Ground Turkey Bowl Recipe

This one’s been a reader favorite for good reason. After nearly 20 years of feeding families (and winning over skeptics), I’ve learned that ground turkey just needs the right seasoning and a solid sear to become the star of the show. Serve it over rice, wrap it in lettuce, pile it on a salad—whatever your vibe, it works.

Quick, healthy, totally customizable, and way more exciting than your usual weeknight fallback. Make it once, and you’ll get why it’s on so many meal rotations and meal prep plans!

Mediterranean Turkey Bowl Ingredients

• Avocado oil: I like the Chosen brand in the large bottles found at Costco.
• Ground turkey
• Middle Eastern Seasoning: This spice blend is quick to assemble with easy to find seasonings and breaths life into that ground turkey! It also makes a fantastic grill rub or marinade, so keep a jar handy in the cupboard.
• Cucumber
• Cherry tomatoes
• Feta cheese
• Steamed rice (Optional as the base): Jasmine rice is always my first choice for rice bowls since it’s fluffy and not as starchy as short-grained rice. You can also long-grain white rice or basmati rice. If you use brown rice or wild rice plan on some extra cook time for those because they take twice as long as white rice.
• Salad greens (Optional as the base)
• Lemons
• Olive oil
• Hummus
• Plain yogurt: Feel free to use full-fat or non-fat here. Both work well!

How to make Ground Turkey Bowls

1. Start cooking your rice, if you are using it as a base for your bowl.
2. Warm the avocado oil and cook the ground turkey until it is cooked through.
3. Then add the remaining avocado oil and seasoning. Continue to cook, breaking the turkey into small pieces, until it is very golden brown and crisped up.
4. Meanwhile, prep your bowl ingredients.
5. Assemble the bowls by scooping some rice or salad greens into a bowl. Top with a few spoonfuls of seasoned turkey, cucumbers, tomatoes, hummus, plain yogurt, and feta.
6. Squeeze lemon over the whole bowl and drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil or a spicy condiment.

Seasoning the Ground Turkey

My favorite seasoning blend for this particular recipe is my Middle Eastern Seasoning. It has a lot of herbs and a bit of curry. Steve said this turkey tasted a little like falafel -- to give you an idea of the flavor.

It doesn't have any unusual spices or herbs. It's heavy on the garlic powder, cumin, and dried parsley and all of the ingredients are easy to find in the grocery store. You can also use this seasoning in my Gyro-Inspired Shredded Beef!

My Greek Seasoning is also really good here as well as any other Middle Eastern-ish type of seasoning like Za'atar or the North African blend, Ras el Hanout.

Tips for how to cook Ground Turkey

Here are a few of my best tips on how to cook ground turkey so it actually tastes good.

Add moisture

If you're making turkey burgers or meatloaf,, add some shredded zucchini, shredded carrots, minced bell peppers, or another type of quick cooking vegetable to the ground meat. It will release some moisture as it cooks and a great way to keep those burgers moist.

Add fat

It seems counterintuitive to add fat to really lean ground turkey because the appeal of ground turkey is that it's an extremely lean protein.

Some say it's a healthier alternative to beef, but I'd rather define "healthy" according to the way meat is sourced. Grass-fed beef is far healthier than conventional red meat and poultry you find in the grocery store. I digress....

I'm not saying that you should go nuts here, but a little bit of fat will go a long way. Try adding a little peanut butter along with some Thai-inspired ingredients to your turkey burgers!

Add LOTS of flavor

Ground turkey has a very mild flavor (like chicken) and is an excellent blank slate for bold flavors. Use a heavy hand with that seasoning or other bold ingredients -- like soy sauce, chili powder, or worcestershire sauce.

Mediterranean Turkey Bowl Variations

• Swap the protein: Ground beef or pork or a blend of two meats would work really well here.
• Make it a pita: Make it portable and stuff the turkey, vegetables, and toppings into a warm pita pocket.
• Make it into a salad: Nix the grains and put it all on a bed of salad greens.

How to Serve This Ground Turkey Bowl Recipe

One of my most favorite meals is my Gyro-Inspired Shredded Beef made into a bowl like this with Tzatziki sauce and Cucumber Tomato Salad with Feta. It's not a last-minute dinner you can make on the fly in 30-minutes. It's more like something that I'd cook for company and one of the most delicious meals that my family loves.

These easy turkey bowls are a shortcut version of this made with the same seasoning and most of the same components! It's literally one of the best ground turkey recipes I've ever had.

You can adapt this how you like to fit your taste or dietary preferences, but this is what I used:

• Steamed rice or salad greens as a base
• English cucumbers
• Cherry tomatoes
• Feta cheese
• Hummus
• Plain Full-Fat yogurt (or Greek yogurt)
• Fresh lemon juice
• extra-virgin olive oil

One of my favorite things about this meal is that it allows my kid to assemble their own bowls.

The best way to avoid complaints about dinner is to give your kids some control over what they're eating. Build your own bowls are PERFECT for this. (And why we have taco salads/bowls so frequently!)

Storage and Meal Prep for This Ground Turkey Bowl

This recipe would also make a great meal prep for a week's worth of lunches or dinners for busy weeknights for one person!

Just store each component in an airtight container or assemble each meal in those meal prep containers -- saving the drizzle of olive oil and lemon juice right before serving.

You know.... this technique would make fabulous filling for ground turkey tacos by using your favorite taco seasoning!

Adding a little extra color to your ground meat is helpful when you're making sloppy joes or turkey chili. Grab a can of tomato sauce and try using ground turkey in my Healthy Sloppy Joe's recipe! 

If you like this recipe, check out some other easy ground turkey recipes on my site!

Ground Turkey Bowl Recipe FAQs

More Ground Turkey Recipes on Perry's Plate

Moroccan Paleo Turkey Chili is a delicious and unique spin on a chili recipe! It's one of my favorite recipes for fall because it's light healthy dinner, yet still incredibly filing.

These Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps can be made with ground turkey, too! They can also be made into bowls if you don't want to bother with lettuce wraps.

Green Chile Turkey Burgers are so full of flavor and adding some guac-ranch and a fried egg gives the burger extra richness and flavor!

Italian Stuffed Paleo Stuffed Zucchini is stuffed with "turkey sausage" which is just ground turkey with some fresh herbs! You can use bulk Italian turkey sausage, too, if you can find it.

If you make one of my recipes, I'd love to see! Post it on social media and tag me at @perrysplate or #perrysplate so I can send you some love!

More Recipes on Perry's Plate

Ground Turkey Bowl Recipe

Yield: Serves 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

These delicious bowls have ultra-seasoned crispy ground turkey and can be customized how you like. I love that they're done in under 30 minutes and always a hit with our kids!

Print

Ingredients

• 4 Tablespoons avocado oil, divided
• 1 ½ pounds ground turkey
• 3 Tablespoons Middle Eastern Seasoning
• 1 English cucumber, diced
• 1-2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
• Steamed rice or chopped salad greens
• 2 lemons
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Hummus & plain yogurt, for garnish

Instructions

1. Start cooking your rice, if you are choosing to use it as a base for your bowl.
2. Heat 1 Tablespoon of avocado oil to high heat in a large skillet. Add the ground turkey and cook for 10-12 minutes, breaking it up with a spatula, until it is cooked through and starting to get golden brown in spots.
3. Add the remaining 2 Tablespoons avocado oil and seasoning to the turkey. Continue to cook, breaking the turkey into even smaller pieces, until it is very golden brown and crisped up, another 5-10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, prep your bowl ingredients.
5. Assemble the bowls by scooping some rice or salad greens into a bowl. Top with a few spoonfuls of seasoned turkey, cucumbers, tomatoes, hummus, plain yogurt, and feta. Squeeze ¼ lemon over the whole bowl and drizzle with about 1 Tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil. Add some freshly ground pepper and a spicy condiment, if desired. I recommend chili crunch or harissa paste for this bowl, but you can use sriracha if you like.

Notes

1. I love the MIddle Eastern Seasoning with this recipe, but there are a few others that would be great as well. Try using my Greek Seasoning, Za'atar Seasoning, or another bold Mediterranean-inspired seasoning blend.

Nutrition Information

Yield 6 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 653Total Fat 46gSaturated Fat 13gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 29gCholesterol 166mgSodium 2868mgCarbohydrates 24gFiber 5gSugar 7gProtein 40g

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

The post Ground Turkey Bowl Recipe (Great for Meal Prep) appeared first on Perry's Plate.

If you’ve ever felt like gyro meat would be a pain to make… you’re not wrong. Say good-bye to grinding meat, water baths, and tedious searing with this slow cooker shortcut version! My gyro-inspired shredded beef has all of the flavors and none of the fuss, and you’ll be adding it to your weekly meal rotation!

Tender Slow Cooker Shredded Beef

This shredded beef recipe should be filed in your "cooking for a crowd" stash.

Prep time is quick and the ingredient list is short (if you have some Middle Eastern Seasoning made it's even quicker!)

There are a lot of you who have already tried this recipe. And loved it!

It's one of my favorite recipes from my second cookbook, The Big Book of Paleo Pressure Cooking

I casually call it "Greek beef" at our house because my kids don't know what gyros are.

Anyhow, they go bonkers when I make "Greek bowls" -- this beef with some jasmine rice, tzaziki sauce, and either Marinated Cucumbers or the Cucumber Tomato Salad that I just posted last week.

Make this delicious shredded beef in an Instant Pot or a slow cooker. I included both variations in the recipe notes!

Just cover the roast in the seasoning blend, sear it (optional), then throw it in the cooker with a sliced onion and some fresh garlic.

Then let the Crock Pot do its magic.

Shredded Beef Recipe ingredients

• Beef roast
• Kosher salt
• Middle Eastern Seasoning
• Avocado oil
• Beef or chicken broth
• Red onion
• Garlic
• Red pepper flakes
• Lemon juice
• Cilantro
• Tzatziki, for serving. Here's a great Tzatziki Recipe if you want to make it homemade!

What kind of beef roast is best for Shredded Beef?

I like to use chuck roasts or round roasts. Round roasts are a little leaner, if that makes a difference to you. You can read more about what kind of beef is best for things like this in this helpful article about beef cuts.

Beef Gyro Recipe substitutions and additions

If you prefer not to make the Middle Eastern Seasoning, you can use something similar. Ras el Hanout seasoning, high quality Indian curry powder, or my Easy Shawarma Seasoning would also be great in this recipe.

How to make Shredded Beef

• Rub the salt and Middle Eastern Seasoning all over the roast.
• Bring the avocado oil to high heat in a large stainless or cast iron pan. Add the roast and let it sear until it gets nice and deep golden brown. Flip it over and sear the other side.
• Transfer the seared roast to your slow cooker. Pour the broth into the slow cooker alongside the roast.
• Add the sliced red onion around the roast and sprinkle the garlic and crushed pepper flakes on the roast.
• Cover and cook on low heat for 8-9 hours or until the roast shreds easily with two forks.
• Shred the roast, returning the shredded meat to the pot to soak up more of the cooking juices.
• Sprinkle the lemon juice and fresh cilantro over the meat and serve.

How long to cook this Beef Gyro Recipe in the crock pot?

For this recipe, I recommend a 3-4 pound beef roast. You'll want to cook it for at least 8 hours on low so it's easily shreddable.

Some roasts might take a little longer if they have more connective tissue, so leave yourself some extra time just in case. I've had roasts that take 9-10 hours -- especially if they're on the larger side.

How to serve this Slow Cooker Shredded Beef

Here are a list of sides that would be great with this Middle Eastern flavored shredded beef. You could create some pretty fabulous bowls with these!

• Cucumber Tomato Salad with Feta is my top pick to go with this shredded beef. It's fresh and easy to put together a day or two ahead of time, too.

• Simple Marinated Cucumbers is more simple option if your wanting some briny cucumbers but don't want to make the salad I linked to just before this. My kids love these and they stay tasty in the fridge for several days of bowl making!

• Cabbage Salad with Cucumber Yogurt Dressing is a riff on my Southwest Cabbage Slaw with a cool, cucumber-yogurt dressing that has a shot of jalapeno.

• Homemade Tzatziki is a must-have with this Gyro shredded beef, too! It's included in the recipe for some Greek Steak Kabobs which are pretty fabulous, too.

• Make some Roasted Cauliflower Rice with a sprinkle of the Middle Eastern Seasoning or my Greek Seasoning if you're not eating regular rice.

• Wild Rice Salad with Cucumber and Pesto with Cilantro Pesto is another fun option. A batch of that salad along with this beef would make some tasty meal prep lunches for the week!

How to store Shredded Beef

Keep the leftovers in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container. Make sure you include the juices to keep the meat moist.

More Shredded Beef Recipes for Crock Pot or Instant Pot

Want more easy shredded beef recipes? Try one of these!

Chipotle Copycat Barbacoa Beef gives you a big pot of that tasty Chipotle Grill inspired barbacoa beef at home!

Instant Pot Shredded Beef with Green Chile is one of my favorites for taco nights! I love using 505 Southwestern Hatch Chiles.

Slow Cooker Indian Beef is a fun take on an Indian-style curry with the most delicious chunks of tender beef!

If you make one of my recipes, I'd love to see! Post it on social media and tag me at @perrysplate or #perrysplate so I can send you some love!

Shredded Beef Slow Cooker FAQs

Gyro Inspired Shredded Beef (Slow Cooker)

Yield: Serves 10-12

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 8 hours

Total Time: 8 hours 15 minutes

This tender shredded beef with Middle Eastern flavors goes perfectly with a cucumber-tomato salad, rice, and tzatziki! Make it in the slow cooker or Instant Pot. If you'd like your beef similar to gyro meat in texture, try crisping it up in the oven after you shred it. (See recipe notes.)

Print

Ingredients

• 3-4 pound beef roast
• 1 Tablespoon Kosher salt
• 4 teaspoons Middle Eastern Seasoning
• 3 Tablespoons avocado oil
• 1 cup beef or chicken broth
• 1 medium red onion, halved and sliced thinly
• 1 Tablespoon minced or finely grated garlic
• Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ½ cup fresh chopped cilantro (optional)

Instructions

1. Rub the salt and Middle Eastern Seasoning all over the roast.
2. Bring the avocado oil to high heat in a large stainless or cast iron pan. Add the roast. Let it sear for 3-4 minutes until it gets nice and deep golden brown. Flip it over and sear the other side.
3. Transfer the seared roast to your 4-7 quart slow cooker. Add the broth to the pan and scrape any stuck bits from the bottom. Pour the broth into the slow cooker alongside the roast.
4. Add the sliced red onion around the roast and sprinkle the garlic and crushed pepper flakes on the roast.
5. Cover and cook on low heat for 8-9 hours or until the roast shreds easily with two forks. I like to flip the roast after 6-ish hours, but that's optional.
6. Shred the roast, returning the shredded meat to the pot to soak up more of the cooking juices. Mmm. Sprinkle the lemon juice and fresh cilantro over the meat and serve.

INSTANT POT INSTRUCTIONS: Cut the roast into 3 pieces that are roughly the same size. Cover the meat with the salt and seasoning. Use the saute mode on your 6 or 8 qt cooker to sear the pieces of meat. Do them in 2 batches so you can get some good color on them. Add the broth, onion, garlic, and pepper flakes to the pot. Cover and seal. Cook at high pressure for 2 hours, letting the cooker release pressure naturally for at least 20 minutes -- preferabley until the steam release valve drops on its own. Shred the meat, return it to the pot, sprinkle on the lemon juice, and serve.

Notes

1. If you prefer not to make the Middle Eastern Seasoning, you can use something similar. Ras el Hanout seasoning or high quality Indian curry powder would also be great in this recipe.
2. I highly recommend serving this with my Cucumber Tomato Salad with Feta, some Roasted Cauliflower Rice (or jasmine rice), and Homemade Tzatziki. It makes a lot of food, but you'll have leftovers for dayzzzzz.

Recommended Products

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  Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Saute, Yogurt Maker, and Warmer, 6 Quart

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