With my head buried in books for the past few weeks I’ve had very little time to emerge to make dinner. On days when I decide crackers aren’t substantial enough for a full meal, I usually heat up Trader Joe’s tomato soup, toss together some semblance of a salad, or bake chicken thighs…OR beg Lucas to figure out dinner because I’ve waited so long that I’m now officially hangry. So, I shamefully admit that this is the first real meal I’ve actually cooked in a few weeks. When Lucas walked in to the smells of various spices wafting through the air last week (yes, I’m behind), he grinned, “it’s been awhile since you cooked!” And OH. MY. GAWD. What a dish to make a comeback with! Packed with veggies, protein, and rich spices, this homemade turkey chili makes a perfect pre-wedding meal. And the mere 15 minutes of hands-on time was a definite bonus for my busy study schedule.
I grew up with microwaved canned turkey chili. You know, the kind that kinda looks like dog food coming out of the can, but tastes oh-so-delicious. After a couple of minutes in the microwave, we’d drop a handful of goldfish crackers to swim around in the bowl before digging in. Nom Nom Nom.
This healthy spin on turkey and veggie chili knocks that canned version out of the ballpark, getting even more rich and flavorful as leftovers the next day. Just the right balance of sweetness from the corn, heat from the spices, and freshness from the vegetables. And there no reason to feel guilty after a heaping bowl of this stuff. To fancy it up a little more than the canned chili of my past, I served this chili up with a slice of the most delicious homemade buttermilk cornbread I’ve ever eaten. Seriously, where has this cornbread recipe been hiding all my life? Okay, so maybe it counters the healthiness of the chili, but at least I made the cornbread a teensy bit healthier by reducing the butter by half. My oh my, this combination is unforgettable.
Shortly after my cooking comeback, Lucas boarded a plane to China to prep for the launch of the iPhone 5. I quickly resorted back to my “eat what’s in the house and takes less than 5 minutes of energy” philosophy (or, as was the case this past few days, “drive up to Chico and eat what’s in Mom’s kitchen”), but at least this time I had crazy good leftovers in the fridge.
Note: Once I pass (fingers crossed) my qualifying exam in November, I plan to spend weeks in the kitchen making up for this dry spell, I promise!
Healthy turkey and veggie chili (Adapted from The Picky Eater)
Serves 6
- 1½ teaspoons olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground turkey
- 1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup frozen sweet corn
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped small
- 1 yellow onion, chopped small
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cups water
- 1½ teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1½ tablespoons chili powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¾ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- ½- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons reduced sodium soy sauce
- Heat the oil in a large heavy bottom pot over medium heat.
- Add the turkey and cook until browned, stirring to break it up as it cooks.
- Add the onion, red bell pepper, and garlic, and cook for a few minutes, stirring, until tender.
- Mix in canned tomatoes, beans, corn, and spices. Add the water and stir to combine.
- Bring the chili to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer covered for about 30 minutes until the chili thickens.
- Serve with freshly baked corn bread.
Cornbread & chili make such a cute couple, don’t they?
One should never be served without the other…
this turkey chili sounds so good with all of the veggies,, and spices. Vhili season is definitely here. Can’t wait to try it.
SB Chili, oops!
Thanks! Hope you do – it was super comforting…just in time for fall cold weather.
I’m going to definitely try this recipe! With Justin at home for awhile, I may try making it with soy ground beef…I’ll keep you posted!
I actually almost wrote, “next time I’ll try it with soy ground beef for Justin” haha. You read my mind.
I wonder if you could post the corn bread recipe as well because it looks soo delicious…
greetings from germany. unfortunately corn bread is quite exotic where I live
I’ll post the cornbread recipe soon! I need to make it again because the sun was going down as I was trying to get pictures…and then we had to eat it all – haha. In the meantime, I’ll e-mail it to you so you don’t have to wait!
I just checked my mail. thank you very much!
is it very sweet? do you think I could reduce the amount of sugar a bit just in case?
I’ll definitely try the combo very soon.
Did you post the cornbread recipe yet? I want to make this chili but would love to make the cornbread too. Thanks.
So sorry! I’ve been really behind with posting as I cram for my qualifying exams. I just e-mailed you the recipe:)
I have never seen ground turkey before at any of our butchers. Would love to try using it. This recipe looks really warming – perfect comfort food.
I actually got this ground turkey at Trader Joe’s (do they have one of those where you are?). Otherwise, you might be able to find it just at the local supermarket if the butchers don’t have it! Goodluck:)
What a comeback (and welcome from your short reprieve from the books)!
Thanks! And short it is…wish my exams were on how to cook dinner and I could just study every single night!
I love chili and corn bread. It comes from my Texas roots but moving up East made me realize that other parts of the country have their own version. Up East sweet corn bread is eaten and I always had my cornbread minus the sugar. We use pinto beans in our Texas chili and up East it was red beans. Although some Texans think chili minus the beans I say give me the beans. I too would like the corn bread recipe please.
E-mailing it now!
I’ll definitely be making this chili very soon! The weather is perfect for a meal like this =)
I agree! It’s been getting a little chilly outside – warm meals are definitely in order.
This looks and sounds wonderful, I love the extra added addition of the veggies. And the cornbread is a must with chili, I always serve a jalepeno cornbread for a little more kick.
Oh boy, my fiancé would LOVE jalapeno cornbread!
I just made this chili and it is absolutely delicious! I, unfortunately, forgot to buy fresh garlic cloves, so I ended up having to use a bit extra garlic powder. It still turned out great though! I doubled the recipe and made it for my family. They all loved it!
I have just a couple questions:
About how much would you say is 1 serving?
And do you happen to know the calorie content as well?
So glad you loved it! I’m sure the extra garlic powder worked just fine. We ate about 2-3 big ladles full of chili each (about a cereal bowl full). I’ll use a calorie calculator to figure that out when I get home and let you know! Thanks again for sharing:)
I ended up having a bunch left over, which I’m very happy about because now I can freeze some have have it for the rest of the week! (:
And thank you so much! There’s no rush at all with the calorie count, I was just curious. (:
Yeah, I try to be a little generous with my serving amounts on my recipes because I’d hate for someone to make it thinking it’d serve 7 or 8, but only serve 6! For us, it made 6 servings (but my marathon-runner fiancé eats a lot these days). That said, the recipe I have up here is about 357 calories per serving if it is split into 6 servings. We loved the leftovers – thought it tasted even better as lunch the next day! So happy to hear that you enjoyed it too:)
We made this tonight and loved it!! Thank you for sharing!! I will Pin it to spread the word
Thank you so much! I’m glad to hear you loved it – I am definitely going to making it a lot this winter.
This looks awesome! Could it also be made in the good ol’ Crock Pot? Would love to make it on a chilly work day
I made it in the Crock Pot and it turned out just fine! Actually, it was better than “just fine.” It was SUPER DELICIOUS! (:
Thanks for sharing! I was about to say “probably, but I’ve never tried it.” I just got my new crock pot in the mail and can’t wait to try it in the crock pot:)
Hi I just made this and the flavors are PERFECT! Just enough kick, i love it! My batch came out alittle loose/watery though, any suggestions to thicken it up?
Thanks!!!
Hi! So happy to hear you like the flavors. I’m not sure what might have cause it to be a little more watery. Two suggestions: If you let it simmer a little bit longer on the stove, some of the water should reduce, which will thicken the overall consistency. You could also try just reducing the amount of water you add – I don’t think that it would alter the flavors at all. I found that my sauce thickened even more when we reheated it as leftovers – did this happen for you too?
Thanks for stopping by and sharing!
I’m not sure if it would work in this recipe, but I know a lot of other chili recipes call for a few tablespoons of flour to thicken it up. Maybe you could try that?
I think that’s a great idea too!
going to the grocery store today to get the ingredients to make this awesome looking chili!
Yay! I hope you loved it!
I added a jalepeno to this recipe and it added a really nice flavor! Great recipe!