Healthy Turkey Chili Recipe with White Beans and Carrots
Healthy Turkey Chili Recipe with White Beans and Carrots
Turkey & Carrot White Bean Chili
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 Cups Carrots Sliced (or sweet potatoes)
- 1 Large Yellow Onion Chopped
- 1 Large Zucchini Chopped
- 2 Lbs Ground Turkey (or your choice of meat/crumbles)
- 13 Oz White Kidney Beans (no salt added & drained)
- 12 Oz Crushed Tomatoes
- 6 Oz Peeled Tomatoes
- 3 Tbsp Avocado Oil (or olive)
- 6 Garlic Cloves Minced
- 5 Tbsps Chili Powder
- 5 Tbsps Cumin
- 1/2 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
- 1 Tsp Sea Salt
- 1/2 Tbsp Black Pepper (plus 1 tsp with meat)
- 1 Tbsp Paprika
- 1/2 Tbsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 Tsp Ground Mustard
- 1 Tsp Dried Oregano
- 1 Tbsp Garlic Powder
- 1 Tbsp Onion Powder
- 1 Tbsp Honey
Instructions
- Add ground turkey, minced garlic, 1 tsp of black pepper, and one tablespoon of avocado oil to a pan over high heat. Finely crumble up the meat while it cooks with a spatula.
- In a separate pan, saute the onions, carrots, and zucchini with one tablespoon of avocado oil.
- Once the vegetables and ground turkey are cooked, add them to a large pot with the rest of the ingredients.
- Cook on medium-high until it forms a light boil. Turn the heat to low, cover, and continue to cook for an additional 20-25 minutes. Stay near and continue to stir! When it's no longer liquidy, that means it's done!
- When the chili is done, give it a taste test to make sure the flavors are just right! Don't be afraid to add some extra salt, garlic, honey, or whatever you think it needs!
Luckily, my dad is the champion of chili. I called him up for his expertise because I needed to get this recipe right. And when I brought it to him to try, he added a splash more of cumin and then gave me his approval. It’s safe to say that this recipe is Chili Cook-Off Champion approved! 
I had a lot of carrots to use up in the fridge, so I chose to cook with those instead of sweet potatoes. If you’d rather use sweet potatoes, go for it! The carrots were just as good as the sweet potatoes, and I could hardly tell the difference. The great thing about carrots is that they contain just about all the same nutrients as sweet potatoes with half the calories and carbs, so the chili is on the lighter side. That just means you can eat more of it 🙂 
If you want to make this recipe vegan, just use vegetarian crumbles instead of ground turkey. I’ve used the vegetarian crumbles and you cannot tell the difference!
Once the chili cooled, I stored it in a giant glass container with a lid in the fridge. I also put half of the chili in a container to bring over for my parents. They are the honest critics 🙂 
Questions for you!
- What is one unique ingredient you add to your chili?
- Do you eat chili all year round?
- Did you cook anything this weekend?
This looks super delicious, Taralynn! 😀 I usually only eat chilli during the colder months but I love anything with a good kick of spice. Will need to make this pronto! 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Lol I usually only eat it during the colder months too, but apparently March is a cold one here haha
My secret ingredient is a tablespoon of chocolate chips. I usually add Cayenne pepper to my chili, as well, so it makes for a great pair together!
WHA?!? that is so interesting lol But I hear people add cocoa so it can’t be far off! And I’ve had cayenne chocolate, so…I WILL HAVE TO TRY IT!
I don’t cook chili too often, but this sounds delicious and easy to meal prep so I think I’ll be adding it to next week’s menu! I don’t have a weird ingredient, but one of my old roommates used to add pasta to his chili—I thought it was so strange but it was the best chili I’ve ever had!
I ate chili most of the year when I lived in Chicago, since it seemed like winter never ended there! (Especially when I lived with that roommate; I’d bet him to make it at least once a month for the entire year we lived together.) Now that I’m back in Florida, it’s too hot to eat heavy stuff like that most of the time.
I meal prepped a coconut chicken curry in my Instant Pot for lunches this week! I’m so excited to dig in. It has sweet potato, green beans, and bell peppers, and I’m eating it with cauliflower rice! 🙂
Hi, Melissa!
There isn’t really any way you can mess this one up 🙂 It’s pretty dang easy! 😀
I love adding pasta and potatoes to soups/chilis! It’s actually good! Reminds me of goulash lol
Lol its HOT in the summer in Chicago and COLD in the winter! you have the extremes 😉 Yeah, Florida is for the grilled food and salads 😀
Sounds like a good meal prep!
You need to try adding cinnamon to your chili, it is truly a game changer. SO GOOD. It sounds so weird but tastes so amazing.
I’ve done it! I love adding cinnamon 😀
I also add it to minestrone sometimes
You’ll never guess this but if you add COCOA powder to your chilli it’s DELICIOUS. Try 1 tbsp!
I like adding cinnamon to soups so I’m sure it’s good!
I’ve actually used ranch powder in my chili. I’m sure most people would turn their nose at it but it adds a good flavor! I eat chili year long because it’s just so good!
Sounds pretty good!!!
Unsweetened dark chocolate cocoa powder, gives it a mole touch.
I haven’t made a true chili in a bit, but I’m making posole tonight.
Nothing prepped but I did a nice shrimp and broccoli stir fry.
That all sounds great!
I can’t wait to try this recipe! I stopped making chilli because my secret ingredients were cheese and sour cream. It was not a healthy recipe. LOL. But this looks much better. I’m really having fun right now broadening my cooking horizons and I love the way you provide substitution ideas. AND I’ve been craving chili. Thanks for this recipe!
I hope you enjoy this recipe!! 🙂 No crazy or weird hidden ingredients! 😀
My dad LOVES adding raspberries to chili 🙂
so unique!
EVEn though I’m not much of a beer drinker, adding some and letting it simmer is actually pretty good with the hint of beer flavor. I’ve also added red wine before.
Lol I think my dad is guilty of that too.
I’m not a beer drinker, but i love beer cheese!
My fiancé and I love making chili! We live in Minnesota, so we make it almost year round. We like to try new ingredients fairly often, but a couple of secret ingredients we love are curry powder and buffalo sauce! Letting it marinate overnight in the fridge is also a trick we use.
I bet the buffalo sauce is a great addition!
Woo hoo! I know what we’ll be meal prepping next weekend :). I love all the delicious spices that are in this. And your dad is pretty much amazing haha.
I’m definitely an eating chili year round kinda girl. Same with soup. It’s just SO delicious and easy to make, how could you only save that for one time of the year?!
We made smashed garlic potatoes this weekend and it was SO GOOD. I can’t believe we haven’t done it before. I’m obsessed!
Happy Monday Taralynn!
Lol so true!!! I mean, chili and hotdogs in the summer, too!! haha
ohhhh, garlic makes everything better! 😀
lol my dad is a character and there is nothing he can’t do! hahaha
have a great week, Susie!
Just wondering what the calories are per cup?
thank you!
Hi, Lisa!
All the nutritional info is down at the bottom! 🙂
Does that mean there are 24 servings in this recipe?
I bought all the ingredients and will try it out with vegetarian meat! Thank you, Taralynn
Enjoy! Let me know what you think!
Am definitely trying this recipe, thanks for sharing. I can’t say I eat chili all year around, but I do love taco soup and eat that whenever I feel the urge. Since going vegetarian last summer, I just use the soy crumbles to replace the meat and it’s all the same to me. My recipe calls for a powdered ranch dressing packet, so I guess that’s a secret ingredient!
Here’s what I made this weekend when my family went camping. https://cookieandkate.com/2017/lentil-baked-ziti-recipe/ The lentils added so much here and it was so fillling. I use regular cheese, so it wasn’t dairy free, but oh so yummy! Let me know if you try it.
Hi, Veronica!
I agree! I’ve had the soy crumbles and they really do taste the same!
I’ve heard about the ranch packet secret! Might have to try that sometime.
MMMMM that looks awesome!!
I love chili but I don’t eat it year round. I actually skip the beans and make a paleo-ish version of chili. This is the recipe I use
http://kitchencomforts.org/recipe/paleo-chili-2/
I love reading your blog!
That looks great! If I use sweet potatoes, I always skip the beans too!
We made this tonight and it was great! It was pretty chilly today so I thought this meal sounded perfect. And now we have leftovers for tomorrow which is what I especially love about making meals like this. My boyfriend asked me specifically to tell you how much he loved it!
Hi, Liz!
That just made my day! 🙂 I’m so happy you guys loved the chili!
Thanks for taking the time to drop me this note!
Have a great weekend!
Taralynn