One-Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry with Rice

One-skillet ground turkey curry with rice. This quick and easy one-pot recipe makes a complete meal of lean protein and aromatic coconut milk sauce with vegetables.

When I go out for Thai food, I immediately combine the bowl of rice with my bowl of curry, and eat it like so. With a spoon.

For me, the best way to enjoy curry is to have the rice soaking in the sauce for as long as possible for optimal flavor and creamy texture. 

This recipe serves up curry in the exact way I enjoy it: with the rice already mixed in, sufficiently soaked in sauce.

For this particular recipe, I used ground turkey, which I have found to be one of the sources of animal protein my digestive system readily accepts with joy.

There are plenty of ways you can customize this easy recipe, from choosing a different protein source to using various fresh vegetables, and changing the type of curry.

Do note that this is not an authentic Thai curry recipe, but my own spin upon the classic dish.

Ingredients For Ground Turkey Curry:

The main ingredients in this recipe are lean ground turkey, full-fat canned coconut milk, white rice, fish sauce, fresh ginger, zucchini, carrots, broccoli, broth, and fresh basil.

Rather than using curry powder, I use a combination of ingredients that makes up curry powder. You can easily replace the spices with 1 to 2 tablespoons of curry powder or curry paste (to your personal taste).

This one-skillet Thai yellow curry recipe couldn’t be any easier to make. Here’s how it goes down:

How to Make One-Skillet Thai Yellow Curry:

This recipe does require a bit of forethought, as I recommend soaking the rice prior to preparing this recipe. Soak the rice for at least 1 hour, up to 24 before using it in this recipe. I soak mine in a tupperware container and keep it in the refrigerator.

Once your rice is sufficiently soaked, drain the water from it and set aside until ready to use.

Pour ⅓ cup of coconut milk into a skillet add the ground turkey. Brown for 3 to 4 minutes, flip to other side and continue browning another 2 to 3 minutes. Essentially, you’re browning the turkey meat in its cube form prior to breaking it into smaller pieces. 

Stir in the fresh ginger and spices while chopping up the turkey. 

Add the carrots, remaining coconut milk, broth, coconut aminos, and fish sauce, and stir well. Stir in the rice. Cover, and bring to a full boil.

Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. 

Stir in the zucchini, cover, and cook an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until much of the liquid has been absorbed and the vegetables are cooked to desired done-ness. Stir in the chopped basil and taste the curry. Add sea salt to taste and serve in bowls.

What Type of Rice Should I Use?

To keep the prep time on this recipe low, use white rice. If you don’t mind adding another 30 to 40 minutes onto the cook time, feel free to use brown rice. 

I use Lundberg Organic Sushi Rice (not sponsored) because it is so, so stinking starchy and delicious. It soaks up the sauce so well, which results in the most flavorful, amazing, chewy delightfully carby meal. 

My preference when it comes to brown rice is Lundberg Organic Sprouted Brown Rice  (again, not sponsored). The sprouting helps unlock the protein contained in the rice. Without sprouting, the protein in rice isn’t actually bioavailable. 

Regardless of which rice you choose, be sure you do soak it for at least one hour prior to using it. Every single time I prepare rice, I soak it overnight (up to 24 hours) prior to cooking it.

The soaking process helps remove the oxalates and phytates, which ensures the rice doesn’t act as an anti-nutrient and ensures your body is able to absorb the vitamins and minerals in your meal.

Looking for ways you can customize your ground turkey curry recipe? Here are some options.

Recipe Adaptations:

• Replace the ground turkey with chicken breasts, shrimp, pork, beef, or animal protein of choice.
• For a saucier curry, reduce the amount of rice from 2 cups to 1 cup.
• Skip the animal protein and add one can of drained chickpeas for a protein source.
• Add ½ yellow onion and 4 cloves of garlic if you love onion and garlic.
• Add 1 to 3 Tbsp sriracha to spice it up (the curry is very mild the way the recipe is written).
• Use yellow curry powder, red curry paste, or green curry paste.

I use this ground turkey curry as meal prep for the week.

For over a year, I would meal prep it every Monday, or some rendition of it. I switch up the kind of curry from yellow to green curry or red curry, change up the veggies, and sometimes use ground beef instead of ground turkey.

It covers all my macro bases and is just so tasty!

If you’re a curry lover like me, also try some of these reader favorites.

More Curry Recipes:

• Thai Paleo Panang Curry
• 30-Minute Green Chicken Curry
• Nightshade-Free AIP Curry
• Chicken Massaman Curry
• Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables
• Roasted Butternut Squash Lentil Curry

Ground turkey curry each and every week!

One-Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry with Rice

4.56 from 128 votes

By Julia

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 30 minutes mins

Total: 45 minutes mins

Servings: 4 servings

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One-skillet ground turkey curry with rice and vegetables makes an amazing complete meal! Full of lean protein, carbohydrates, fiber, and healthy fats, this easy recipe is both delicious and satisfying.

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 (15-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
• ▢ 1 pound lean ground turkey
• ▢ 1 Tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• ▢ 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
• ▢ 1 tsp ground turmeric
• ▢ 1 tsp ground paprika
• ▢ 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, optional
• ▢ 1 1/2 cups white rice, soaked at least 1 hour
• ▢ 1 2/3 cups chicken broth
• ▢ 3 Tbsp coconut aminos, or low-sodium soy sauce
• ▢ 1 to 3 Tbsp fish sauce, to taste
• ▢ 1 medium zucchini squash, chopped
• ▢ 1/2 tsp sea salt, to taste*
• ▢ 1/3 cup fresh basil, chopped

Instructions 

• Place rice in a bowl and cover with 2 inches of water. Soak rice at least 1 hour (up to 24 hours). Drain the rice. It's okay if it still has a light coating of water over the grains, but be sure to drain all the water as best as possible. I use a saucepan with a lid to soak the rice and employ the lid to help drain it.
• Pour ⅓ cup of coconut milk into a skillet add the ground turkey. Brown for 3 to 4 minutes, flip to other side and continue browning another 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add ginger and spices and stir, chopping up the turkey. 
• Add the carrots, remaining coconut milk, broth, coconut aminos, and fish sauce, and stir well. Stir in the rice. Cover, and bring to a full boil.
• Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. 
• Stir in the zucchini, cover, and cook an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until much of the liquid has been absorbed and the vegetables are cooked to desired done-ness. Stir in the chopped basil and taste the curry. Add sea salt to taste and serve in bowls.

Notes

*If using soy sauce instead of coconut aminos, hold off on adding sauce until the very end. Taste the curry first before adding any additional salt, as soy sauce is high in sodium.

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 5, Calories: 542kcal, Carbohydrates: 41g, Protein: 20g, Fat: 41g, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 7g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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