Green Chile Turkey Tacos (Slow Cooker Option)

Turkey tacos are always a delicious and healthy dinner, but add roasted green chiles and the Southwest flavor is amazing! Make this easy, gluten free recipe on the stove or in a slow cooker. Vegetarian Option.

Hey friends! It’s Taco Thursday. That’s a thing, right? Well it is now. Truth be told, I made these for Taco Tuesday and proceeded to eat them for Wednesday lunch. Now here I am today, Thursday, sharing them with you. Ya, we love them that much!  But I am pretty sure you will be hooked too once you see just HOW EASY and FLAVORFUL this recipe is.

Consider this is a quick and light dinner that the whole family will love! We’re using ground turkey because it’s lean and in my opinion, really gives the tacos more flavor than chicken. Plus, turkey is a good source of high-quality protein, B vitamins, selenium, zinc, and phosphorus. It’s also slightly leaner than chicken.

Plus, it’s easy to make them on the stove in 30 minutes. Or, in a slow cooker for 2 hours on high or 4 hours low. No matter how you make them, the recipe is easy, healthy, gluten free, and dairy free!

Ingredients for turkey tacos

To keep the meal lighter and more nutritious, we’re making lean ground turkey tacos.
To add some amazing, south-of-the-border taste to the tacos the ingredient list includes some delicious Mexican favorites. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Oil for the pan – Avocado oil is a great choice, but you can use whatever you like.
• Lean ground turkey
• Chopped onion – Use your choice of red onion or yellow onion
• Fire roasted green chilies – you can use canned chiles or follow my directions below to roast fresh chiles. Yum!
• Spices: chili powder, cumin, and a shake of salt and pepper. That’s it!
• Splash of lime juice – For the best flavor, freshly squeezed is the way to go.
• Corn tortillas – If you want to make the meal extra special, you could make homemade gluten free tortillas. Bob’s Red Mill has a recipe for gluten free flour tortillas, or this gluten free corn tortillas recipe looks fantastic too.
• Bell peppers for topping, obviously! 

VEGETARIAN OPTION – Swap the turkey for crumbled gluten free tempeh or 2 cans (3.5 cups) cooked white northern beans, drained.

Toppings

Now, what’s a taco without toppings? The truth is, topless tacos are a little bit boring!

Boring isn’t a problem with this dinner, though. For toppings, you can use any or all of the following:

• Chopped bell peppers
• Fresh cilantro
• Diced tomatoes
• Plus, there’s fresh, homemade avocado crema in the house!

How to make avocado crema

The ingredient list is simple, but avocado crema (cream) adds bright flavor to the turkey tacos. Don’t skip it!

Plus, it has plenty of healthy fats in it. You know that they will do your body good, right?

• Minced garlic
• Ripe avocado
• Mayo or sour cream – Have you seen my recipe for chipotle paleo mayo? It’s SO good!
• pinch of chili powder, optional.
• Sea salt and pepper, to taste

Making the avocado cream is super simple, too! Just blend or mash all the ingredients together in one bowl. Then add salt and pepper, to taste.

How to make ground turkey tacos

1. Heat a lightly oiled skillet over medium high heat.
2. Add the onion and ground turkey to the skillet and sauté for 2 minutes. Mix in the spices and green chiles, then sauté on medium for about 10 more minutes, until the ground turkey is cooked through and onions have softened.
3. Just before serving, add a splash of lime juice and some salt and pepper.
4. While the ground turkey taco meat is sautéing, you can make the avocado crema.

Want to make the tacos in a slow cooker?

Do you need to be away from the kitchen for a while? Not a problem. Slow cooker turkey tacos, comin’ up!

1. Brown ground turkey and onion in a small pan over medium-high for 5 minutes.
2. Add the turkey/onion mixture to the slow cooker with 1 tablespoon oil, spices, and green chilies.
3. Cook on low for 4 hours or high for 2 hours. Add lime and salt/pepper before serving.

Tips for serving and storing

• Warm the tortillas in a pan or oven for a few minutes to soften them. As a result, they’ll be more pliable and easier to fill.
• Fill ‘er up! When ready to serve, place a few spoonfuls of cooked filling into each taco. Top with 1-2 tablespoon avocado crema. Add any other toppings you want, and cilantro to garnish.
• To store: Tacos can be wrapped in plastic wrap or foil and kept in the fridge for up to 5 days. Avocado crema needs to be kept in a separate container. It should also be kept in the fridge, and will stay fresh for up to 3 days. The longer it stays in the fridge, the more likely the avocado will oxidize and turn brown. By the way, brown avocado is perfectly edible, but it isn’t very pretty. 😉

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Alright my taco loving friends! Tell me you’re favorite protein filling! Beef, chicken, fish, beans, etc? Well guess what, any of those will work with this recipe! SO SO GOOD!

Cheers to taco week!

LC

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This recipe is part of our Best Slow Cooker Meal Prep and Instant Pot Recipes collection. Check it out!