Turkey Cranberry Sliders

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Turkey Cranberry Sliders are a sweet and savory way to use leftover Thanksgiving turkey, cranberry sauce, and more! Sink your teeth into these buttery Hawaiian roll sliders stuffed with scrumptious turkey, tart cranberry sauce, and gooey brie cheese— so easy and delicious!

A turkey slider with gooey cheese and cranberry sauce on a spatulate with whole cranberries in the background.

Made with fresh or leftover ingredients from your holiday meal, these hot turkey sliders are the perfect 30-minute easy recipe for the day after Thanksgiving or Christmas.

And you can make them your own by adding other side dishes like a scoop of your Cornbread Dressing or perhaps a spoon full of Potato Casserole.

Table of Contents

Why We Love This Recipe!
Ingredients
Variations and Substitutions
How To Make Hawaiian Roll Turkey Sliders
Tips
Recipe FAQs
Storage
What to Serve with Hot Turkey Cheese Sliders
Other Thanksgiving Recipes
Turkey Cranberry Sliders
Comments

Why We Love This Recipe!

No Turkey Goes to Waste- Use up those Thanksgiving leftovers in these flavor-packed leftover turkey sliders
Savory & Sweet- The savory, buttery turkey and topping pair well with the sweet rolls and tart cranberry sauce.
Next Day Easy- Assemble these sandwiches easily in no time, the day after Thanksgiving or any day!

After a long day of cooking and cleaning up on Thanksgiving, no one wants to rush back into the kitchen the next day. So, leftover turkey is golden in my home!

But if you want to make these mini turkey sandwiches at a time when you do not have leftovers, you can certainly use deli slices. Either way, they are cheesy, gooey delicious!

In fact, there are many creative ways I like to use up the leftover turkey meat. My rule of thumb is if a recipe calls for chicken, it will most likely be great with turkey, too!

Try turkey in this Easy Chicken Pot Pie recipe and my Chicken Poppy Seed Casserole for a whole new meal idea. You can also put the turkey in soups like White Chicken Chili and Tortilla Chicken Soup.

Ingredients

Hawaiian Savory Butter Rolls | Use a 12-count bag of tasty sweet Hawaiian rolls. You can also use leftover dinner rolls.
Turkey | Sliced deli meat or leftover turkey slices work perfectly for these sliders.
Cranberry sauce | Whole cranberry sauce is tart and sweet, and it really takes this slider to the next level. Use leftover cranberry sauce from the Thanksgiving dinner.
Brie Cheese | Use a wheel of buttery soft, and gooey sliced brie.
Butter | Brushing the top of the sandwiches with butter mixture makes them irresistible. Use unsalted butter, so the sandwiches don’t get too salty.
Mustard | This recipe calls for your favorite mustard. I use dijon mustard or stone-ground mustard.
Poppy Seeds | These little seeds add so much nutty flavor and are good for you too! You can choose sesame seeds if you would rather.
Salt | Add salt to the buttery topping so you can control just how much you like.
Parsley | Garnish your mini sandwiches with chopped fresh parsley.

Variations and Substitutions

Mustard- Any mustard works for this recipe. Try yellow mustard, dijon, spicy brown mustard, or stone ground.
Garlic- Add a little garlic powder or minced garlic into the butter mix.
Seasonings- Feel free to sprinkle some dried herbs like rosemary, thyme, or sage onto the turkey for more flavor.
No Cranberry- If you do not have any cranberry sauce, try any jelly, jam, or preserves.
Sweetness- Add even more sweet flavor with a scoop of brown sugar melted into the buttery topping.

How To Make Hawaiian Roll Turkey Sliders

To make these ooey gooey melty sliders, you’ll first need to go through the fridge to see what leftovers made it through the night. Gather your ingredients and get started.

Preheat the oven and lightly grease the bottom of your casserole dish with butter or cooking spray. Then set the pan aside.

✱ Be sure to see the recipe card below for exact ingredients and instructions!

Step 1 | The Rolls

With a bread knife, slice the entire slab of rolls evenly to separate the tops from the bottoms. Do not separate the Hawaiian slider rolls; you want them to stay connected.

Then place the entire bottom half into the greased baking pan and set the top half of the rolls aside.

Collage Image 1 showing steps to add turkey and cranberry to slider rolls.

Step 2 | Assemble the Layers

Start layering on the goodness! Add the sliced turkey on top in an even layer. Then, spread a healthy portion of cranberry sauce over the turkey.

Finally, top it all with brie cheese. Then you can place the tops of the buns back on to close the sliders up.

Step 3| Make the Sauce

Take out a microwave-safe medium bowl and measure the butter, mustard, poppy seeds, and salt into the bowl. Mix the sauce with a whisk between 30-second intervals until the butter is fully melted.

Collage image showing adding cheese and butter mixture to turkey slider and rolls.

Step 4 | Brush it On

Use a pastry brush or a sauce brush to spread the poppy seed butter mixture evenly on top of the rolls, scraping the poppy seeds out of the bowl with a spatula as you go.

If you want a few more poppy seeds, feel free to sprinkle more nutty poppy seeds on top.

Step 5 | Into the Oven

Now, cover the entire pan of turkey sandwiches with aluminum foil and bake for just 15 minutes. This way, the tops won’t get overcooked.

Then remove the foil and cook uncovered for 5 to 10 additional minutes. When time is up, remove the pan of turkey sliders from the oven.

Overhead image of a glass baking dish filled with slider sandwiches and garnished with buttery poppy seed topping and parsley.

Carefully slice the rolls into individual sliders. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve fresh out of the oven. Enjoy!

Tips

Keep all the rolls connected to allow the flavors to melt and mix together. Then pull them apart-- YUM!
Don’t skip the foil over the rolls. You do not want burned roll tops!
Try to cut evenly through the center of the rolls, so the bottoms are not too thin.

Recipe FAQs

What other meats can I use for these cranberry turkey sliders?

You can always use pre-sliced deli meat if you do not have any leftover turkey or ask the deli to thick-cut a slice of turkey. For that matter, you can use any meat you would like. Ham and roast beef would be great!

Can this recipe be doubled?

You can easily double the recipe if you’re feeding a larger crowd. Check out the King’s Hawaiian rolls sold in a 24-count pack. Follow the same instructions and bake them on a sheet pan.

What other cheeses are good in this turkey cranberry sandwich recipe?

Really, you can use any cheese. I like to use brie, smoked gouda, and sliced Swiss cheese for turkey sliders. But you can use cream cheese, goat cheese, cheddar, or even provolone cheese. The choice is yours!

A glass baking pan of turkey slider sandwiches with a few moved from the pan.

Storage

I have to say, these leftover sliders are best when fresh out of the oven. They really do not reheat well—so I would eat them cold if there were extras. However, the bottoms tend to get a bit soggy. So, they are best eaten right away.

But if you want to try to save a couple, you can place them in a plastic bag, seal them up, and store them in the refrigerator until you are craving another. They will last for 3 to 4 days there.

What to Serve with Hot Turkey Cheese Sliders

When serving these sliders, you may want to reheat a few more of your Thanksgiving side dishes, like some leftover Southern Collard Greens, Southern Style Green Beans, and Corn Casserole.

You can also serve them alongside a healthy and fresh Chopped Greek Salad or a Classic Caesar and a big bowl of Butternut Squash Soup.

Then again, a hearty slice of leftover Pumpkin Pie ain’t such a bad idea, either!

Other Thanksgiving Recipes

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Turkey Cranberry Sliders

Why We Love This Recipe!

Ingredients

Variations and Substitutions