Easy Turkey Taco Pasta
Some of my tastiest recipes happen when I’m scrounging around the kitchen with no idea what to make and this, my friends, is one of those recipes.
One night, earlier this week, I had no idea what to make for dinner. I didn’t have a lot of ingredients on hand and I really didn’t want to go to the grocery store. I knew I had some ground turkey in the freezer, so I used that as a starting point.
As far as veggies go, I had onion, red pepper and canned tomatoes. One thing let to another and before long I’d come up with this turkey taco pasta.
This pasta dish really couldn’t be easier to make. It literally can be made in the time it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta, which makes it a perfect weeknight meal.
And not only is it quick and easy to make, it also tastes fantastic. The taco seasoning gives it a nice spicy flavor and a little cheese just makes it all the more delicious.
Next time you need a quick and easy meal, give this pasta a try. Your family is sure to love it!
Easy Turkey Taco Pasta
All the flavor of traditional tacos in a quick and easy weeknight pasta dish.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 2 large cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pkg Trader Joe’s Taco seasoning (or other all natural taco seasoning)
- 1 (28 oz) can whole tomatoes
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 lb short cut pasta
- 1 cup shredded cheese (cheddar, monterey jack or mozzarella)
- diced avocado, sour cream, additional cheese for serving, if desired
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
- Meanwhile, heat oil over medium high heat in a large skillet.
- Add turkey to skillet, breaking up with a spoon.
- Once turkey starts to brown, add onion, red pepper and garlic.
- Continue cooking until turkey is no longer pink and onion is translucent.
- Sprinkle taco seasoning over turkey mixture and stir to combine.
- Place tomatoes in a bowl and break up with a potato masher.
- Add tomatoes and water to turkey mixture, stirring to combine.
- Cover skillet and reduce heat to simmer.
- Add pasta to boiling water and cook according to package instructions.
- While pasta cooks, let sauce simmer, stirring occasionally.
- Drain cooked pasta and add to skillet, stirring to coat with the sauce.
- Stir in shredded cheese.
- Serve with desired toppings.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 379Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 219mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 3gSugar: 2gProtein: 23g
ENJOY!
This was SO delicious!! I followed your exact recipe and I don’t think it was too thick at all. It was nice and creamy and the flavors were great! My husband ate two bowlfuls and wanted more. We had plenty for leftovers. Thanks–this is a keeper!
So glad you liked this, Mary!
I just made these with ground chicken instead of turkey… wonderful!
I tried this sauce on turkey meatballs last night and served them to my very picky children and their even pickier cousins. What a HUGE hit! I cannot thank you enough – you’ve added a new staple to their diets …
Ragerds:Moses Brodin
I made this last night for company and everyone loved it! It was great – simple and flavourful. I deal with a lot of food sensitivities – sugar being one of them, so I used coconut sugar. Thank you!
What a delicious quick and easy dish. I am always looking for new ways with chicken.
I recently make a turkey meatball recipe that used Amy’s chunky tomato bisque for the sauce and I put it over spaghetti squash, you could also make the recipe using lot’s of different farmers market veggies.
This is an excellent list! I will be making a lot of these I’ve done some already! Homemade always tastes better.
Wow that looks delicious. I love spaghetti squash. I know what you mean about exploding spaghetti squashes — I cooked one in my microwave and it exploded, blew the door open, and just missed my baby in the high chair! I had poked the skin, but don’t think I stabbed it deep enough. I had to get a new microwave – it was totally destroyed. So I always cut them in half now…
YUMMY!!!!! Thanks for sharing your recipe! I’ve heard about your blog a couple of times and will now spend my afternoon reading 🙂
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Hope you enjoy! I think this should be easy to adapt to cooking on the stove. Love to hear how it turns out.
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I love cooking with my kids. We typically make cookies or muffins but my oldest daughter (11yrs) has begun to help me with making dinner. She loves chopping vegetables.
Harold Burton
This is a great list! The thing I started making from scratch was chocolate syrup. Best chocolate milk ever.
Joseph Donahue
I made this for dinner tonight and omg is this INCREDIBLE. I subbed the chicken broth for veggie broth to make it vegetarian and I am sure it tastes just as good — if not better! I am definitely saving this and making it again. And again. Thanks for the post!
Kelly Hubbard
This is a great list! The thing I started making from scratch was chocolate syrup. Best chocolate milk ever!
Holly Hooper
THIS WAS GREAT! REALLY ENJOYED IT – THANKS FOR SHARING. I DO AGREE WITH ANOTHER COMMENTER WHO SAID IT WAS A BIT SWEET – I WILL DEFINITELY REDUCE THE SUGAR NEXT TIME (I USED REGULAR GRANULATED SUGAR). CAN’T WAIT FOR LEFTOVERS TOMORROW.
Paul Brown