One of my best chili recipe ever. A wonderful crock pot three bean turkey chili that the whole family will love. Plus it’s healthy. Now you can have it all.
Editor Note: Originally published November 1, 2014. This is one of my “Underappreciated” recipes. I consider it one of my top chili recipe so it is time for a facelift to the presentation with new text and some re-edited pictures. The recipe remains the same. Please enjoy one of my best chili recipes.
Now I make a lot of chilies, but I’m always open to something new. OK, maybe not so much. I do frequently stick to the same old same old. I usually order the same food at restaurants.
But I don’t only cook for me; I’m cooking for two. And the wife wanted something different. Now that was not very specific. So Turkey is considered healthy, and a variety of beans is also good for you, this just worked out great.
I was expecting good. I do a good chili. Just give me some ingredients, and like Chopped on Food Network, I produce. But the biggest surprise was the wonderful blending of spicy flavors. Plus, just the right amount of heat for my older taste buds. About a 4/10 on the heat-o-meter.
My Rating
Now, this rating is from my wife and father-in-law. I agree.
Pro Tips: Notes on Three Bean Chili
The Meat:
The meat is probably the first thing to discuss. Any ground meat will do, but I have repeated this recipe a number of times, and I prefer the turkey.
This recipe would be fine as a “Three Bean Vegetarian Chili,” just dump the meat and use vegetable broth.
The Worcestershire sauce pops up the “meaty” almost beef-like taste for the turkey.
The Beans:
Bean choice is up to you, but my choice of pinto, kidney, and black beans is just right and somewhat the core of the recipe.
I use only low sodium beans although the pictures are from the original cooking and only the black beans are low sodium. Rinsing the beans also removes a little of the sodium.
The Heat:
The heat of this chili is about 4/10. You can up that with a second jalapeno or using hotter Ro-Tel.
I assume a serving size of about 1 1/2 cups per serving. This should be good in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. It will freeze well for 2-3 months.
Other Great Crock Pot Chilis to Try
Ultra Simple Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
Low Fat High Taste Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
Older picture. The beans and broth should be low sodium.
Start by browning 1 pound of ground turkey.
Dice two stalks of celery and one large onion. Dice one jalapeno pepper.
Rinse and drain three cans of beans, low sodium preferred. I used pinto, black, and light kidney beans and that is the combination I recommend.
Add one 14 oz can of diced tomatoes, a 12 oz can of Ro-Tel Tomatoes & Diced Green Chilies, a 6 oz can of tomato paste, 14 oz can of low sodium chicken broth, two tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, two tablespoons chili powder, one teaspoon ground cumin, one teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, two teaspoon garlic powder.
Mix well. Cook on low for 6-7 hours.
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Crock Pot Three Bean Turkey Chili
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground turkey - Another meat like ground beef or chicken could be used. If you want vegetarian just skip the meat.
- 2 stalks celery - Diced
- 1 onion - large
- 1 jalapeno pepper
- 14 oz dice tomatoes
- 10 oz RoTel
- 6 oz tomato paste
- 14 oz chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 42 oz beans - three cans I used pinto, black and light kidney beans.
- sour cream and cheese if desired.
Instructions
- Start by browning 1 pound of ground turkey.
- Dice two stalks of celery and one large onion. Dice one jalapeno pepper.
- Rinse and drain three cans of beans, low sodium preferred. I used pinto, black, and light kidney beans and that is the combination I recommend.
- Add one 14 oz can of diced tomatoes, a 12 oz can of Ro-Tel Tomatoes & Diced Green Chilies, a 6 oz can of tomato paste, 14 oz can of low sodium chicken broth, two tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, two tablespoons chili powder, one teaspoon ground cumin, one teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, two teaspoon garlic powder.
- Mix well. Cook on low for 6-7 hours.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
Use the ground meat you want. I prefer turkey for this chili. Use the beans of your choice. Low sodium preferred. I assume a serving size of about 1 1/2 cups per serving. This should be good in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. It will freeze well for 2-3 months.Check Out Other Great Recipes
Nutrition is generally for one serving. Number of servings is stated above and is my estimate of normal serving size for this recipe.
All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
Originally Published: November 1, 2014
Dea Varner
WOW!!!!! Made this for the first time today and sooooo much great flavor!!!! The house smelled so good I could barely wait for dinner time!!! The husband who tends to be a chili purest and usually only likes beef in his chili, went back for seconds, raving about how good it was!!! This recipe is totally a keeper, worthy of 5 stars and will definitely be made again!
Valerie
I made this chili with ground turkey and it was delicious! Tomorrow I think I’ll make it without the meat for my sister who is a vegetarian. I will use vegetable broth instead of the chicken. I’ll let you know how she likes it!
DrDan
Hi Valerie,
I did this once veggie and thought it was excellent, just as good as the turkey. Actually, a beef version was not quite as good I though.
Thanks for the note
Dan
Brandon
Amazing quick chili recipe. I added bell peppers (orange red and green) because I love the flavor they bring to the chili and the juice. Also I think you meant two ribs of celery, not two stalks ^.^
Karen
We made this using one half pound of ground turkey. It is so flavorful, I would not hesitate to do it completely meatless. My husband liked it so much, he said just forget all those other chili recipes and use this all the time! Thanks for a great recipe!
DrDan
I really like this recipe and think it will be a major part of my after holiday diet.
Thanks so much for the note and rating.
DrDan
Cathie
excellent recipe. We can’t get RoTel brand in Canada so I substituted two cans of tomatoes with garlic oil and one can of green chilies. Left out jalapeño as we don’t like too much heat.
Enjoy your blog and your dogs!