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Wondering what to make tonight? Quickly throw together this hearty one pot meal of turkey and potatoes! Serve over roasted veggies, traditional rice, or cauliflower rice for a healthy and satisfying dinner.
Update: This recipe was originally published in 2020 and has been republished with all new photos.
This Ground Turkey and Potato Skillet was loosely inspired by a classic picadillo. It has very different flavors – a picadillo includes olives and raisins. That’s not going to fly with my children. Or my husband, if I’m being honest. But I wanted to take that general idea and make it family friendly with very simple ingredients. We all need hobbies and that’s mine.
This meal is an accurate reflection of my favorite kind of meal to make at home. It may not be the prettiest, but it’s tasty. The addition of potatoes keeps it hearty. And it’s just so easy! This is exactly the sort of comfort food I need in my life right now. How about you?
Ingredients for Ground Turkey and Potato Skillet
- Ground turkey: Lean ground turkey or lean ground beef are both great options. Another lean ground meat like ground chicken can also be used.
- Potatoes: I prefer yellow or gold potatoes. Russet, sweet, or red would all work beautifully too!
- Olive or avocado oil: The oil helps sauté the diced potatoes until tender. I recommend olive or avocado oil but you can use any oil you’re comfortable cooking with.
- Canned tomato sauce: You can find canned tomato sauce in the grocery store on the aisle with canned tomatoes. This will add a rich tomato flavor to our dish.
- Garlic: You can mince your own garlic or use a jarred variety.
- Seasonings: Dried oregano, dried basil, dried parsley, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper are the simple herbs and spices we’ll use to flavor this one pot meal. You can also experiment with whatever you have in your own pantry!
How to Make Ground Turkey and Potato Skillet
To create this meal, you’ll start by seasoning and browning the ground turkey. Set aside. (Of course you can easily use a lean ground beef if that’s what you have on hand or prefer.)
Then the potatoes go in the pan to get a little color. Now incorporate the turkey, garlic, tomato sauce, water, and more seasonings. Reduce the heat, cover, and let it all simmer until your potatoes are tender.
It’s next to impossible to screw this up. It’s just that easy!
How to Serve This
Oh there are so many ways to serve up this easy meal. You can clearly enjoy it as is and it’s just perfect. Flavorful. Healthy. Satiating thanks to those potatoes.
But perhaps you want to add something to stretch this dish a bit further? I know I always like something green on our plates! Pile this delicious combo of turkey and potatoes over roasted veggies like my Spicy Roasted Broccoli or Easy Roasted Broccoli (if you don’t like heat). That will give you an added boost of vegetables! This is also crazy delicious over traditional or cauliflower rice!
Other veggies that work beautifully either layered under or just served beside this skillet meal are Garlic Green Beans, Simple Sautéed Cabbage, or Roasted Green Beans with Almonds.
Want to add a salad to your meal? My Easy Homemade Italian Dressing will beautifully flavor a side salad.
No matter how you choose to serve this, you’re going to love it. This recipe earns rave reviews on Instagram for good reason!
More recipes like this:
Beef & Veggie Bowls with Comeback Sauce
Green Chile Chicken & Potato Skillet
Ground Turkey and Potato Skillet
Ingredients
Ground Turkey
- 1 pound lean ground turkey, I use 93/7. You can use ground beef if you prefer.
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
Potatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive or avocado oil
- 4 cups diced potatoes, Dice small to ensure they cook quickly.
- 8 ounces canned tomato sauce
- ½ cup water
- 2 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Add your ground turkey (or beef) to a skillet on the stovetop. Use your spatula to crumble the meat. Cook on medium high, stirring occasionally, until browned. Stir in salt, pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, and oregano. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Add the oil to the skillet. Once the oil is hot, add the diced potatoes. Sauté on medium high heat, stirring occasionally until sides of potatoes have browned. This can take 5 to 10 minutes depending on your stove and the size of your potatoes.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add your cooked ground turkey, tomato sauce, water, minced garlic, oregano, basil, parsley, salt, pepper, and onion powder to the skillet with potatoes. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.
- Taste and add more salt or pepper if desired.
- Serve over roasted vegetables (I recommend my Spicy Roasted Broccoli or Easy Roasted Broccoli), traditional rice, or cauliflower rice.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Made this recipe multiple times last semester to take to campus, one of my favorite recipes! Only note would be I preferred a little less salt but other than it is was great!
I am a salty gal for sure. 😉 I’m glad you enjoyed!
Flavor is phenomenal, I tend to be low on liquid so I use 15fl oz of sauce and it’s still taste good. Love love love this recipe
I added shredded carrots and some frozen peas for color and additional veggies. A delicious and filling meal.
Love the additions! Thanks for the comment and rating, Barbara!
Son and wife both loved this, me too! And they are both a little picky in their own way.
I’m happy they enjoyed it! Thanks, John!
Yum it was delicious definitely make sure to cut the potatoes really small mine took a bit longer and I thought they were small
Pretty good! I subbed marinara sauce for the tomato paste because I didn’t want to open up a 15oz can for 2-3 oz (I made single portion). Served over bed of spinach. Added a squeeze of lemon to balance out the dish. I’d definitely make again!
Really filling and tasty ! A must try
VERY TASTY meal and easy to make. I cut the potatoes on the small side and added steamed green beans. I will definitely make it again thanks!
Love the addition of green beans! So happy you enjoyed!
This recipe was easy and delicious! I added some onions. And, I must say though, it tasted a little better before adding the tomato sauce. Is there a reason why it’s added? Next time I am thinking about only adding a little bit so its not so overpowering in the entire dish.
Just personal preference! I enjoy the sauce in it and perhaps you’d enjoy a different brand more (or you could just omit of course). Thanks so much for the feedback, Matt!
I used sweet potatoes because that’s what I had, used 1/2 onion, zucchini, and a pkg of riced cauliflower. It was great, would make it again. Thanks!
Perfect! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment!