Healthy Ground Turkey Green Chile Bake

A spicy, and healthy ground turkey recipe! This recipe brings a little bit of heat to a delicious green chile bake layered with cheese and thin corn tortillas making it low carb!

This healthy recipe with ground turkey was on the menu for my weekly meal prep and I brought it in for lunch everyday! I really wanted to create a bake that had a Mexican cuisine feel to it. I usually make enchiladas for dinner and so I wanted to create something a bit different and easy to prepare and bring for lunch! If you are interested in my enchilada recipe click here!

Layered with a green chili, ground turkey mixture, corn tortillas and cheese this recipe offers the perfect meal if you’re craving Mexican. There is a little kick to each bite because I used canned Jalapeños. You can omit these if you really HATE any type of spiciness but they really do add a nice taste.

What Do You Need For The Healthy Ground Turkey Green Chile Bake?

• Extra Thin Mission Corn Tortillas
• Fat-Free Cheddar and Mozzarella Cheese
• Extra Lean Ground Turkey
• Canned Diced Jalapeños
• Canned Diced Green Chiles
• Chicken Broth or Better than Bouillon
• 1 small onion
• Yellow Squash
• Fat-Free Cream Cheese
• Chopped Garlic

Prepping your meals for the week is a really great tool to stay on track and it still allows for fun healthy recipes like this one. It is really simple.

How Do I Make The Healthy Ground Turkey Green Chile Bake?

Start by preparing the ground turkey first. To do this you saute the onion and garlic first, then add in the ground turkey. Once the turkey is cooked all the way add in 1 cup of chicken broth, the chopped yellow squash, canned green chiles, canned jalapeños, and fat free cream cheese. Bring this to a simmer and reduce heat. While this is cooking on the stove, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 baking pan with cooking spray. Now you can add one half of the ground turkey mixture to the bottom of the pan. Now line the top with the three corn tortillas in a way that covers the most surface area see below. (I cut mine in half)

Now add the rest of the ground turkey mixture on top and the rest of the corn tortillas. Finally, top with the shredded cheese, cover with foil, and bake for 35 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 10 more minutes!

Can I Make Substitutions For Any Of The Ingredients?

A substitution for the jalapeños could be another canned of green chiles. If you are making this for your whole family then the little ones may not be a fan of the jalapeños! So if this is the case feel free to make this easy substitution!

What If I Do Not Like Extra Lean Ground Turkey?

Extra lean ground turkey tends to get a bad reputation for being too dry. First of all, make sure you are not overcooking the ground turkey. It should only take 10-15 minutes to cook the ground turkey completely (until there is no more pink), it should be around 165 degrees if you are using a thermometer. But if you have tried it all and still do not like it, try a less lean ground turkey, or utilize ground chicken, or ground beef! Just note the nutrition facts will change, likely in terms of fats and proteins, it will still remain low carb.

What Are The Nutrition Facts For The Healthy Ground Turkey Recipe?

The recipe makes 5 servings, each serving is only 226 calories, 1.3 grams of fat, 22.2 grams of carbs, and 30.3 grams of protein! Super macro-friendly, search HNFit Healthy Ground Turkey Green Chile Bake in My Fitness Pal for easy logging

Does Ground Turkey Cook The Same As Ground Beef?

This is a great question! The use for lean ground turkey in this recipe allows it to be lower in fat, and higher in protein, which overall yields a lower calorie recipe. That being said, ground turkey is way leaner than ground beef, but they essentially cook the same! You may find that the ground turkey drys out quicker because of the composition of the lean meat. In order to cook it so it does not dry out, try breaking it up into 4 squares, cooking both sides, then breaking it into smaller crumbles! If you break it up immediately the moisture tends to leave the ground turkey much quicker! Another option would be to add some olive oil, or cooking spray to the pan to add some fat. If this still does not do it for you, feel free to read the substitutes above and use ground beef or a less lean ground turkey.

What Does Ground Turkey Look Like Cooked?

It is important to make sure you cook the turkey enough but make sure that you do not dry it out! In order to do this, cook the ground turkey until it is no longer pink, and a little browned on the sides for more flavor!

Did You Make The Healthy Ground Turkey Green Chile Bake?

If you made this recipe please tag me, @haleynicolefit on Instagram!! If you are looking for a low carb ground turkey recipe, this is it! It is perfect to share with the family, or to meal prep for the week! Full recipe below: