I have a very close friend that lives in NYC and we recently spent a couple of weeks together with our other girlfriends from High School to celebrate half century birthdays (theirs, not mine……yes, I’m rubbing it in).  She was telling me how popular Turkey is in the US and especially Turkey Chilli, as it is a fabulous way to use up the leftover turkey from Thanksgiving.  Now I will admit, my cooking with Turkey is somewhat limited as it is not really a source of protein that is a go to for us…….nor many other Australians, I suspect.  I am really not sure why as it is extremely healthy, being very high in protein and extremely low in fat and because of its unpopularity it is very reasonably priced.  After gobbling (pardon the pun) down this recipe of Turkey Chilli, I can confirm that it also tastes sensational and I have decided that it is definitely a food product that I am going to experiment with more, so watch this space as I’m a tad excited!

My family is partial to a bit of heat, particularly in a bowl of chilli but if you are wanting to feed this to the kids just omit the chilli (the chipotle in Adobo is very mild) and you could serve this with pickled jalapeno’s for the adults or a dusting of chilli flakes on the top.  It is a super adaptable recipe and to feed a crowd, just double the recipe.

Prep time:  25 Minutes

Cooking time:  30 Minutes (the longer the better as the flavours will intensify)

$$  Medium Budget

Serves 4

For the Turkey Chilli:

500gm of Turkey mince

1 brown onion, finely diced

2 cloves of garlic, finely minced

1 long green chilli, sliced (seeds removed if you like less heat)

2tbs of chipotle chillies in Adobo sauce (Mexican section of the supermarket)

1 tsp of chilli flakes

1 tbs of ground cumin

1 tbs of sweet paprika

1 heaped tsp of smoked paprika

1 heaped tsp of dried oregano

The stalks of a bunch of coriander, well rinsed and finely chopped

400gm tin of diced tomatoes

400gm tin of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup of water

Juice of 1 lime

1 tbs of tomato paste

1 tsp of sugar

Sea salt & ground black pepper

1/2 a bunch of coriander leaves, roughly chopped

Avocado slices & sour cream to serve

Cooked quinoa & brown rice to serve (optional……you can use any rice of your choice)

Coriander leaves for garnish

4 tortillas or wraps

1 cup of grated tasty cheese

For the Pico Di Gallo:

1 punnet of assorted cherry & grape tomatoes, finely chopped

1/2 a small red onion, finely diced

1/2 a green chilli, finely diced (optional)

1 tbs of finely chopped coriander

Juice of 1/2 a lime

Sea salt & cracked pepper

To prepare the Turkey chilli, heat a large pan to a medium heat and add a drizzle of oil.  Fry the onion, chilli slices and garlic until the onion has softened, turn up the heat and add the turkey mince.  It has quite a different consistency to other mince meat and this is due to its low fat content.  It is more like a sausage mince but once the cooking process really kicks off, it browns and separates beautifully. Keep cooking the mince, breaking it up with a wooden spoon until all of the liquid has evaporated.  Add the coriander stalks and spices and stir to combine, frying for a minute or so until the spices are aromatic then add the chipotle chilli, tomatoes, tomato paste & black beans.  Fill up your tomato tin to about halfway and give it a swirl before pouring it in the pan and then give everything a really good stir.  Bring to a simmer and season with the lime juice, sugar and a good pinch of salt and pepper.  Reduce the heat to low and cover for at least 30 minutes (it will still be fine if you are in a rush but the longer the better to intensify all of the flavours).

To make the Pico Di Gallo salsa, place the tomatoes, chilli, red onion, coriander, lime juice and salt & pepper in a small bowl and stir to combine.

Heat a griddle or fry pan to nice and hot. Lay a couple of tortillas out & sprinkle a little cheese on half.  Fold the tortillas over and place them in the pan (so the two look like a circle in the pan).  Cook for a few minutes either side until you have nice char lines or blister marks.  Remove and keep warm in a low oven while you cook the remaining tortillas and once about to serve the turkey chilli, cut them into wedges.

When the Turkey chilli is just about ready to serve, stir through the coriander leaves.

To serve, spoon rice into bowls, then the turkey chilli. Place a dollop of sour cream on top and spoon over the Pico Di Gallo.  Fan slices of avocado (just like in the picture) and garnish with a few coriander leaves and serve with the cheesy tortillas.  Ole`