With an equal blend of nourishment and comfort, a bowl of this veggie-loaded chili is a delicious way to warm up when the weather turns cold. This recipe is gluten and dairy free and easily adaptable to your dietary needs and preferences.

Crockpot chili has been on my family’s meal rotation for years and for good reasons- I can prep it quickly, it’s a balanced meal without adding any sides, we all enjoy it, and I can easily make extras so that we have leftovers for lunches and/or multiple dinners.

Ingredients

This recipe is completely adaptable to your own preferences. Here is a list of the basic ingredients:

Ground turkey– This can easily be swapped for ground beef or chicken, or for a vegan dish, omit it completely. The combination of beans and corn provide a complete protein source. Curious what makes a complete protein? Read here to learn more about proteins and how to make sure you’re getting enough protein in your meals.

Vegetables – (onions, garlic, green pepper and red pepper) You could also add zucchini, yellow squash or carrots, or you can omit any of the veggies.

Beans – (chili beans, garbanzo beans and great northern beans) This is my favorite combination, but you can add any type of bean you have on hand.

Corn – We prefer frozen corn kernels or you could serve cornbread on the side. Adding corn kernels is much easier than making cornbread, in my opinion. I’m all about saving time, and I love the sweetness corn kernels add to the chili.

Tomato Sauce – Look for a low sugar option to reduce unnecessary added sugars.

Chili seasoning – You could use a packet of chili seasoning or make your own with chili powder, ground cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, and ground black pepper. The homemade chili seasoning recipe is included in the recipe card below. To save time in the future (because you’ll be making this again and again), double, triple or even quadruple the chili seasoning recipe and store in an airtight jar.

Optional Toppings – shredded cheese, sliced avocado, cilantro, sour cream **I strongly recommend topping your chili with sliced or mashed avocado. Avocados provide a source of healthy unsaturated fat, fiber, vitamins and minerals (and they taste pretty good, too).

Balanced Plate

This chili recipe includes everything you need for a balanced meal all in one bowl.

How to Make Turkey Chili

Here are the quick and easy steps to make this nourishing meal:

Brown the meat and saute vegetables: Start by browning the ground turkey in a skillet. When it is almost browned, add the non-starchy vegetables (onions, garlic, green/red peppers) and saute for a few more minutes. Drain the fat and add to a crockpot.
Add seasoning: Add the chili seasoning to the meat and vegetable mixture, and stir to combine.
Add the beans, corn, and tomato sauce: Then add all remaining ingredients except the optional toppings. To reduce sodium, rinse and drain the beans before adding. *I don’t rinse the chili beans if they are in a chili sauce- I like the flavor it adds.
Simmer: Cook for about 2 to 3 hours on low in a crockpot. Alternatively, you could cook this on the stovetop – follow step one and then add all the ingredients to a pot. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes or until all the vegetables are soft.

Meal Prep

I’m all about weekend meal prep because my weeks are busy! This chili could be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator, but because it comes together so quickly and I enjoy having a fresh meal ready at dinner time (no heating up from the refrigerator), I usually don’t make this ahead of time. Instead, my meal prep includes chopping all the vegetables and sometimes cooking the vegetables and meat over the weekend. Then I can throw it all in the crockpot in the morning. It doesn’t need to cook all day, so make sure that you set the timer on your crockpot to switch from the low to warm setting!