Healthy Turkey Chili
This healthy turkey chili is a hearty, easy meal that will get rave reviews! It’s full of lean ground turkey, beans, tomatoes and plenty of spices. So satisfying and packed with protein, nothing beats a comforting bowl of turkey chili!
I’m just gonna cut to the chase: this healthy turkey chili is the best chili I’ve ever made. The meat is tender, it’s thick and hearty, the heat level is perfect, and there’s a huge depth of flavor from the different spices. It’s the perfect meal for a cold day, with minimal prep work.
How Do You Make Healthy Turkey Chili?
Step 1: Brown the ground turkey and sauté veggies.
The first step in the process is to brown the ground turkey. While the turkey is browning in a large skillet, sauté the onions and bell pepper in a large soup pot until soft. I used a yellow bell pepper, but any color works.
Step 2: Add remaining ingredients and simmer.
Combine all ingredients with the onion mixture and bring to a boil. Decrease heat and simmer chili for about 30 minutes. Taste and add garlic salt and pepper for your taste preference.
Step 3: Serve and enjoy!
Chili is ready to go and delicious after 30 minutes, but the leftover chili (after the seasonings have had a chance to meld) is amazing. When you’re ready to serve, ladle turkey chili into bowls and add your favorite toppings like sour cream, sliced avocado, cheese, cilantro and crushed tortilla chips. Enjoy!
This recipe is written for a mild chili, but if you like a spicy chili, you can add some cayenne, crushed pepper flakes or use a hot chili powder.
Reasons To Love This Healthy Turkey Chili:
- Protein packed. Between the beans and turkey, each serving has almost 20g protein!
- Light on fat. There’s nothing fatty in this turkey chili recipe! In fact, if you use the extra lean ground turkey, there’s not even a gram fat per serving!
- Super quick + easy. Once you’ve sautéed the onion and pepper and browned the turkey, this chili recipe is totally hands off.
- Freezer-friendly. This soup freezes beautifully. Store leftovers in the freezer for busy nights!
- Customizable. Add in extra veggies or leave out anything you don’t have on hand. Super easy to customize!
Crockpot Version:
This healthy turkey chili is a really easy slow cooker recipe as well. Nothing better than slow cooker turkey chili, especially in the fall or winter!
- Simply follow the instructions, such as cooking the onions and ground turkey, up until adding the seasonings.
- Then place the remaining ingredients in the slow cooker with the cooked turkey and onion mixture.
- Cook turkey chili on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.
Freezing Tips:
This healthy chili recipe makes a great freezer meal! It holds up really well in the freezer and is perfect to pull out for busy weeknights.
To freeze:
- Place cooled soup in a freezer bag or container (leaving room for it to expand).
- Add a freezer label with the name of the recipe and date you cooked it.
- Store in freezer for up to 6 months.
- To thaw, let it sit in fridge overnight or thaw in the microwave.
- Then let it simmer in a pot on low heat until warm.
Toppings To Add To This Healthy Chili Recipe:
As much as I love this turkey chili as-is, it’s even better with lots of toppings. I listed my favorite toppings, below. If you like crunch, add some tortilla strips or oyster crackers! This chili is hearty enough to serve as a complete meal, but I often serve it with a side of my famous Mexican cornbread muffins for an extra special dinner. Some favorite topping ideas:
Sour cream: We love to add a dollop of sour cream to our turkey chili. It makes it a little more creamy. You could use Greek yogurt too.
Shredded cheese: I typically sprinkle some shredded Mexican cheese on top of my healthy turkey chili. The cheese gets all melty and delicious.
Avocado or guacamole: Feel free to add some avocado slices or even a dollop of guacamole.
Tortilla chips or strips: One of my favorite toppings to add is crushed tortilla chips or strips. Adds the perfect crunch!
Cilantro: I’m a huge fan of cilantro and add extra to almost all Mexican recipes that I make. So flavorful and yummy!
Green or red onions: I usually add about a tablespoon of green or red onions to my turkey chili bowl. Gives it an extra boost of flavor.
Lime juice: A squeeze of a lime slice is the perfect finish to this chili recipe!
The thing I love most about this healthy chili recipe is that it’s even better the next day. I’m not a huge fan of leftovers, but I will definitely eat this healthy turkey chili the day after. It is that good!
Other Chili And Soup Recipes To Try:
Award-Winning Beef Chili Recipe
Helpful Tools For Making This Easy Turkey Chili:
Le Creuset Signature Dutch Oven – If you’re open to spending a bit of money on a piece that you’ll own forever, Le Creuset is my favorite brand for heavy pots and cookware.
Lodge Dutch Oven – Lodge is a great brand as well. I own several of their cast iron skillets and have been very happy with them. This one is more budget-friendly, but still great quality!
Wüsthof Two Piece Prep Set (Knives) – This is the knife set that I use most often and I can’t say enough great things about these high-quality knives.
If you try this turkey chili recipe, let me know! Leave a comment and if your family loves it as much as mine does, be sure to give it 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 healthy delicious recipes straight to your inbox.
Healthy Turkey Chili
Ingredients
- 1 lb. lean ground turkey meat*
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 bell pepper (any color), diced
- 1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes, undrained, (stewed tomatoes work too)
- 1 (15 oz.) can black or kidney beans, undrained, (any of your favorite bean variety will work)
- 1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chilies
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder, more if you prefer
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin or to taste
- season with preferred amount of garlic salt and pepper
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook ground meat until no longer pink.
- Meanwhile, add onion and bell pepper to a large pot and sauté until soft. Then, combine all other ingredients with onion and bell pepper, bring to a boil, decrease heat and simmer for about 30 minutes. Add the meat in with all of the other ingredients when it is cooked.
- Chili is ready to go and delicious after 30 minutes, but the leftover chili (after the seasonings have had a chance to meld) is amazing.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @kimscravings on Instagram and be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy and delicious recipes straight to your inbox!
Great recipe! Our family loved it and it is now definitely in our dinner rotation!
Yay! So happy to hear!!
Thanks for this awesome chili recipe. It was easy, quick and delicious. Will definitely make again!
Great recipe that is not only filling but also nutrient rich and super flavorful! My whole family enjoyed!
I’ve already made this chili twice since you posted it! It’s so good, I can’t get enough!
I love a good simple chili. Great suggestions for toppings and a way to make it in the crockpot too! I made mine in the crockpot and it was wonderful! A keeper for sure!
This was fantastic! I made this when I had friends over to watch the game. I made a toppings bar sounds and everyone enjoyed it. Several people even asked for the recipe!
Can I freeze this recipe? If so, how long?
Yes, freeze the chili in an airtight container or gallon sized freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Love how simple, yet tasty this is! It’s definitely going to be my new go-to chili recipe!
Loved this chili! It’s so tasty and satisfying!
OMG! This chili is so good! We loved the flavor and especially how easy this recipe was!
I love how easy and simple this was to make, the whole family loved it!
So hearty and delicious. I made this recipe for a family gathering and it was a hit!