. Tuffer than tuff!

i only breast mine out

Pressure cook legs and gizzard for about 30 minutes then add taters carrots and anything else. Well worth keeping.

Same here. Every now and then I'll pick one whole for the smoker.

I breast mine usually, unless I know someone who wants a whole one.

So why waist the other edible parts? It seems like the only people who don't keep it never tried it. Don't get me wrong I ised to not. Probably waisted 200+ gobblers over the years by only breasting them. Now that I TRIED it I will never waist it. Especially the legs and thighs. It takes two min to clean. Now I will not always save the wings just because the are a pain in the arse.

Legs in the crockpot in chicken broth seasoned with a little lemon juice and black pepper. After a bit you can pull all the tendons right out and you have a bunch of delicious meat.

I put the legs in a crockpot for 6-8 hours. Just did it this week and mixed barbecue sauce with it. Chopped it pretty small, similar to chopped pork.

But the truth about the amount of meat - if measured by weight of edible meat - the breast to leg ratio is about 15 to 1.

I only breast em out