California Turkey Chili

  4.7 – 96 reviews  • Poultry
Level: Intermediate
Total: 2 hr 40 min
Prep: 1 hr
Inactive: 10 min
Cook: 1 hr 30 min
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

  1. 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  2. 4 large cloves garlic, smashed, peeled and chopped
  3. 2 large poblano chiles, stemmed, seeded and diced
  4. 1 celery stalk, chopped
  5. 1 large onion, chopped
  6. 1 1/2 pounds ground turkey (dark meat)
  7. 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  8. 4 tablespoons tomato paste
  9. 3 tablespoons chili powder
  10. 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  11. 2 teaspoons (packed) dark brown sugar
  12. 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano, crushed
  13. Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  14. 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  15. 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
  16. 3 cups low-salt chicken broth (preferably organic)
  17. One 15 to 16-ounce can cannellini (white kidney beans), rinsed and drained
  18. Simplest Quinoa and Pine Nut Pilaf, recipe follows
  19. Assorted garnishes, such as chopped onion, shredded white Cheddar, chopped tomatoes and/or sour cream
  20. 1 1/4 cups whole grain quinoa (about 7 ounces)
  21. 1 3/4 cups low-salt chicken broth (preferably organic)
  22. 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  23. 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  24. 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro or Italian parsley
  25. 1/3 cup pine nuts

Instructions

  1. Heat the oil in a heavy, large pot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, poblanos, celery and onions. Saute until the vegetables soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the turkey and saute until no longer pink, breaking up the turkey with the back of a spoon, about 7 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over and stir to blend. Add the tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, sugar, oregano, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, cinnamon and cloves. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring to blend. Add the broth and beans. Bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the flavors blend and the chili thickens to desired consistency, stirring often, 20 to 30 minutes. Season with more salt and pepper.
  2. To serve, spoon Simplest Quinoa and Pine Nut Pilaf into deep bowls. Ladle chili over. Serve with garnishes.
  3. Cook’s Note: Other garnishes that you could offer: chopped radishes, pickled jalapenos, crumbled cotija cheese, tortilla chips and/or pico de gallo.
  4. Place the quinoa in a fine sieve. Rinse under cold running water 1 full minute. Set aside to drain.
  5. Bring the broth, salt and pepper to a boil in heavy, medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the quinoa. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the quinoa is tender and all the broth is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Let the quinoa stand, still covered, for 10 minutes.
  6. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Scatter pine nuts on a small rimmed baking sheet. Toast the nuts until golden, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet.
  7. Mix the cilantro and pine nuts into the quinoa.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 of 4 servings
Calories 860
Total Fat 41 g
Saturated Fat 7 g
Carbohydrates 73 g
Dietary Fiber 14 g
Sugar 10 g
Protein 57 g
Cholesterol 117 mg
Sodium 1736 mg

Reviews

Brittany Parker
I’ve never made a recipe quite like this before, but because Giada’s many, many recipes that I’ve made before have never let me down, I decided to give it a try. And I’m so glad I did. It was wonderful. Mexican oregano is hard to find in the northeast, but a good substitute I found on the internet said to use half each of dried marjoram and dried basil, and that is what I did. I also placed the chili over the quinoa, also new to me, and it was perfect. I served the meal with cornmeal muffins from BJ’s bakery and a side dish of apple sauce. It’s a meal I look forward to making again soon.
Connie Webster
I have made this recipe many times. One of my families favorites meals. Make enough to freeze for later.
Stephanie Brown
I’m always looking for new chili recipes. I made it according to the recipe. It is do delicious, I couldn’t wait for the quinoa. I will try it with the quinoa next bowl!
Thank you Giada!!!
Melanie King
This was very good with good depth of flavor. I used 1/2 pound ground beef and 1 pound white turkey meat and black beans since that’s what I had, and then drained grease after browning. I can’t tolerate heat, so replaced the Poblano with green pepper and used about 2 TBL chili powder, but I think the Poblano would be great in it. I’m wondering if some found it greasy because they didn’t drain the grease after browning meat, because the olive oil isn’t too much. Based on reviews, I used 1/2 the brown sugar. All in all a definite keeper and I’ll make again. I made the grain recipe as is (parsley option) but with couscous and it’s surprisingly good under the chili (added crunch from pine nuts is great). I would have never thought to do that, but highly recommend.
Julie Stone
Easy to throw together and had a great flavor! I left the sugar out and used black beans. I served over basmati rice. Will make again.
Walter Thornton
This chili is fantastic! I substituted coconut sugar for the brown sugar. My husband doesn’t typically like ground turkey, but loved this recipe! The flavors meld together nicely. Thank you!This Cali girl gives it a solid thumbs up!
Dawn Garcia
Love this recipe!
Susan Weaver
All I could taste was sugar. It was not the flavorful chili I was expecting. I think it was the sugar, tomato paste, ground cloves and cinnamon that made it “sweet” tasting. I won’t be making this again.
Michelle Lewis
What a wonderful chili recipe! The added spices and ingredients make it really unique (not like the kind I ate as a kid!) It is delicious as written; just be sure to adjust the heat according to your taste. I also had to substitute chopped toasted walnuts in place of pine nuts since that’s all I had and it was still delicious.
Brett Huffman
I loved the flavors in this recipe. I added a can of petite diced tomatoes, used black beans instead of the white beans and severed it over purple rice.

 

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