Family-friendly Turkey Taco Meat made with ground turkey, rice, canned tomatoes, everyday veggies, and a few pantry ingredients. Enjoy as an entree or as a Mexican filling. Includes stove and Instant Pot instructions.
Turkey Taco Meat with Rice
Here's a super simple Mexican dish. It's ground turkey taco meat made with rice in one skillet or in the Instant Pot. It's perfect for game day, Taco Tuesday, or busy-week burrito meal prep that you're planning to freeze.
I love it that one pot of this can be so flippin' delicious, and versatile, and gets me through a busy week! If I'm using it for meal prep, once it's cooked and cooled, I simply store it in the fridge in an airtight container. I then dish it out through the week into a taco salad, burritos, enchiladas, nachos...you name it!
Turkey taco meat (stove instructions)
Ground turkey, white rice, tomatoes, and taco seasoning are simmered to create a quick skillet dinner or a tasty filling for your favorite Mexican foods. Here's the step by step with photos. You can grab the full recipe below!
Step 1. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
Step 2. Add ground turkey and cook through, stirring as needed. Then add uncooked rice and saute briefly.
Step 3. Add canned tomatoes, chicken stock, and seasoning.
Step 4. Bring it to a boil, cover, and simmer until the rice is cooked through; serve warm as an entree or as a filling for your favorite Mexican foods.
Turkey taco meat (Instant Pot instructions)
Step 1: Place stainless insert in the Instant Pot, press the “Saute” button and add olive oil. When the Instant Pot liner is hot, add and saute onions and garlic, stirring as needed. Add ground turkey and saute until cooked through.
Step 2: Then add remaining ingredients to the Instant Pot: rice, tomatoes, chicken broth, water (if needed), and seasonings. Stir to combine.
Step 3: Close and lock the lid, turn the steam release knob to “sealed” position; set Instant Pot to Manual or Pressure Cook for 5 minutes.
Step 4: When the cooking cycle is complete, allow the pot to sit, untouched for about 15 minutes. This is called natural pressure release. Then, carefully turn the steam release knob to fully depressurize the Instant Pot (takes 2-4 minutes). Stir the pot for even distribution of ingredients. Serve warm as an entree or use as a filling for your favorite Mexican recipes.
Turkey Taco Meat Ingredients
olive oil - You can also use extra-virgin olive oil or any neutral-flavored oil for that matter.
red onion - I'm crazy about red onions...what can I say?! Any onions will work for taco meat.
fresh garlic - Huge fan of fresh garlic for just about everything! You could use garlic powder if you have no fresh on hand.
ground turkey - Try to buy lean ground turkey (white meat) as opposed to non-lean, which can be just as fatty as beef.
long-grain white rice (uncooked) - The beauty of this recipe is that you don't have to cook the rice separately. Everything is done in one pot.
canned diced tomatoes - Try to buy the low sodium version of diced tomatoes so you can be in control of the salt.
chicken broth - This is another ingredient where you can buy a low sodium broth...I always do!
water - This is only necessary if you feel you need to add more water to cover your ingredients in the skillet or in the instant pot.
taco seasoning - Use store-bought packet or make taco seasoning substitute.
Kosher salt - You can also use fine sea salt, but you'll want to cut the amount in half that of the Kosher salt.
Recommended Kitchen Tools
- chef knife and cutting board
- Non-stick skillet or 6 qt Instant Pot
- silicone spoon
Grab these easy Mexican recipes
- Taco Pasta [Instant Pot or Stove]
- Instant Pot Chicken Burrito Bowl
- Homemade Beef Taco Meat
- Cilantro Lime Rice
- 5-Minute Restaurant Style Salsa
- Vegetarian Skillet Enchiladas
Turkey Taco Meat Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- ¼ large Red Onion, diced
- 4 cloves Garlic, finely grated
- 1 lb Ground Turkey
- 1 cup Long Grain White Rice, uncooked
- 1 (14.5 oz can) Diced Tomatoes, don’t drain
- 1 cup Chicken Broth
- 1 cup Water, may need to adjust
- 2 tablespoons Taco Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon Sea Salt
Instructions
Taco Meat Stove Instructions
- Heat OLIVE OIL In a nonstick skillet on medium-high heat.
- Add ONIONS and GARLIC; saute until tender (about 2 minutes).
- Add GROUND TURKEY and break into small pieces with a cooking utensil; saute until cooked through, stirring as needed (4-5 minutes).
- Add UNCOOKED RICE, TOMATOES, CHICKEN BROTH, WATER, TACO SEASONING, and SALT; stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil and maintain that for about 5 minutes, stirring as needed.
- Cover; reduce heat to med-low and simmer 15 minutes or until rice is cooked through. You can cook a little longer if there's excess liquid, or add a little water if you like it saucier.
- Serve warm as a filling/topping for burritos, nachos, tacos, or quesadillas. Garnish with any of the following: green onions, lime, cilantro, sour cream, Mexican cheese.
Taco Meat Instant Pot Instructions
- Select "Sauté" on the Instant Pot and heat the OLIVE OIL.
- When the display reads "Hot", add ONIONS and GARLIC; saute until tender (about 2 minutes).
- Add GROUND TURKEY and break into small pieces with a cooking utensil; saute until cooked through, stirring as needed (4-5 minutes).
- Then add UNCOOKED RICE to the pot and allow it to saute for a few minutes, stirring as needed.
- Stir in TOMATOES, CHICKEN BROTH, WATER, TACO SEASONING, and SALT.
- Press the "Cancel" function on the Instant Pot. Secure the lid and turn the pressure release valve to the "Sealing" position.
- Select "Manual" and set the Instant Pot on "High" pressure for 5 minutes.
- When the cycle completes, allow the Instant Pot to sit for 10 minutes, undisturbed, for a natural pressure release (NPR).
- Then, using an oven mitt for protection, release any remaining steam by turning the pressure release valve to the "Venting" position.
- The cooker automatically goes into "Keep Warm" mode until you shut it off.
Serving and storage instructions
- Serve warm as a filling for all Mexican food (tacos, burritos, nachos, enchiladas, and quesadillas.Refrigerate in an airtight container up to five days.
Nutrition
Nutrition data provided as courtesy estimates using unbranded ingredients from a nutrition database. Please consult preferred resource for precise data.
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