Need a quick and healthy dinner idea? Ground turkey skillet is easy to make and perfect for busy weeknights and is very similar to our popular ground turkey sweet potato skillet recipe.
This couldn’t be easier to make. The turkey is browned in a pan, then mixed with vegetables, chickpeas, tomatoes and spices. Freshly grated mozzarella is melted on top for extra flavor. Serve on its own, with rice, pasta or quinoa for a healthy family dinner.
One-Pan Dinner Recipe
I’m a big fan of one-pot meals that save me time and money! This easy recipe checks all the boxes and is something you can repeat throughout the month.
- No need to cook ground beef separately, it’s cooked first in the skillet then all other ingredients are added in.
- Everything is cooked in one frying pan, making clean-up easier.
- This is a very simple recipe that looks more complicated than it actually is. Prep is simple, just chop the zucchini, drain the tomatoes and chickpeas, brown the ground turkey and mix with other ingredients.
- Once you learn this easy one-pan method you can use it for a variety of dinner recipes including our ground turkey sweet potato skillet, our easy chicken burrito bowl, and ground beef with sweet potatoes.
- This recipe can be adapted to your tastes. Try different veggies like asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower and sweet potatoes. Top with ketchup, salsa or hot sauce.
Recipe Ingredients
GROUND TURKEY: You’ll need 1 lb of ground turkey for this recipe. You can also use lean ground beef or ground chicken.
VEGETABLES: Fresh zucchini is chopped into bite-size pieces and combined with frozen peas, chopped onion and canned diced tomatoes.
CHICKPEAS: Drained and rinsed chickpeas are mixed in an can be replaced with any type of bean you prefer. Lentils, black beans, and white navy beans would also work.
SPICES: For flavor, this recipe uses onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, paprika, salt and pepper.
CHEESE: Once the skillet recipe is cooked, sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. You can also use cheddar cheese, marble cheese, monterey jack cheese, parmesan or feta.
How To Make Ground Turkey Skillet
From start to finish, this recipe can be on your plate in under 30 minutes.
- Chop the zucchini into small cubes, dice onion, mince garlic, drain and rinse chickpeas.
- Brown the ground turkey in a frying pan over medium-high heat according to the full recipe instructions below.
- Move the ground turkey to one side, then cook onion and garlic. Add in the zucchini, chickpeas, frozen peas, diced tomatoes, tomato paste and spices. Mix everything together and cook until the zucchini turns crisp-tender.
- Remove from the heat. Grate some mozzarella cheese and sprinkle on top. Dish up and serve.
Recipe Tips
- Prep the ingredients in advance. This makes the cooking process easier. I like to measure all spices together into a small bowl, wash and chop all vegetables, open cans and strain liquid, and grate the mozzarella cheese.
- Excess grease might happen from the ground turkey. You can drain it before adding in the onion, or let it cook down as you cook the other ingredients.
- You can use a frying pan or large pot to make this recipe. It doesn’t have to be a cast iron skillet. Any large pot or pan that you normally cook on the stove with will work.
- Substitute mozzarella cheese for old cheddar, marble, monterey jack, parmesan or feta – they’ll all taste great!
- Use a wood or silicone spatula to stir and mix ingredients – that way you won’t be scratching the surface of the pan.
- Your cheese might not melt easily – If needed, just add a lid or plate to the top of the frying pan (removed from heat) for 1-2 minutes. It should easily melt then.
- Zucchini should be “crisp-tender” when ready to serve. That means it can easily be poked with a fork, but isn’t too mushy. The longer you cook, the musher it can get.
More One Pan Recipes
- Ground Beef Sweet Potato Skillet is dinner in under 30 minutes.
- One Pan Chicken Burrito Bowl is filled with chicken, rice and beans. It’s easy and filling.
- Easy Skillet Lasagna takes less time than traditional lasagna and is just as delicious.
- Rigatoni Ground Chicken and Peas Skillet is easy to make and perfect for busy weeknights.
Did you love this ground turkey zucchini chickpea skillet? Be sure to leave a rating below!
Ground Turkey Zucchini Chickpea Skillet
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp cooking oil
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 3 garlic cloves - minced
- 1 ½ cups chopped zucchini
- 1 cup chickpeas - drained and rinsed
- 1 cup diced tomatoes
- ¾ cup peas - canned or frozen
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp salt and ground pepper
- 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Cook the ground turkey with a bit of oil over medium high heat, breaking it apart as you go. Remove any excess grease from pan.
- Move the turkey to the side and add the minced garlic and chopped onion. Cook until onion turns translucent, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add in the chopped zucchini, chickpeas, peas, diced tomatoes, chickpeas, tomato paste and spices (onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, paprika, salt and pepper)
- Mix everything together and cook on low for 4-5 minutes, or until zucchini is crisp tender.
- Remove from heat and sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. Cover with a lid or plate for 1-2 minutes to help cheese melt. Dish on to plates and enjoy!
Recipe Notes:
- Prep the ingredients in advance. This makes the cooking process easier. I like to measure all spices together into a small bowl, wash and chop all vegetables, open cans and strain liquid, and grate the mozzarella cheese.
- Excess grease might happen from the ground turkey. You can drain it before adding in the onion, or let it cook down as you cook the other ingredients.
- You can use a frying pan or large pot to make this recipe. It doesn’t have to be a cast iron skillet. Any large pot or pan that you normally cook on the stove with will work.
- Substitute mozzarella cheese for old cheddar, marble, monterey jack, parmesan or feta – they’ll all taste great!
- Use a wood or silicone spatula to stir and mix ingredients – that way you won’t be scratching the surface of the pan.
- Your cheese might not melt easily – If needed, just add a lid or plate to the top of the frying pan (removed from heat) for 1-2 minutes. It should easily melt then.
- Zucchini should be “crisp-tender” when ready to serve. That means it can easily be poked with a fork, but isn’t too mushy. The longer you cook, the musher it can get.