This healthy ground turkey sweet potato skillet is a delicious one-pan dinner for those busy weeknights you want a hearty meal on the table in 30 minutes.
Turkey sweet potato skillet is so quick and easy!
One-pot recipes are always family favorite (or at least the chef's favorite), they're simple to make and quick to clean-up. We made our healthy turkey skillet recipe even faster by air frying the sweet potatoes while the ground turkey was browning. You can use a microwave or bake the sweet potatoes if you don't have an air fryer.
As written, our recipe is gluten free, you can make it dairy free by skipping the cheese or using a plant based alternative.
Ingredients list
- Sweet potatoes - Red Garnett are our favorite since they're most flavorful
- Lean ground turkey - We used 97% lean ground turkey, ground chicken or beef would work well too.
- Green bell pepper - or red, yellow, or orange
- Red onion - Red, yellow, sweet, or white diced onion will work.
- Colby jack - Block cheese will be creamier and melt more evenly than shredded cheese. Cheddar cheese or white cheddar would be good alternatives.
- Fresh chopped cilantro - If cilantro isn't your thing chopped parsley is a good swap.
- Olive oil
- Seasonings - A tasty combination of ground cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, salt & ground black pepper.
- Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional) - Add more heat with cayenne or a few dashes of hot sauce.
- Garnishes - fresh cilantro and sliced avocado
** Please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the exact quantities **
Variations
- Add beans. You can add black beans or pinto beans to increase the protein.
- Other veggies. Cubed yukon gold potatoes or butternut squash cubes are great alternatives to sweet potatoes. Fresh tomatoes, mushrooms, and roasted corn would be great too.
Kitchen tools
- A large skillet
- An air fryer
How to Cook Sweet Potato Turkey Skillet
While we could've pan fried the sweet potatoes in the skillet, they're actually quicker to make in an air fryer! If you don't have one, it's fine to microwave them just note they'll be soft and not crispy and browned.
- Air Fryer - Preheat the air fryer to 380 F for 5 minutes. Air fry the sweet potato cubes for 15 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking until they can be pierced with a fork.
- Microwave - Cut them into small cubes, add a little water to a bowl and cover it. Microwave for 5-7 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are cooked through. Add 1-2 more minutes if needed.
Cook
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the ground turkey.
Add the garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, salt, and pepper and combine.
Add the onions and bell pepper, cook until soft.
Mix in the precooked sweet potatoes. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
Top with shredded cheese, put the lid on the skillet until it melts.
Garnish with fresh cilantro and chopped cubed avocado before serving. Enjoy!
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Recipe
Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 pound Sweet potatoes peeled and diced
- 1 pound Lean ground turkey 97%
- 1 Green bell pepper seeded and diced
- 1 Red onion diced
- ½ cup Colby jack shredded (optional for dairy free)
- ¼ cup Fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil
- ½ tablespoons Ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon Garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Chili powder
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Ground black pepper
- Pinch of cayenne powder optional
- Garnishes - fresh cilantro and diced avocado
Instructions
Cook the sweet potatoes
- Air Fryer: Preheat the air fryer to 380 F for 5 minutes. Air fry the sweet potato cubes for 15 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking until they can be pierced with a fork.Microwave: Cut the sweet potato into cubes and add to a microwave safe dish with a little water, put the lid on, and cook for 5 minutes. Add 1-2 more minutes if needed to make them soft.
Skillet meal
- Brown the ground turkey in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, cayenne powder (if you're adding it for increased spice), salt, and pepper and stir to combine.
- Add the sliced onions and bell pepper, and cook them for 4-5 minutes or until soft.
- Mix in the precooked sweet potatoes and heat the mix until the potatoes are warm. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
- Top with shredded colby jack, put the lid on the skillet and allow the cheese to melt.
- Remove skillet from heat and garnish with fresh cilantro and chopped cubed avocado before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
- Add beans: You can add black beans or pinto beans to increase the protein
- Protein Swaps: Use ground beef instead of turkey, ground chicken or ground turkey would also be good.
- Other veggies: Cubed Yukon gold potatoes or butternut squash cubes are great alternatives to sweet potatoes.
- Leftovers will keep up to 4 days in the fridge.
- Air frying the sweet potatoes is best since they're get browned on the outside, the microwave potatoes will be much softer.
Jean says
Very good. I baked the sweet potatoes on a sheet pan then added to the skillet for last step. I also added spinach at the end. Every one liked it!
Mary says
We enjoyed this, but thought it was a little dry. I added about 1/4 cup of chicken broth and we topped it with some sour cream when it was on our plates. Next time I would add a little more spice (I was afraid to add the cayenne) and more cilantro. I'm glad to have another way to use ground turkey.
Linda says
I wasn’t sure about cooking the sweet potatoes ahead of time, but I added them at the end and let them heat through and I loved it. The flavors go so well together. Awesome recipe. Thank you.