Easy Turkey Chili
Easy Turkey Chili is the simplest one-pot meal. Lean ground turkey is cooked with vegetables and spices along with a secret ingredient to take the flavor to the next level.
The phrase “One pot meal” was searched on Google over 2 million times this past month! Everyone loves a one pot meal because, by nature, they’re typically so easy to prepare and oh so convenient.
I chose to use turkey for this dish since due to the warmer weather being here, turkey makes for a lighter tasting chili but you can, of course, use beef if you like.
Given that, and even though I did use turkey, there’s no skimping on flavor here. This chili is just as rich and delicious as beef chili due to my use of that secret and magical ingredient I previously mentioned.
Turkey chili secret ingredient
Dark Belgian beer. Oh yes! This is Gulden Draak (Dutch for Golden Dragon) and it’s one helluva beer. It’s a true Belgian ale that’s sweet, rich and, thanks to my husband’s suggestion, the perfect flavor enhancer for this chili.
This is a healthy turkey chili, but if you want to make it even more healthy, you can omit the beer and replace with more beef stock.
Its complex flavors add depth and richness to the chili. You’d never guess it’s made with turkey instead of beef.
If you want to skip the beer, replace it with the same amount of beef stock. Just know the flavor won’t be quite the same.
Chili toppings are endless
I like to keep it simple when it comes to the toppings. Of course, cheese is a must! A good, sharp white Vermont cheddar is what I prefer. To add freshness, a bit of chopped cilantro will do just fine.
The toppings are a personal choice, so you can add just about anything your little heart desires. Jalapeños, onion, bacon, chopped tomatoes, sour cream and more.
When you’re eating this chili and thinking how good it is, just think about how good it’s going to be tomorrow. That is because leftovers are always better and I have a great leftover recipe, chili polenta skillet pies (picture above). They are so easy and quick to make.
Easy Turkey Chili
Video
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ½ cup (56 grams) yellow onion, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 pound (453 grams) ground turkey or chicken
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste/concentrate
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons mild chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground oregano
- 12- ounces (354 ml) bottle dark beer , optional replace with more beef stock, You can also use amber beer. If you don't want to use beer, substitute same amount of beef stock.
- 14 ounces (410 grams) diced, chopped or crushed tomatoes
- 14 ounces (410 grams) can tomato puree/pasata
- 2 cups (473 ml( beef stock/broth
- 14 ounces (410 grams) cooked kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 14 ounces (410 grams) cooked black beans, drained and rinsed
Instructions
- To a large saucepan add the oil and heat over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, pepper and carrots. Cook for about 5 minutes until they start to soften.
- Add the meat and break up and cook until browned. Stir in the garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato paste/concentrate until well mixed into the meat and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in the salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, oregano until well combined. Cook, stirring often for about 2 minutes to bring out the flavors of the spices.
- Pour in the beer and stir to deglaze the pan scraping all the bits from the bottom of the pan. Simmer for about 3 minutes until the liquid is reduced.
- Add the diced tomatoes, tomato puree/passata and beef stock/broth and simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes.
- Stir in the cooked beans. Serve hot with your favorite toppings.
I made this Friday night with ground chicken. It is certainly not lacking in flavor and since it made so much, we’ve been enjoying it all weekend (there is only 2 of us). Last night we made chili fries topped with cheddar and green onions, yum!
I’ve made it with chicken too, thank you for the feedback
Love one pot meals. This looks so delicious.
This is a very delicious idea. The chili looks nice and hearty. It is so perfect for summer time Picnics and BBQ parties.
I love how healthy and delicious your turkey chili looks! Pinned and shared!
I LOVE making a big pot of turkey chili and this version looks fantastic! So perfect for topping hot dogs off the grill!
Love any kind of chili and this one looks awesome! And the addition of beer is great! Need to try this one pot meal 🙂
Oooo…. I love a good chili, and yours sounds incredible – I just love all of the flavors you’ve got going on! Beer in chili is the best! I can’t wait to try this on a hot dog.
Saw this on IG and IMMEDIATELY had to know more. Love the addition of beer, you and I are on the same page for sure. So I am obsessed with turkey tacos on a weekly basis because they are fun, but we need to change it up. Your turkey chili is going to be our new Friday Night Thing. Cheers! And pinning!
This looks great. My wife would love this recipe.
I love that you used three kinds of beans in this! Looks ever so delicious.
Beautiful chili recipe. I love that you used ground turkey to make it healthier 🙂
This looks great… like something I’d make for my husband for lunch. Pinning! Thanks for the recipe.
This look amazing, I now have to have lunch immediately and I sure wish it was this!!
This is one of the classic one-pots (interesting that one-pot was searched so many times – must make more of these kinds of meals then!!) but with some great twists. Love the idea of turkey chili rather than regular and LOVE that you added beer. This is one for the hubs, I think!
P.S. Would be great over nachos, too!
Thank you Helen, over nachos would be amazing.