Butternut Squash Turkey Chili with bell peppers, black beans, kidney beans and loads of flavor! A hint of lime makes this chili recipe extra special. Instant Pot, stovetop and slow cooker instructions!
Okay but honestly… Who doesn’t like chili?!
Actually, at one point in my life I did not like chili. Mainly because I was super picky as a kid. I can’t actually recall the first time I ate chili and enjoyed it… Is that strange? I feel like that’s strange. I was probably in my early twenties I bet.
Gosh my dietary habits were terrible growing up…
Anyways. It’s safe to say chili is definitely one of my go-to recipes we make on the regular now. It’s super easy, often customizable and I love that it heats up well for leftovers, making it the perfect meal prep recipe.
Butternut Squash & Bean Turkey Chili
Chili Ingredients
- oil
- diced onion & minced garlic
- ground turkey
- bell peppers
- canned low sodium black beans
- canned low sodium kidney beans
- canned diced tomatoes & green chiles
- tomato paste
- butternut squash
- chili powder, cumin, coriander
- chicken stock or vegetable stock*
- lime
Ways to Make this Butternut Squash Turkey Chili
Slow Cooker Method
Making this turkey chili in a slow cooker is probably my preferred method. The chili has time to get all the flavors to set in. Perfect for preparing on your day off where you can just let the slow cooker for a few hours and not worry about it.
Stovetop Method
You can also make this turkey chili on the stovetop. When using the stovetop method, you’ll need a heavy-bottomed pot or dutch oven. Everything gets cooked in the pot and simmered until the squash is tender. If using this method, you’ll have chili ready in less than one hour (including prep).
Pressure Cooker Method
This recipe was also tested in a pressure cooker (I have an Instant Pot), which is great if you want chili fairly fast and mostly hands off. You’ll use the pressure cooker to start cooking the meat and onions together (the sauté mode) and then you’ll add the rest of the ingredients, setting the squash on top. I found this turkey chili only needed 15 minutes on high pressure, which allowed the butternut squash to keep some of it’s texture but not turn to mush.
No matter how you prepare this Butternut Squash Turkey Chili, it’s delicious. Perfect for leftovers, meal prep or large gatherings where you need to serve a crowd.
Toppings make the world go round. And make this turkey chili taste even more BOMB dot COM.
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment plus review on the blog and say hi 🙂
Xx Ashley
How to Make…
Butternut Squash Turkey Chili {Instant Pot and Slow Cooker}
Butternut Squash Turkey Chili with bell peppers, black beans, kidney beans and loads of flavor! A hint of lime goes a long way in this recipe. Recipe instructions for slow cooker, Instant Pot pressure cooker and stovetop.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Diet: Gluten Free
- Yield: 8 large servings 1x
- Scale:
Ingredients
- 1 TBPS oil
- ½ cup diced onion
- 1 TBSP minced garlic
- 1 lb ground turkey, 97% lean
- 2 medium bell peppers (I used red and yellow)
- 14oz canned low sodium black beans, rinsed and drained
- 14oz canned low sodium kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 10oz canned diced tomatoes & green chiles (including liquid)
- 3oz canned tomato paste
- 1 small butternut squash, cubed (about 3 cups)
- ¼ cup chili powder
- 1 TBSP cumin
- 1 tsp coriander
- 2 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock*
- juice of 1 lime
toppings
- sour cream
- shredded cheese
- chopped cilantro
- avocado slices
Instructions
SLOW COOKER
In large skillet over medium heat, add oil, diced onion and garlic stirring frequently for 2 minutes. Add ground turkey and brown slightly, stirring to crumble, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer to slow cooker and add bell peppers, beans, tomato paste, canned tomatoes, butternut squash, spices, stock and juice of lime. Stir until well combined, lock lid and cook on low for 3-4 hours until squash is tender.
PRESSURE COOKER
Set pressure cooker (Instant Pot) to “sauté” mode. Add oil, onion, garlic and ground turkey to pot. I like to sprinkle on a little bit of extra cumin and chili powder here while the meat is browning. Crumble with large wooden spoon until browned. Add bell peppers, beans, tomato paste, spices, 1 cup stock*, lime (leave out butternut squash right now). Stir ingredients in pot until well combined, then add butternut squash on top and do not stir. Close lid, make sure valve stem is set to sealed. Set pot to “manual” mode on “high pressure” for 15 minutes. Quick release the pressure (cover stem with towel); remove lid and stir butternut squash into the chili.
STOVETOP
Place large pot or dutch oven on stove over medium heat. Once pot is warm add oil, diced onion and minced garlic, stirring frequently until fragrant. Add ground turkey breaking up with wooden spoon and brown for about 5 minutes. Add in spices, tomato paste, bell peppers, butternut squash and cook down for about 5 minutes. Add beans, stock and juice of 1 lime and stir until combined. Bring pot to simmer and cook uncovered for about 30-40 minutes or until squash is tender. Serve warm in bowls using your favorite toppings.
Recipes Notes:
Time shown in recipe card is for Instant Pot Pressure Cooker. The slow cooker will take 4 hours. Cooking on the stovetop will take about 45 minutes.
To prepare the butternut squash: First peel butternut squash with vegetable peeler going around twice. Scoop out seeds and cut into about 1″ cubes. If you don’t have super sharp knives, you can soften the squash in a preheating oven set at 300ºF (about 8-10 minutes). Let cool before cutting lengthwise and scooping out seeds. *I found using the Pressure Cooker method, you can use less liquid – only 1 cup of stock is needed. If you use the full 2 cups, the chili will be quite liquid-y.
Nutrition Information:
- Serving Size: 1/8th
- Calories: 317
- Sugar: 14
- Sodium: 581
- Fat: 6
- Saturated Fat: 1
- Unsaturated Fat: 4
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 49
- Fiber: 10
- Protein: 20
- Cholesterol: 39
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This recipe first appeared on Instagram in partnership with Tillamook. This post is not sponsored or endorsed by Tillamook, and as always all thoughts are my own.
Kayla says
Can I use frozen butternut squash?
Ashley says
I did not test it that way but I imagine it would be fine
Miriam Campbell says
I will replace veggie broth with tomato sauce (salt free) and the black beans with refried pinto beans. I also prefer the additional flavor of 93% lean ground turkey (includes thigh as well as breast) and so will reduce the amount of olive oil added to 1/2 tbsp.
Miriam Campbell says
The chili I made turned out great in the Instant Pot. I used 1 yellow onion, 1 clove garlic minced, 1 large green bell pepper, 1 Tbsp olive oil, 6 oz. salt-free tomato paste, 15 oz salt-free tomato sauce, 10 oz. no salt tomatoes with green chilis (Ro-Tel), 1 Tbsp oregano, 1/4 c chili powder, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp dry cilantro, 1/2 small butternut squash, 15 oz refried pinto beans with no added oil, 15.5 oz no salt kidney beans, and 1 lb. 93% lean ground turkey,. No added water nor broth (liquid from tomato products were enough). The result is thick and very tasty.
Ashley says
Thanks for your feedback and sharing your adjustments!
Gwen says
Very tasty! Definitely making it again. I did 10mins instead of 15 and the squash was DEFINITELY cooked. Probably would have been mush at 15. Will need to add salt if using no salt added beans (couldn’t find low sodium), but overall, a great addition to my rotation!
★★★★
Ashley says
Thanks so much for your comment and feedback, Gwen! I’m glad the butternut squash cooked for you at 10 minutes. And yes to the added salt! I actually just made this the other weekend and think it could use a little bit of added salt so I am making that adjustment to the recipe now 🙂
Emma says
This was delicious! I noticed the diced tomatoes were in the list of ingredients but not in the recipe (at least not in the Instant Pot version) – I added in crushed tomatoes since that’s what I had on-hand, right before mixing and adding the butternut squash. I also let the pot simmer for ~10 minutes after pressure cooking to reduce some of the liquid. Turned out AMAZING!
★★★★★
Ashley says
Thanks so much for bringing that to my attention, Emma! I will adjust recipe card for more clarity. And thanks for the note about the simmer – great tip!