A leaner, lightened up version of a highly seasoned and delicious Mexican-style chorizo! Made with ground turkey, a blend of herbs and spices and a punch of vinegar – this Turkey Chorizo is as easy as it is delicious. It’s perfect for adding to eggs, tacos, burritos, bowls and more! | Naturally low carb, keto friendly and dairy free
Smokey, spicy and generously seasoned – this turkey chorizo makes up in flavour what it lacks in added calories! While Mexican chorizo is typically made with various cuts of pork or ground beef, this chorizo uses ground turkey for a lighter and healthier option that’s perfect for everyday cooking.
FYI: Spanish Chorzio vs Mexican Chorizo
Spanish Chorizo is typically a smokey, cured meat that does not need to be cooked before serving. Mexican Chorizo sausage is a much spicier, uncured meat that needs to be cooked before eating.
How to Make This Turkey Chorizo
Altogether this recipe is entirely simple and straightforward. Summed up:
- Blend herbs & spices. Mixing the spices together before adding it to the turkey ensures that you are able to evenly mix and distribute the spices all over the meat.
- Mix it all up. Use your hands to thoroughly mix the meat, spices and vinegar together.
- Marinate (optional). This step is totally optional. When time permits, I like to let my mince marinate in the fridge for at least an hour to a full day. Prepping this meat ahead of time makes the cooking process go by even fast since most of the work is already done. That extra time also helps to infuse a little extra flavour into the chorizo
- Cook. Place turkey in large skillet with a little bit of olive oil and brown all over. Cook time will take about 7-10 minutes over a medium-high heat. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Alternatively, you could form the meat into patty or sausage shapes before cooking.
Tips, Questions & Substitutions
Substitutions
- Swap out the turkey for ground chicken.
- Instead of white vinegar you can use red wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar or lime juice.
- Use 2-3 fat cloves of garlic in place of the garlic powder for an extra punch of flavour.
- When it comes to paprika – use whatever you have. Hot, smoked, sweet or regular paprika all work. Keep in mind that the overall flavours of this turkey chorizo will be influenced by the type of paprika you use so choose what you enjoy.
What type of chili powder is best?
- Typically Mexican style chorizo is made using ancho chili powder which is made with 100% ancho chili flakes. Most chili powders that you find in store is actually made up of a blend of spices as opposed to just one spice. If you have ancho chili powder on hand – use that. If don’t you can use a standard chili powder instead. It might not be the most authentic recipe, but then we’re already making a turkey chorizo recipe so why not?
Freeze for Later
If you don’t want to use this right away, you can pack up the seasoned raw-meat in a freezer safe bag or container and store in the freeze for up to four months. Technically you could safely keep this in the freezer for up to a year, but after about four months the meat is more likely to come out a little dry.
Serving Suggestions
- Chorizo con huevos: AKA – scrambled eggs with chrozio.
- Tacos, Tostadas Burritos: Use as a filling inside tacos and burritos or serve on top of crispy tostada shells along with your favourite taco toppings. Start the day off with some protein packed egg tacos or turkey chorizo breakfast burritos coming up so keep an eye out. This would also be a great time to make your own homemade corn tortillas!
- Nachos: Pile some chorizo over a bed of tortilla chips along with some fresh herbs and queso. Keep it dairy free with my vegan nacho cheese and whole30 compliant with sweet potato nachos.You can also easily make a queso fundido (chorizo cheese dip) by mixing this cooked chorizo in with melted cheese.
- Chilis & Stews: Swap out your typical, unseasoned ground meat with this turkey chorizo to make soups, chilis and stews even an more flavour packed dish!
Turkey Chorizo
Made with ground turkey, a blend of herbs and spices and a punch of vinegar - this Turkey Chorizo is as easy as it is delicious. It's perfect for adding to tacos, burritos, bowls and more!
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons paprika
- 2 tablespoons ancho chili powder (or regular chili powder)
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt + more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- pinch of ground cloves
- 2 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 pound turkey mince, aim for about 7% fat
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil (or a neutral flavoured cooking oil)
Instructions
- Spices: In a small bowl combine all the spices: paprika, chili powder, cumin, oregano, coriander, garlic powder, salt, cinnamon and cloves. Mix together until evenly combined.
- Turkey: In a large mixing bowl add the turkey, vinegar and the combined spices. Use your hands to mix everything together well.
- (Optional) Marinate: Cover the bowl and let rest/marinate for up to 24 hours.
- Cook: Add the oil to a large skillet and warm over a medium-high heat. Add the turkey and cook for about 7-10 minutes, stirring and breaking up the meat. Cook until browned, crumbly and fully cooked. Taste and season with more salt as needed.
- Use or Store: Use right away or store for later. If storing, let the meat cool completely, then transfer to an airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Notes
- You can freeze the raw, seasoned turkey mince for 3-4 months until ready to use. Defrost fully in the fridge over night before cooking.
- Ground chicken can be used in place of turkey.
Ruth says
I use this recipe for a chorizo based breakfast burrito and it is awesome. I tastes like pork chorizo without the fat and the guilt.
Sarah Nevins says
That’s so great to hear! Glad you’ve enjoyed it! – thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a review 🙂
Brian says
Used ground venison, worked out very well
Sarah Nevins says
Oh, excellent! Thanks, Brian – so glad you enjoyed it!
Nanette says
Ohhh… This was so good. I was making a Mediterranean fish stew with chorizo. My husband doesn’t do pork so I found your recipe. Soooo good!!! I used 2 tbl of paprika & 1 of smoked paprika & let it sit for 3 hours. Very very good. Thank you!!
Sarah Nevins says
Yay! So glad to hear you guys enjoyed this! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know what you thought 🙂