Turkey Sweet Potato Chili is a cozy one-pot chili made with ground turkey, tender cubes of sweet potato, fire-roasted tomatoes and kidney beans, simmered in a little chicken broth with chili powder, cumin and paprika. The sweet potatoes soften into the chili and bring a gentle sweetness. It serves 6 and is ready in 45 minutes.
How to make it: Sauté the onion, add the garlic and ground turkey and cook until the turkey turns white. Stir in the broth, tomatoes, beans, diced sweet potatoes and spices, bring it to a boil, then simmer with the lid slightly open for 15 to 25 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are soft.
Why You’ll Love It
- One pot, 45 minutes: no pre-cooking the sweet potatoes.
- Sweet and savory: sweet potato against smoky chili spices and fire-roasted tomatoes.
- Great leftovers: it reheats well for lunches.
- Easy to change: make it without beans, in a slow cooker or in a pressure cooker.
Ingredient Notes
Ground turkey: One pound. Use regular ground turkey rather than ground turkey breast, which is too lean for chili. Ground beef or ground chicken work too.
Sweet potatoes: One pound, peeled and diced. Cut them into 1/2-inch cubes so they cook through evenly in the time the chili simmers.
Fire-roasted diced tomatoes: A 28-ounce can, juices and all; they are most of the chili’s liquid.
Kidney beans: A 14-ounce can, drained.
Chicken broth: One cup to loosen the pot.
Spices: Two tablespoons of chili powder, a teaspoon each of cumin and paprika, and cayenne if you like heat.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 28 ounces fire-roasted diced tomatoes (1 can), with juices
- 14 ounces red kidney beans (1 can), drained
- 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- Salt and pepper, to taste
How to Make Turkey Sweet Potato Chili
1. Soften the onion. Heat the oil in a soup pot and sauté the onion over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.
2. Cook the turkey. Add the garlic and ground turkey and cook for 5 minutes, breaking the meat up with a spoon and stirring occasionally, until the turkey turns white on the outside.
3. Add the rest. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes with their juices, beans, sweet potatoes, chili powder, cumin, paprika and cayenne if using. Stir well.
4. Simmer. Bring the chili to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and cover the pot with the lid slightly open. Cook for 15 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potatoes are soft and the chili reaches 165°F.
5. Season and serve. Season with salt and pepper and serve with your favorite toppings.
Getting the Sweet Potatoes Just Right
The sweet potatoes cook right in the chili, so their size sets the timing. Cubes about 1/2 inch across soften in 15 to 25 minutes of simmering; bigger chunks take longer, smaller ones cook faster. Cut them all about the same size so they finish together.
Check them with a wooden spoon near the end. They are ready when a cube crushes easily against the side of the pot but still holds its shape instead of dissolving into the chili.
Keep the lid slightly open while it simmers, as in step 4. If it gets too thick before the sweet potatoes are done, add a splash of water, about 1/4 cup at a time. If it is thinner than you like at the end, turn up the heat and let it bubble uncovered for a few minutes.
Do chili and sweet potato go together? They do: the sweet potatoes add a pleasing sweetness against the earthy chili spices, and some pots use them in place of beans altogether.
Tips for Success
What meat goes well in sweet potato chili?
Ground turkey, and 93% lean works. Ground beef or ground chicken can replace it, or skip the meat and double the sweet potatoes and beans.
Do I need to brown the turkey first?
Cook it in the pot until it turns white on the outside before the liquid goes in; it finishes cooking as the chili simmers. For a slow cooker version, brown it in a skillet first.
What toppings go on it?
Shredded cheddar, cilantro, sliced avocado, sour cream or Greek yogurt, scallions or tortilla chips.
Variations
- No beans: skip the kidney beans and use 20 ounces of ground turkey, a 10-ounce can of tomatoes with green chilies, an 8-ounce can of tomato sauce and 3/4 cup of water with one medium sweet potato and a bay leaf. Simmer covered on medium-low for about 25 minutes.
- Slow cooker: brown the turkey in a skillet, soften the onion in the same pan for 3 to 5 minutes, then move everything to the slow cooker with the sweet potatoes in half-inch cubes. Cook on LOW for 4 to 6 hours or HIGH for about 3 hours. Black beans work well here.
- Pressure cooker: brown the turkey on the sauté setting, add the onion and garlic for 3 minutes, then the rest, and cook at high pressure for about 15 minutes with a natural release.
- Chili-stuffed sweet potatoes: bake whole sweet potatoes at 400°F for 40 to 60 minutes until very tender, split them open and spoon turkey and black bean chili on top.
- Smoky: add a minced chipotle in adobo and a little ancho chili powder with the other spices.
Storage & Reheating
USDA FSIS says to refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow, covered containers and eat them within 3 to 4 days, or freeze them for 3 to 4 months. Reheat the chili until it reaches 165°F, adding a splash of broth or water if it has thickened.
What to Serve With It
Serve it with cornbread or tortilla chips and plenty of toppings. For a beef chili, try Wendy’s chili, and for another cozy pot, slow cooker 15 bean soup. If you love sweet potatoes, there’s slow cooker Amish chicken and sweet potatoes, hot sausage and sweet potato lasagna and sweet potatoes with marshmallows. For more turkey, try slow cooker turkey breast.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you make chili with ground turkey and sweet potatoes?
Brown the turkey with onion and garlic, add broth, tomatoes, beans, diced sweet potatoes and spices, and simmer until the sweet potatoes are soft, 15 to 25 minutes.
Do chili and sweet potato go together?
Yes. The sweet potatoes add a pleasing sweetness against the chili powder and cumin.
Can I make it without beans?
Yes. The no-bean variation above uses a little more turkey, tomato sauce and water in place of the beans.
Do I need to peel the sweet potatoes?
This recipe peels them and dices them into 1/2-inch cubes so they cook evenly.
Final Notes
Cut the sweet potatoes evenly, keep the lid slightly open, and check them with a spoon before you serve. If you have a question or make this, tell me how it turned out in the comments.
Turkey Sweet Potato Chili
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 28 ounces fire-roasted diced tomatoes 1 can, with juices
- 14 ounces red kidney beans 1 can, drained
- 1 pound sweet potatoes peeled and diced
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a soup pot and sauté the onion over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and ground turkey and cook for 5 minutes, breaking the meat up with a spoon and stirring occasionally, until the turkey turns white on the outside.
- Add the chicken broth, tomatoes with their juices, beans, sweet potatoes, chili powder, cumin, paprika and cayenne if using. Stir well.
- Bring the chili to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and cover the pot with the lid slightly open. Cook for 15 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potatoes are soft and the chili reaches 165°F.
- Season with salt and pepper and serve with your favorite toppings.
