I kept this ground turkey stew simple – ground turkey, cannellini beans, kale, Kalamata olives and fresh herbs. The flavours are much of a Mediterranean origin here. Sweet pieces of turkey meat, soft white beans, chewy kale, tangy Kalamata olives in a savoury tomato broth – this ground turkey vegetables stew came out delicious! And the older it is, the better it gets. Just like wine.
Stew is a healthy and quick stovetop meal that keeps well refrigerated for days. Try my slow cooker pumpkin stew with chicken and quinoa stew with beef. Enjoy, and have you tried my ground turkey quinoa casserole yet?

Ground Turkey Stew
Ingredients
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp olive oil extra virgin
- 1 lb ground turkey extra lean
- 14 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup water boiling
- 14 oz can cannellini beans drained & rinsed
- 2 tsp oregano thyme or Italian seasoning
- 3/4 tsp salt
- Ground black pepper to taste
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 lemon juice of
- 3/4 cup kalamata olives pitted and sliced in halves
- 4 cups kale coarsely chopped & packed
- 1/2 cup basil chopped
- 1/2 cup parsley chopped
Instructions
- Preheat dutch oven or large heavy bottom pot on medium heat and add olive oil. Add onion and garlic, saute for 5 minutes or until translucent, stirring occasionally. Add turkey and cook for 12-13 minutes, breaking into pieces and stirring every few minutes.
- Add diced tomatoes, water, beans, thyme, salt, pepper, bay leaves, then stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and add lemon juice, olives and kale, then stir, cover and let stand a few minutes or until kale is wilted. Add basil and parsley, stir again and it's best to let the flavours "marry" each other for 10 minutes or so. Discard the bay leaves and serve hot.
Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Freeze: Fully cook, cool completely and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw on a stovetop covered on low.
Nutrition
Recipes and images are a copyright of ifoodreal.com. It is against the law to republish recipes without permission. Nutritional info is approximate.
I happened to have all ingredients including fresh parsley, kale and basil on hand for this except for the kalamata olives. It was so delicious and full of flavor! My husband loved this as well. Thanks for this simple, wonderful recipe!
You are very welcome Cari!
Delish! I wanted to increase my veggies intake so I added diced red and orange bell peppers. I substituted northern beans for the cannellini beans based on what I had on hand. To boost the nutritional content I substituted the water for chicken bone broth. I didn’t have fresh basil and parsley so I used dried. I also added a hearty pinch of dried red chili flakes for some heat. I eliminated the olives since I’m watching calories and don’t have them in the house right now. It was fabulous! Sending the leftovers in my hubby’s lunch tomorrow. Will make again. Thanks for the recipe.
I am so happy to hear this, Bren! Many thanks for taking the time to write such great feedback!