Slow Cooker Turtle Stew
Last year we went to an International Food Market and I bought some Turtle Meat. I love to order Turtle Soup at our local restaurant and have eaten it for years. Turtle Meat is quite expensive at $20.00 a pound! When I bought it I didn’t know that it was Turtle Meat chunks because it was frozen. I assumed it was ground up Turtle Meat since that is how I have always eaten it in the soup. I had a recipe for soup that I am told is from the restaurant where I always order it from, but I didn’t feel like grinding the meat so I opted for a stew instead and made my own recipe.
Ingredients
Add the carrots, onions and celery
to the bottom of the slow cooker.
Add the turtle meat pieces, salt and pepper.
Add the beef broth.

Cook 10 hours on low or 5 hours on high then serve.
Slow Cooker Turtle Stew
http://www.InDianesKitchen.com
Ingredients
- 1# turtle meat, rinsed and cut into 1″ pieces
- 2 celery stalks, rinsed and sliced
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/2″ thick (I used baby carrots and didn’t care for them, use regular carrots for better taste)
- 1 tsp. salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp. pepper or to taste
- 4 cups beef broth
Directions
- Add the carrots, onion and celery to the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Add the turtle meat, salt and pepper.
- Add the beef broth.
- Cook on low for 10 hours or high for 5 hours then serve.
Categories: Broth, Seafood, Slow Cooker, Stew, Vegetables/Slaws/Salads
This is by the most exotic meal I have ever seen on a blog! I know it’s not exotic, but I have never seen turtle meat discussed before! I could hug you, Diane!
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Awww you should know by now I make & eat it all! Hahahaha Hugs right back to you!
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That’s what kept me coming back for more!
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I had no idea that Turtle meat was even an option for anyone besides the sea creatures that prey on them. 🤓
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Hahahaha yes it is and snapping turtle is the kind that is eaten.
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Thanks for the education. 🤓 👍
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That looks delicious, although I’ve never eaten turtle meat before
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Thank you it is hard to find turtle soup.
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I think the chunks make a perfect stew!
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I agree! I have only had the meat ground before and I knew it was a tough meat. However, everything turns tender after a cooking in the slow cooker all day!
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the town i grew up in has a local irish pub i would frequent. the food is very good, and my favorite meal was their chunky chicken salad sandwich with bacon on pumpernickel, AND a cup of their snapper soup! Don’t forget the sherry on top.
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Oh that sounds like my kind of place!!!! It is nice to hear other place sell the soup too. Thank you for sharing that!
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I’ve never had turtle meat? I wonder if it tastes more like chicken or steak? The texture? Might be my next adventure. It seems as if you could use almost any meat with this recipe, looks delicious. C
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It is very good Cheryl. The meat is tough which is why they usually grind it up for soup. I experimented with the slow cooker and by cooking the chunks all day it made it very easy to chew. The taste is like ground beef in the soup and the chunks cooked in the slow cooker were like chicken gizzards. Really not at all like steak or chicken, it has it’s own taste. At the price of the meat, order it from a restaurant to see what you think before you invest in a lot of the meat. I was brought up on game of all types.
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This dish looks so great! My mouth is watering!
Cool Kitchen Utensils
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Thank you! 💕
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I clicked on your blog post today just to see if it was for real. I’ve never tasted turtle meat. At $20-a-pound, I guess I never will. Very interesting, Diane!
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Lol yes I was brought up to eat everything as a kid. We didn’t have a lot of money and hunted mushrooms, asparagus and fished. My dad hunted rabbit and squirrel too. The soup became a huge hit in one of our local restaurants and whenever I went there I always went home with a huge container. I will never pay that price for it again but I was so shocked to have found it and just had to buy it.
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That stew looks delicious and I love anything slow cooked.
If I can be honest though, the thought of eating turtle makes me a bit queasy only cuz they’re so cute. I’m curious to know – what do they taste like? Are they gamey tasting? Either way, enjoy!!!
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I totally understand. I could never catch the snapping turtle and kill it but this meat was frozen. It looks just like beef and in the stew the taste is similar to chicken gizzard I feel. Now in the soup I think it tastes just like ground beef as it is ground in the soup we eat. It had a mild gamey flavor but not very much.
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Ground beef sounds yummy. I couldn’t tell it wasn’t beef until you pointed out what it was. I may just have to try it out one day!
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Good choice to cook your own, nice.
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The only reason is because I found the meat. It is so difficult to find unless you order it on line.
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Beautiful, colorful stew and it looks like it would be good. Wow, that is some pricey turtle meat. I had turtle soup once but I was a little girl and don’t remember what it tastes like.
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Thank you! We have snapping turtles where I live and I grew up eating the soup. But now you can’t find anyone to sell the turtle meat. I even bought $60 worth of soup from the restaurant just so I could freeze individual bowls of soup for when ever I wanted some. I was thrilled to find this turtle meat but my goodness it was expensive!
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Enjoy every bite of that soup, you paid for it.
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Looks delicious. I’ve never even thought of eating turtles. We have some in our dam!
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I don’t know why but only snapping turtles are used for eating. Maybe they are meatier?
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I’m curious Diane…..what does turtle meat taste like? Is it a dark meat?
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Yes it is a dark meat and has a taste all it’s own. In soup it reminds me of seasoned ground beef but in the stew more like chicken gizzards.
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Definitely a delicacy for sure!
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I’ve never seen or tasted turtle meat before – what does it taste like Diane?
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Turtle meat is a tough meat and needs to be ground up or slow cooked all day then it is great. In soup it tastes like ground beef but in the stew it reminded me of chicken gizzards.
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I see – well I like that you are willing to experiment with different types of food. So, they grind it up for soup then – hmm. I wondered and since many turtles grow to an old age, it is no wonder the meat is so tough.
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Not sure and I’m not sure why they only use snapping turtles either.
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Interesting that they only use snapping turtles.
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I have never had turtle meat. This looks so good.
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It is a tough meat so it needs to be ground up or slow cooked a long time then it is great. Thanks Christy!
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Do you ever put sherry in it?
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No I have never heard of that before. I bet it is good though!
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I have never eaten turtle meat, Diane. Didn’t even know it was in the grocery store!
Blue Rock Horses Frederick County, Virginia bluerockhorses.com
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The only place I could find it was in the freezer section at Jungle Jims International Market and that was a shock when my husband found it, he wasn’t looking for it.
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I guess it is not different than frog’s legs, but I just can’t imagine eating turtle. I am going to save this anyway and maybe some day ……..
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Right they both come from the same place..lol Turtle meat is best cooked in soup or like this. I have eaten turtle soup since I was a kid.
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I had no idea you could eat turtle meat! I’ll have to try it one day, just don’t tell the wrong people you ate turtle Diane!
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I have eaten just about everything available in my area…lol My dad was a hunter and we tasted everything.
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That sounds wonderful!
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Believe it or not, those baby carrots, cooked or raw, are one of the few healthy things my now three-year-old son will eat willingly. This meal looks great!
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That’s great! However you can get a 3 year old to eat their veggies is a win-win! Thanks!
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To be sure! 🙂
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Sounds delish!
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Thank you!
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What a post! I never know what you are going to write about–from kitchen gadgets to…well, turtle soup. I’ve never had any and I can’t say I have seen it on a menu in New Mexico or in my travels, but then we don’t usually seek out expensive venues. Perhaps a fancy place in Santa Fe? I’m going to keep my eye open for it.
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I hope your can find it just to say you tried it. I am glad you found it interesting. I was expecting a lot of backlash from my fellow bloggers but the fact that it is snapping turtle helped…lol
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