Turkey Cranberry Sliders - quick and yummy recipe! (2024)

Need an idea for using up all of the Thanksgiving leftovers? My favorite way to turn the turkey into a whole new meal is to make Turkey Cranberry Sliders. They couldn’t be easier and they are super tasty! Simply fill Hawaiian rolls with turkey, cranberry sauce, your favorite cheese, and you could even add potatoes or stuffing. Top with poppy seed butter, then bake to golden brown perfection. The ultimate way to use Thanksgiving leftovers and feed a crowd!

For this turkey sliders recipe, feel free to use just turkey (or another deli meat variety) and cheese (leaving the cranberry sauce off) for an awesome anytime party snack. Perfect for game day!

One of the main reasons I get so excited for Thanksgiving, besides my pumpkin pie dessert squares, is Black Friday. And these sliders are a Black Friday must! Black Friday is one of my favorite traditions. We’re old school and go shopping the morning after Thanksgiving because this girl needs her beauty rest. But I absolutely love getting up early on Friday, grabbing a white chocolate peppermint mocha and checking gifts off my kiddos’ wishlists, all with the hustle and bustle of the holidays. When we get home and are all just about to drop, I whip up these leftover turkey sliders. It’s the most delicious way to make a new meal out of the leftovers.

How To Use Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey

These Turkey Cranberry Sliders are so good and almost better than the big meal. The sweet and savory combo is so delicious and I’m pretty much a fan of any recipe using Hawaiian rolls.

If you’re looking for more ways to use the leftover turkey, just use any recipe that calls for shredded chicken and swap the chicken out for turkey. This Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup,these Easy Chicken Enchiladasor this Turkey Pot Pie would work great!

Ingredients For Turkey Sliders

There are just a few essential ingredients to make these sliders amazing!

• Hawaiian rolls. I highly recommend using Hawaiian buns. They’re absolutely perfect for baking sliders. The inside of the bread stays soft and tender while the outside of the sliders have an ever-so-slight crispiness.
• Turkey (or another meat option). If you have leftover turkey or even ham, that’s great! But you can make these year round by simply using your favorite deli meat.
• Cheese. Use any favorite cheese. We typically go with Swiss or smoked gouda. So good!
• Cranberry sauce. This ingredient isn’t actually essential. If you don’t have cranberry sauce, use any favorite jam or jelly or don’t use a sauce at all.
• Poppy seed butter. Brush a mixture of butter, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and poppy seeds over the top of the buns before baking. This butter mixture gives these sliders SO much flavor. It’s a must!

How To Make Leftover Turkey Sliders

Start off by grabbing all of the leftovers, plus a package of Sweet Hawaiian rolls, cheese, butter, and seasonings. If you don’t happen to have leftovers, but you want to make this recipe, you can use sliced deli turkey and store-bought cranberry sauce. Trader Joe’s makes a tasty option! You could also use jam, jelly, or another favorite sauce.

The first step to make these is to slice the Sweet Hawaiian Rolls. You want to keep all of the rolls together.Next, you’re going to start layering the ingredients. Feel free to layer on more leftovers, if you have them. I think sweet potatoes or stuffing would be awesome on these as well. It really doesn’t matter the order you layer ingredients, but I start with the turkey.

Then, spread the cranberry sauce over the turkey. Use as much or little as you like. This is where you would also layer on any additional ingredients, like potatoes or stuffing.

The last layer here is the cheese. You can use any type of cheese. I like a white cheese for these sliders and I’ve used Swiss, Gouda and Provolone. A good smoked Gouda is my favorite.

Last, place the top half of the rolls over the cheese layer. Use a brush to spread the melted butter mixture over the rolls. If you don’t have a brush, you can spoon the melted butter over the rolls. Cook the rolls until cheese is melted and the turkey is heated. I cooked mine with foil over the top for about 15 minutes, to keep the tops from getting too brown. After 15 minutes, take the foil off and continue to cook for another 5-8 minutes.

Remove from the oven and slice into individual sliders and serve immediately. If you have leftover gravy, it makes a great dip for these turkey sliders! Sliders are best served right after being removed from the oven. These don’t store or re-heat very well.

Tips For Turkey Sliders

• These sliders can be assembled up to 4 hours before baking. Store them covered in the fridge until you’re ready to bake and enjoy.
• Turkey sliders are best eaten immediately after they come out of the oven.
• Don’t forget to cover the sliders before baking with foil, so that the tops don’t burn. After 15 minutes, you can uncover the sliders and let them bake for about 5 more minutes and until golden brown.
• This recipe as written makes 12 sliders and most people eat about 2 sliders. You can easily double or triple the recipe to feed a crowd.

Recipe Variations

While turkey and cranberry are a pretty great pairing on their own, you can add more ingredients or change up the ingredients to these sliders to fit your preferences.

• Spicy. Add pickled jalapeños in between the meat and cheese.
• Bacon. How delicious would bacon taste in these sliders?!
• Italian. Use marinara sauce instead of cranberry sauce and mozzarella cheese. You can even swap the turkey for pepperoni!

More Fall Favorites to Enjoy

Pumpkin Cake Mix Cookies

Apple Turnovers

Sweet Potato Casserole

Butternut Squash Salad

Turkey Dressing with Gravy

If you try this turkey sliders recipe, let me know! Leave a comment and if your family loves it as much as mine does, be sure to giveit a five star ⭐️ rating! Also, tag @kimscravings on Instagram with a picture of your creation. It’s so fun to see what you’re cooking! Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more delicious recipes straight to your inbox.

This post was updated with new content October 2020.