The best Spicy Healthy Slow Cooker Chili! With chipotle turkey, butternut squash, and beans, it’s easy and it lets your crock do all the work!
Just to let you know, this post is sponsored by Jennie-O. But as always, opinions are my own! Thank you so much for supporting the brands that With Salt and Wit loves!
Happy Halloween!
When I was younger, Halloween in the Midwest was all about finding a costume that you could (not so) secretly hide 5 layers of warmth underneath. It was all about big pots of chili on the stove, accompanied with buttery cornbread and hot cocoa with a few pieces of Halloween candy thrown in to melt into chocolatey bliss. Nevermind the sugar coma.
One part of Halloween that I will always remember is Trick or Treating with my cousins. I grew up with them. They were my best friends and still to this day, when we get together, our kids have just as much fun as we did. Creating make believe games to keep us entertained for hours. Mad dog, race tracks, plus too any more to put names to.
On Halloween, after the trick or treating was over, we would show off all our candy, divide it up into piles. The Good. The Bad and The Ugly. All while the grown-ups would throw their paws into our good pile grabbing their favorites, Reese, Snickers. You know all the good ones! Now that I am playing as the parents roll, I am highly anticipating Aiden’s candy bag to get my little paws on the top picks. Too bad he is too little to enjoy some delicious candy!
Halloween Nowadays? We are enjoying a brisk 80+ degree day of Fall. Um, that is not right. What happened to our chill-filled evenings that come with October? One thing that has not changed? Chili + Cornbread! And one bonus of being the grown ups? A few festive cocktails while we ask strangers for candy! Goes against everything we try to teach our kids…oh well!
In honor of the holiday, I have made by far the best turkey chili recipe! It is filled with fall flavors, butternut squash, warmth chipotle for a mean spice and kidney beans to add a good fiber and protein punch! When I make chili, I look for sweet with a bit of spicy and this butternut squash turkey chili brings it!
When I go about making and creating slow cooker recipes, I try to eliminate the whole cooking before adding to the slow cooker process. It seems to go against the reason why I chose the slow cooker in the first place.
- Convenience
- Minimal pots and pans used
- Minimal work before hand.
And guess what? This turkey chipotle chili recipe fits the bill.
We simply add all the ingredients into the slow cooker; you read that right. No cooking beforehand, even the ground turkey! In goes Jennie-O Lean Ground Turkey, beans, seasonings, butternut squash, tomatoes, peppers and chicken broth. Then let her go! The slow cooker makes this turkey chipotle chili recipe thick, creamy, and sweet with a touch of spice!
I love using Jennie-O Ground Turkey to add a healthier spin to all my classic dishes – chili, meatballs, sloppy joes! It is nutritious, full of protein and low carb! It is the perfect substitute for me since I am allergic to beef…weird, I know! So with this swap in my back pocket, no recipes are off limits for me!
This easy turkey chili is exactly what I look for in a fall dish to warm me up! Now only if Mother Nature would get on board…
meal prep tips:
1. This chili reheats wonderfully! Make on the weekend, then prepackage for easy lunches or dinners or all week.
2. Pre chop veggies and gather ingredients. Store dry ingredients by each in the pantry. Store chilled ingredients in the fridge by each other. Then when its time to make, it is easy to grab, dump and go!
10 minPrep Time
4 hrCook Time
4 hr, 10 Total Time
Yields 8
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1 medium red onion, chopped into 1/4” dice
- 1 red bell pepper, diced 1/4”
- 1 green bell pepper, diced 1/4”
- 4 cups cubed butternut squash (keep on the larger size, they overcook if cut too small)
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 28 ounce can diced tomatoes (drain, but reserve juice)
- 6 ounce tomato paste
- 2 cups tomato puree
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
- 2 tablespoons chipotle chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 16 ounce can kidney beans, drained & rinsed
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded & minced
- 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- Garnishes:
- Tortilla Chips
- Shredded Cheese
- Sliced Jalapenos
Instructions
- In a slow cooker, 5 or 6 quart, add all the ingredients except the garnishes: chopped red onion, red bell pepper, ground turkey, canned diced tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato puree, coconut sugar, chipotle chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, ground cayenne, paprika, salt, kidney beans, jalapeno, and chicken broth.
- Stir well to break up the ground turkey.
- Cook on high for 4 hours. Then put on warm until ready to serve.
- Serve with garnishes.
Notes
*See recipe post for meal prep tips.
If you make this recipe, make sure to snap a photo and hashtag it #WITHSALTANDWIT. I’d love to see what you are cooking up in your kitchen!
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