A Grateful Meal

Game Day

Ground Turkey Slow Cooker Recipes [Crockpot or Instant Pot]

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These recipes are the best ground turkey slow cooker recipes for using up any ground turkey meat you may have hanging around your fridge.

 Who doesn’t love a good slow cooker recipe? It’s basically set it and forget it. I thought I would highlight a few recipes, so I’ve rounded up a few easy and delicious ground turkey slow cooker recipes all in one spot.  

The Best Ground Turkey Slow Cooker Recipes Round-up

Taco Soup: This recipe doesn’t call for ground turkey specifically, but it is recommended in the recipe. You can use any type of ground meat – and that’s generally true of most of these recipes, but this recipe uses simple pantry recipes to bring together a cozy, one-pot, slow cooker meal! Bonus – this recipe also tells you all the details on how to freeze the soup properly if you want to have leftovers that you can pull from the freezer when you’re short on time.

Ground turkey slow cooker recipe with a taco soup with avocado and tortillas on top on a white background with spoons and a blue towel on the side.

Pumpkin Chipotle Chili: Um, hello, yes, please. It’s no secret around here that I’m a huge fan of pumpkin and chipotle peppers. Chipotle peppers are smoked jalapenos in a smokey, adobo sauce. Putting those together with pumpkin and ground turkey sounds like a perfect chili to me.

Ground turkey slow cooker recipe with chipotle pumpkin turkey chili on a gray background with a white napkin and gold spoon

Turkey Green Chili: Chilis are usually made with crushed tomatoes, but this chili has no tomatoes. Instead, it relies on jalapenos, chicken broth, spices, ground turkey, and hominy. Hominy is coarsely ground corn that is used to make grits. It gives this chili a unique texture and flavor.  I also love the idea of topping it with pepitas (roasted pumpkin seeds).

picture of ground turkey slow cooker recipe with a green turkey chili on a dark background

Slow Cooker Turkey, Lentil, and White Bean Chili: This chili is similar to classic chilis, but I don’t usually see lentils and white beans together in chili. I love them both, so it’s nice to see them packed in along with the ground turkey as an additional source of protein.

Ground turkey slow cooker recipe with a turkey, lentil, and white bean chili on a burlap background with an orange napkin and spoon.

Why should I choose ground turkey over any other meat? Is turkey “healthier” than other ground meats?

Ground turkey is milder in flavor than ground beef or pork. It’s very similar in taste to ground chicken, but a little more game-like. If you’re making something with a lot of lighter flavors that you don’t want to conflict with by using beef, turkey may be the way to go (like in the green chili above).

As far as nutrition goes, it depends on your goals and what kind of turkey you choose. People often choose chicken or turkey, thinking it has less saturated fat (saturated fat is linked to high cholesterol). However, if you’re comparing lean turkey (93% lean, 7% fat – labeled on the package) to lean beef (93% lean or higher and 7% or less fat), that might not be the case. There isn’t any reason to avoid one or the other if you’re choosing lean ground meat and want to watch your cholesterol, so personally, I choose a lean cut either way and go with the one that would compliment the flavor profile in the recipe the best.

Ranch Chex Mix

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This Ranch Chex Mix is the ultimate party mix or simple snack that can be made right in the microwave! Crunchy, savory, salty, and tangy, this snack mix is definitely a crowd-pleaser.

Everyone loves a good snack mix, and this Ranch Chex Mix is a winner.

Ranch chex mix cooling on a sheet pan

Ingredients

Butter and oil: Butter and oil are what you need to make sure the seasoning spreads and coats the snack mix evenly. It also makes it so that the mix is extra crunchy. You can use only one or other, but I like to have a blend of the two.

Worcestershire sauce: This sauce adds an umami flavor, which makes the flavor pop with some boldness.

Dill: Dill is one of the main ingredients and flavors in ranch flavoring and dressing. It’s an absolute must. Dried works best in this snack mix instead of fresh.

Garlic and onion powder: These two flavors are necessary for the ranch and savory flavor of the Chex mix.

Dried chives: Chives add a little extra oniony flavor with a nice burst of green color.

Cayenne pepper: Keeping the cayenne to about 1/8 tsp. works well for most palates, but if you want a little extra kick, you might want to up the cayenne to ¼ tsp.

Chex cereal: I used three different kinds of Chex cereal: rice, wheat, and corn. If you want a gluten-free snack mix, use only rice and/or corn Chex, but you’ll also have to trade out pretzels for a gluten-free version.

Pretzels: You can use salted or unsalted pretzels, depending on your taste desire for salt or if you’re watching your sodium.

Mixed nuts: Feel free to use mixed or your favorite nut by itself. You can’t go wrong here. Use salted or unsalted depending on your preferences.

How to Make Ranch Chex Mix

Chex mix is so easy because it involves merely mixing ingredients together and “cooking” it in the microwave. It doesn’t get much more straightforward.

You’ll need to first melt the butter and oil in the microwave, then add the seasonings. After this, you’ll need to add in the cereal, pretzels, and nuts to evenly coat with the butter, oil, and seasoning mixture. Then you’ll microwave the mixture for about 5-6 minutes, stirring the mixture every 2 minutes or so. Lastly,  you’ll need to spread the mixture out on a sheet pan to cool. At this point, you’ll only need to try to refrain from snacking on the mix until it’s cool. Good luck.

Ranch chex mix in a bowl next to a sheet pan of ranch chex mix

Other appetizers or snacks to serve for get-togethers

Air Fryer Tortilla Chips

Pepita and Red Pepper Salsa

Buffalo Chickpea Dip

Air Fryer Calamari

Pepper-Pepperoni Rolls

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Ranch Chex Mix

Ranch chex mix in a bowl next to a sheet pan of ranch chex mix
  • Author: Melissa
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 15 minutes
  • Yield: 11 cups of snack mix 1x
  • Category: snacks, appetizer
  • Method: microwave
Scale

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp. butter
  • 2 tbsp. light-colored oil (light olive oil or avocado oil)
  • 3 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tsp. dried dill
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 tbsp. dried chives
  • Salt/pepper, to taste
  • 1/8 tsp. cayenne
  • 3 cups of rice Chex
  • 3 cups of wheat Chex
  • 3 cups of corn Chex
  • 1 cup pretzels
  • 1 cup of mixed nuts

Instructions

  1. Melt oil and butter in microwave. Add in seasonings.
  2. Pour butter/oil/seasoning mixture over cereal, pretzels, and mixed nuts in a very large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave uncovered for 5-6 minutes – stirring every 2 minutes.
  3. Spread out on sheet pan until cool.

Keywords: snacks, appetizer, chex mix

Air Fryer Tortilla Chips

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These Air Fryer Tortilla Chips are incredibly easy and delicious – they are warm, crunchy, and taste just like restaurant-style tortilla chips, but without all the fuss and excess oil. 

We all know what happens when we go to Mexican restaurants. They bring the basket of chips, and before you know it, 3 baskets have come and gone before the food even gets to the table. There is just something about those crunchy, warm, and salty chips that make us all powerless. 

Tortilla chips at home just aren’t the same. If you buy the bagged, the taste isn’t right. I don’t like frying foods at home, and baking tortilla chips don’t quite get the texture right. These Air Fryer Tortilla Chips are the right answer for a healthy homemade alternative that mimics the restaurant-style chips.  

Ingredients

For this recipe, you’ll need:

  • Corn tortillas: You could use flour, but corn tortillas give the best flavor for chips. I used the six-inch round corn tortillas. 
  • Light-colored oil or spray oil: I usually brush the tortillas after cutting them with light tasting olive oil. You could also use avocado oil. If you have spray oil, that works just as well. The bottom line is to make sure that the oil is light in color. The lighter the color, the less likely the oil will burn.  
  • Seasonings: I sprinkled the chips with salt, fresh cracked pepper, and a squeeze of lime juice. If you really want to mix it up, try seasoning with cumin or chili powder – both would taste great. 
Close up of a basket of air fryer tortilla chips

How to Make Air Fryer Tortilla Chips

You’ll need to cut the tortillas into wedges like a pizza shape. I actually use a pizza cutter and cut them in stacks of 3-4 tortillas at one time. Once you have your shapes, it’s just brushing (or spraying) with oil and seasoning them before tossing them into the air fryer. 

One of the key techniques with air fryers is to arrange the food in a single layer so that the hot air circulates and cooks the food evenly. You don’t have to worry about that with tortilla chips in the air fryer. The first time I turned the air fryer on with the chips, I heard this clinking noise coming from my air fryer. Turns out, the chips are so light that the air circulating around the chips tosses them around while they cook. Long story short, TLDR: just dump all the seasoned tortilla wedges into the air fryer – don’t worry about putting them neatly in a single layer. After cooking them for about 3 minutes, I still go ahead and open the air fryer to toss them around to make sure they are evenly cooking. All that’s left is to cook another 2 minutes, and boom – serve them up with some salsa and gauc. 

Basket of air fryer tortilla chips with salsa

How to Serve 

I really don’t need to tell you what to serve with tortilla chips, but if you’re looking for some recipes to accompany your chips – I got you covered with the following:  

Pepita and Red Pepper Salsa

Buffalo Chickpea Dip

Instant Pot Carne Asada

Cilantro Garlic Sauce

Chicken Tamale Dumpling Soup

Healthier Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos

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Air Fryer Tortilla Chips

Overview of basket of chips with salsa
  • Author: Melissa
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 5 minutes
  • Total Time: 10 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
  • Category: Mexican, snacks, appetizer, side dish
  • Method: Air Fryer
Scale

Ingredients

  • 12 corn tortillas (6 inch), cut into wedges
  • Light-colored oil or spray oil (light tasting olive oil or avocado works well)
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 lime (optional)

Instructions

  1. Preheat air fryer to 360 F. Brush oil or spray oil on to tortilla wedges. Season with salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lime juice (if using).
  2. Put all the wedges in the air fryer (it doesn’t matter if they are in a single layer) and air fry for 3 minutes. Then shake the air fryer basket to redistribute, then cook for an additional 2 minutes or until golden all over. Best served immediately. 

Keywords: tortilla, chips, snacks

Instant Pot Carne Asada

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This Instant Pot Carne Asada is full of fresh flavors like citrus, cilantro, garlic, jalapeño, and is SUPER easy to make.

I love carne asada. Carne asada means grilled beef in Spanish. While I usually would grill my steak to make carne asada, I’m taking a slightly different approach and not using my grill. Instead, I decided to try making Instant Pot Carne Asada for those times that I don’t feel like firing up the grill, or the weather isn’t grilling-friendly. 

Platter of Instant Pot Carne Asada sliced up with cilantro garlic sauce and tacos on the side.

This recipe is super easy. It involves making a quick marinade, then cooking quickly in the Instant Pot under high pressure. The marinade helps tenderize and flavor the meat, and the high pressure from the Instant Pot helps tenderize and cook quickly. 

Carne Asada Ingredients

For this recipe, you’ll need:

  • Lime and orange juice: The acid in the citrus juice helps tenderize the meat. Plus, the sweetness from the fruit balances the acid. 
  • Worcestershire sauce: Worcestershire has an umami flavor similar to beef, which makes it perfect for including in a beef marinade. 
  • Olive oil: This gives the steak a nice coating of oil to help prevent sticking in the Instant Pot. Plus, flank steak can be lean, so the fat helps with flavor. 
  • Jalapeño: A hot pepper for a little heat. If you’re heat adverse, you can skip the seeds to ease up on the spiciness factor. 
  • Cilantro: Cilantro adds a fresh burst of flavor to the marinade. 
  • Garlic cloves: You can leave the garlic cloves whole if you’d like to make it easier or you can mince them. If you use them whole, just give them a little smash before throwing them in the marinade. 
  • Seasonings and spices: A little chili powder, oregano, salt, and pepper round out the Latin-inspired flavors.  Flank steak: Flank steak can be a bit tough, so that’s why this recipe marinates the steak for a few hours before cooking. Also, you’ll need to make sure to cut the steak into pieces that will fit in your Instant Pot – see below. 
Close of instant pot carne asada on a platter with cilantro garlic sauce drizzled on top.

How to Make Instant Pot Carne Asada

  • First, you make the marinade by combining all of the ingredients except for the steak into a large shallow dish that can be covered or a large ziplock bag.
  • Before putting the flank steak into the marinade, make sure that the steak is cut into pieces small enough to fit the length of your Instant Pot. For example, I used a little less than 2 lbs. of steak, and I only had to cut my steak into two pieces before cooking. 
  • Once you’ve marinated the steak for at least 4 hours, you’ll sear the steak in the Instant Pot using the sauté feature. Note: don’t discard the marinade!
  • After the steak is browned on all sides, you’ll add the marinade to the Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for about 4-5 minutes for a medium-well steak (3-4 minutes should get you medium). Use the quick release to depressurize the Instant Pot. 
  • Allow the steak to rest for about 10 minutes before thinly slicing against the grain, meaning slice in the opposite direction of the muscle fibers. This helps break up the tough muscle of the flank steak, making it more tender and easier to eat. If you’re going to use the carne asada for tacos, you definitely want nice thin strips of meat rather than big tough chunks. 
  • After you’re done, you’ll want to drizzle some of my cilantro garlic sauce on the steak. You can check out the link or the recipe card has a link as well. It technically could be optional, but really, it’s not optional. At least in my opinion. 
Platter of Instant Pot Carne Asada sliced up with cilantro garlic sauce and tacos on the side.

How to Serve Carne Asada

Tacos are my favorite vehicle for this Instant Pot Carne Asada. I’ve included my favorite taco toppings in the notes section of the recipe. But, this steak recipe would be equally good served up on a burrito bowl, salad, or just by itself with a side of rice and beans. You really can’t go wrong any which way you eat it. 

Close up of a taco with instant pot carne asada.
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Instant Pot Carne Asada

Platter of instant pot carne asada with cilantro garlic sauce drizzled on top and a jar of the sauce on the side.
  • Author: Melissa
  • Prep Time: 4 hours
  • Cook Time: 5 minutes
  • Total Time: 4 hours, 5 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x
  • Category: beef
Scale

Ingredients

  • juice of 2 limes
  • juice of 1 orange
  • 3 tbsp. Worcestershire
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • 1 jalapeño, chopped (with or without seeds) 
  • ½ cup packed cilantro
  • 3 garlic cloves (whole or minced)
  • 1 tbsp. chili powder 
  • 1 tsp. oregano 
  • salt/pepper
  • 1 ½ –2 lbs. of flank steak, cut into pieces that will fit into your Instant Pot
  • cilantro garlic sauce, for topping (optional)

Instructions

  1. Combine all marinade ingredients together in a shallow dish or ziplock bag. Add steak and allow to marinate for 4 hours in the fridge.
  2. Preheat Instant Pot on the sauté feature. Sear steak on all sides in Instant Pot (save marinade). Add marinade to Instant Pot to deglaze. Cook steak in the marinade on high pressure for 4-5 minutes for medium-well steak, then quick release Instant Pot valve. 
  3. Allow steak to rest on cutting board for 7-10 minutes. Slice against the grain. Serve with cilantro garlic sauce. 

Notes

To aim for a medium-well steak, aim for 4-5 minutes on high pressure for thicker steaks.

If your steak is thinner, decrease the time to 3 minutes for medium-well. 

If you’re making carne asada tacos – try the following toppings/fixings:

  • Extra cilantro, in addition to the cilantro garlic sauce
  • Red onion
  • Guacamole or avocado
  • Crumbled queso fresco or cojita cheese
  • Corn or flour tortillas 

Keywords: beef, carne asada, tacos, Instant Pot

Buffalo Chickpea Dip

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Who doesn’t love to pour buffalo sauce on everything? I’ll wait. This Buffalo Chickpea Dip is the perfect vegetarian cross between hummus and a creamy buffalo chicken dip. It’s a total crowd-pleaser, and meat-lovers won’t even realize that it’s a vegetarian buffalo dip.

Close up of buffalo chickpea dip surrounded by veggies and crackers on a plate.

The Easiest Healthy Appetizer or Snack

This recipe is ridiculously easy, and everyone loves it. I recently made this for a Memorial Day gathering, and it was gone in the blink of an eye. It’s a sharable appetizer that travels well and tastes great even when it’s cooled off some, so it’s perfect for potlucks, holidays, and of course, game day. It’s also perfect for whipping up a healthy snack, which is rich in protein and fiber thanks to the beans and cottage cheese. Instead of buying or making a batch of hummus, you could add this recipe to your meal prep and have something new to dip your crackers and veggies into all week long.

Buffalo Chickpea Dip Ingredients

You’ll need:

  • Cannellini beans: I know it might be surprising that the first ingredient isn’t chickpeas, but cannellini beans have a very creamy texture and make the dip super creamy and rich tasting. Chickpeas have much more texture, so you’ll fold in the chickpeas whole (not blended) right before you bake the dip. 
  • Cottage Cheese: It might seem a little odd to add in cottage cheese, but it works perfectly in this recipe. It helps hold the dip together, adds a creamy tang, and just melts right in to give a nice creamy texture along with the cannellini beans. 
  • Seasonings: Dried dill, garlic powder, and onion powder are all flavors reminiscent of ranch dressing, which is the perfect match for all things buffalo sauce.
  • Chickpeas: Chickpeas are also known as garbanzo beans. Like I mentioned before, they have a little more of a toothsome texture to them than cannellini beans, so they’re best folded into the dip right before baking for added texture. 
  • Cheddar cheese: Some shredded cheese on top makes everything better, am I right? Just a little on top makes a nice cheesy crust.
  • Garnishes: I drizzled a little bit of ranch dressing on top, but not much. You could also do the same with blue cheese dressing, but it’s optional – the dip is also great all on its own. 
  • Dippers: Of course, you’ll need foods to dip into the chickpea dip. Raw veggies like broccoli, sliced bell pepper, carrots, cucumbers, and celery are natural choices. Crackers, tortilla chips, pita, or toasted bread go great as well!
Ingredients for buffalo chickpea dip in a food processor bowl (cottage cheese, buffalo sauce, seasonings, and beans).

How to Make the Dip

As I mentioned, this Buffalo Chickpea Dip can’t be easier! It’s as easy as 1-2-3.

  1. You’ll blend all of the ingredients in a food processor or blender except the chickpeas, cheddar cheese, garnishes, and dippers.
  2. You’ll fold in the chickpeas, pour it into a baking dish, and top with cheddar cheese.
  3. Lastly, you’ll cover it with aluminum foil and bake for 20-25m minutes. 

Easy-peasy. Serve with your favorite dippers and call it a day. 

Buffalo chickpea dip with piece of celery dipped in surrounded by veggies and crackers on a plate.
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Buffalo Chickpea Dip

Buffalo chickpea dip surrounded by veggies and crackers on a plate.

★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Melissa
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 25 minutes
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 8 servings 1x
Scale

Ingredients

  • 1 can (15.5 oz) of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup of buffalo wing sauce (I like Frank’s Buffalo Wing Sauce)
  • 1/4 cup of cottage cheese
  • 1 1/2 tsp. dried dill
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 can (15.5 oz) chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
  • 1/3 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
  • Ranch or blue cheese dressing, for drizzling (optional)
  • Assorted raw veggies, crackers, toasted bread, tortilla chips, and/or pita, etc. for dipping

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil or spray a medium baking dish with baking spray.
  2. In a food processor bowl, pulse together cannellini beans, wing sauce, cottage cheese, dill, garlic powder, and onion powder until smooth.
  3. Fold in chickpeas and pour into a baking dish. Top with cheddar cheese and cover baking dish with aluminum foil.
  4. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Serve with raw veggies, crackers, toasted bread, tortilla chips, and/or pita.

Mini Chicken Meatloaves with Pineapple BBQ Sauce

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These mini chicken meatloaves with pineapple BBQ sauce are perfect for meal prep. You can make a batch (or two) for the week ahead or freeze for later. The pineapple, which is a natural meat tenderizer, makes the meatloaves pillowy soft and gives a tropical feel in the BBQ sauce. Clearly, I have a thing for tropical fruit inspired BBQ sauces. 

Close up of Mini Chicken Meatloaves with Pineapple BBQ Sauce on a plate

Mini Chicken Meatloaves with Pineapple BBQ Sauce Ingredients

You’ll need:

  • Scallions: You’ll need the white and green parts, but keep them separate. Make sure to chop these fine – especially the white parts, which will go into the meatloaves before cooking. You chop them fine because you don’t want to bite into a huge chunk of scallion. 
  • Ground chicken: Chicken is a natural choice to go with pineapple. You can also choose ground pork, which would work out perfectly. 
  • Ginger: Grate or mince the ginger finely. If you don’t have fresh ginger available, dried ground ginger will work fine as well, but use 1 tsp. of ground ginger in place of the 1 tbsp. of fresh ginger. 
  • Oatmeal: Oatmeal works perfectly to help bind the ground meat. You can use panko bread crumbs instead of oatmeal if you prefer. 
  • Egg: This works with the oatmeal to bind the meatloaves together.
  • Crushed pineapple: As I mentioned before, pineapple is a natural meat tenderizer and keeps the meatloaves from becoming tough. Plus, it adds a sweet Hawaiian/tropical note to the BBQ sauce by using some of the pineapple juice. 
  • Ketchup: The basis of some of the most delicious BBQ sauces – it’s sweet tomato-y flavor can’t be beaten.  
  • Seasonings: Garlic powder, salt, and pepper round out the seasonings for these meatloaves. 
Mini Chicken Meatloaves with Pineapple BBQ Sauce on a plate with sweet potato fries

What to serve on the side

I served these with baked sweet potato fries, but you also can’t go wrong with these Grilled Potato Salad Skewers with Zucchini or my Caramelized Corn and Green Bean Skillet. The corn and green bean skillet recipe is one of my top recipes of all time. They both would go perfectly with these Mini Chicken Meatloaves with Pineapple BBQ Sauce. 

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Mini Chicken Meatloaves with Pineapple BBQ Sauce

Mini Chicken Meatloaves with Pineapple BBQ Sauce in a Muffin Tin
  • Author: Melissa
  • Prep Time: 5-10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30-35 minutes
  • Total Time: 35-45 minutes
  • Yield: 12 mini meatloaves 1x
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
Scale

Ingredients

  • 2 scallions, white and green parts, finely chopped, separated
  • 1 lb. ground chicken
  • 1 tbsp. fresh ginger, grated
  • 1/2 cup of oatmeal
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 small can (8 oz.) of crushed pineapple, drained and keep the juice
  • 4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, divided
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 4 tbsp. ketchup
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Oil a 12 cup muffin tin. 
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the white parts of the scallion, ground chicken, fresh ginger, oatmeal, egg, crushed pineapple, 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix the contents until just incorporated. Divide evenly amongst the muffin tin.
  3. In a separate bowl, mix ketchup, 1 tbsp. of pineapple juice, 2 tsp. of Worcestershire sauce together. Season with salt and pepper. Brush ketchup mixture on top of mini meatloaves. 
  4. Bake in the oven for about 30-35 minutes or until thermometer reaches 165 degrees F. 
  5. Top of green part of scallions. Serve.