A fast and healthy weeknight dinner recipe, ground turkey is sauteed with seasonal vegetables and simmered in a fragrant Indian spiced tomato sauce.
We eat a lot of ground turkey in our house and I imagine many of you do, too. Versatile, affordable and packed with protein and minerals, it is a busy cook’s best friend!
Acting like a blank canvas, I love using ingredients and spices from around the world to add flavor to ground turkey. Szechuan Green Beans and Ground Turkey is a staple in our house and I frequently make Turkey Black Bean Chili with Sriracha and Yogurt for lunches throughout the week.
Ground Turkey and Zucchini with Indian Spices was created on a whim to use up all of the summer vegetables I bought at the farmers market during the summer but it’s great all year round to use up whatever you have on hand.
Naturally gluten free, high in protein and low carb, my Ground Turkey and Zucchini with Indian Spices turned out to be the perfect lunch that I could prep in bulk and enjoy for several days. In fact, the flavors developed and got better over time. I love when that happens. Serve on brown rice or as is with a side salad.
What is Garam Masala?
Garam Masala is a combination of 30+ spices. Some of the ingredients it would include would be star anise,bay leaves,fennel seeds, garlic, ginger, turmeric and more.
Where can I buy Garam Masala?
Many grocery stores including Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods sell it in their spices section. Amazon stocks it as well.
What’s good to serve with a ground turkey recipe?
Brown Rice would be a nice addition or one of my Lebanese salads.
Spice level:
The cayenne to the recipe is optional and does add a little bit of heat to it. Leave it out if you would like to serve mild.
Do I have to have every ingredient in this recipe on hand to make it work?
Heck no. Don’t worry if you’re missing an ingredient or spice. Use the recipe below as a guide but free to use what you have available to you in your pantry.
Is this recipe freezer friendly?
Yes!
Is this recipe gluten-free?
Yes!
What are your favorite ground turkey recipes? Any questions I can answer for you? I’d love to hear from you. Your fork is waiting.
Ground Turkey and Zucchini with Indian Spices
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion (diced)
- 1 pound ground turkey breast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 red bell pepper (seeded and diced)
- 1 large zucchini (diced)
- 1 tablespoon ginger (minced)
- 1 tablespoon lemon grass (minced, optional)
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 cup tomato sauce (low sodium)
- 1/2 cup diced scallions
Instructions
- Heat a deep skillet over medium high heat and spray with cooking spray. Sautee onions until tender, about 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add ground turkey and salt. Cook until turkey is half-way cooked through, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in bell peppers, zucchini, ginger, lemon grass, cumin, smoked paprika, garam masala, cinnamon, cayenne and allspice. Saute until veggies are tender, about 8-9 minutes.
- Add tomato sauce and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for additional 5 minutes or until everything is cooked through and tender.
- Sprinkle with scallions right before serving.
- Check for seasoning and adjust accordingly.
Chef's Notes:
Nutrition:
Recipe by The Lemon Bowl
Looking for more dinner ideas? Check out my Healthy Entrees board!
Alene
Actually, this was good. I’m not a big fan of ground turkey meat, nor is my husband. I buy it, though, to try to lower our meat consumption. But I upped the spices by about half and added a very hot pepper, sliced thinly, that I had laying around. I also decided that I wasn’t in the mood for a tomato flavor so I exchanged the tomato sauce for about 3/4 of a can of coconut milk. It worked perfectly with basmati rice. Even my husband liked it. So, thank you for the inspiration! And for the recipe.
Liz DellaCroce
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!!
June
What is Garam masala?
Liz DellaCroce
It’s an Indian spice you can find in most grocery stores or ethnic markets!
Virginia Harring
Great recipe! I adapted the spices a little, and served it with brown rice. My one year old loved it, and I was happy to be able to feed him something healthy.
Liz DellaCroce
Great idea!
Sheilah
This was really delicious and would be great as is, but I added cubed roasted sweet potato tossed in a little olive oil and smoked paprika. So good!
Liz DellaCroce
Sounds amazing!!! Love what you did to it!
Shannon Christopher
I loved the idea of how healthy this recipe is. And, I wanted to try some Indian food on my son without getting too “exotic” because he’s a picky eater. I made this exactly as it is written (although note that I found one cup of tom sauce a little too dry so I added another 1/4 cup), except instead of scallions at the end I used chives. LOVE the flavors in this. I served it over rice and just made some steamed broccoli on the side for more veggies. This does indeed get better over a couple days since I’ve been eating leftovers now. My son calls it “Indian chili.” Thanks!
Liz DellaCroce
Indian chili is the PERFECT name!! So glad your family enjoyed it!
Robin
Delicious! I served it over baked spaghetti squash and it was just wonderful! Thank you!
Liz DellaCroce
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Robin!!
Kalee @ The Crowded Table
I love the idea to make an Indian flavored zucchini dish, that sounds delicious! And we are big ground turkey eaters as well, so I think this would be a hit in my house. :)
Liz DellaCroce
I hope you love it!
Ashley | Spoonful of Flavor
I am definitely adding this dish to my dinner menu soon! I have plenty of zucchini in my garden and always have the other ingredients on hand. I love the indian spices!
Liz DellaCroce
We are knee deep in zucchini too girl!
Gaby
So perfect!! Whole30 and paleo approved!!
Shawnna
Yummy!! This sounds right up my alley! Looks really good!
Liz DellaCroce
I hope you love it!!
Phi @ The Sweetphi Blog
I love ground turkey, and with these indian spices I can totally see it being a perfect summer meal in our household!
Liz DellaCroce
You would love this girl!! I think it’s also whole 30?
Phi @ The Sweetphi Blog
It totes IS! One of these days I have to do another whole30 again ;)
eat good 4 life
I love all the Indian spices in here. My family would love this over some rice!
Liz DellaCroce
It would be perfect over rice!!
Lauren @ Climbing Grier Mountain
Dinner tonight! How did you know that I was craving Indian food? xoxo
Liz DellaCroce
Come over and eat some with me!
Catherine
Dear Liz, what a delicious meal. I could eat this all up…it would be especially perfect with fresh flatbread. xo, Catherine
Liz DellaCroce
Aww thank you so much Catherine!