The other day was very-very hot and I just couldn’t bare standing at the stove for more than 15 minutes.
I have originally planned to make zucchini boats but that’s next time when I feel fancy and a thought of oven warming up my kitchen isn’t a death sentence.
I would have loved to feast on cold zucchini noodles but that wouldn’t suffice for any of my boys’ appetite. All of the above mentioned circumstances called for a skillet.
Chop-chop, stir and dinner is served – similar to zucchini bake, caprese chicken and zucchini, chicken zucchini and corn and Tex Mex chicken and zucchini. I clearly love this type of recipes!
Tips for Cooking and Serving This Ground Turkey Zucchini Skillet
- Use 1 lb of ground turkey meat for even healthier skillet. I will try next time.
- Buy pesto with lower sodium amount. This recipe is perfect for using up leftover pesto – I brought mine in a cooler all the way from California which I bought during our San Diego and Disneyland road trip. Yes, I’m frugal like that.
- For a low carb dinner, serve this turkey skillet on its own or over spring mix, shredded lettuce or kale.
- For all my boys I cooked young potatoes with dill as low carb isn’t for them. Truth is I ate some potatoes too because I needed energy for an evening walk and next day’s workout. Brown rice, quinoa or whole wheat spaghetti would be good too.
This 30 minute healthy ground turkey zucchini skillet with pesto is delicious, low carb and one pot dinner recipe that will become your family’s favourite!
How to Make Ground Turkey and Zucchini Skillet
- Preheat large ceramic non-stick skillet on medium heat and swirl oil to coat. Add onion and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add ground turkey and cook for 5-7 minutes, constantly breaking into pieces and stirring.
- Add zucchini, stir and cook for another 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Turn off heat, add tomatoes and pesto, then stir. Garnish with Parmesan cheese and serve on its own or over greens for a low carb meal, or with quinoa or brown rice for complete with complex carbs meal.
Turkey Zucchini Skillet with Pesto
This 30 Minute Healthy Ground Turkey Zucchini Skillet with Pesto is delicious low carb one pot dinner recipe that will become your family’s favourite! Minimum ingredients and effort with maximum flavour.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove
- Cuisine: American Ukrainian
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground turkey
- 2.5–3 lbs zucchini, cut into thin slices
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 pint grape tomatoes, cut in halves
- 3/4 cup pesto
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 tsp avocado oil
Instructions
- Preheat large ceramic non-stick skillet on medium heat and swirl oil to coat. Add onion and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add ground turkey and cook for 5-7 minutes, constantly breaking into pieces and stirring.
- Add zucchini, stir and cook for another 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Turn off heat, add tomatoes and pesto, then stir. Garnish with Parmesan cheese and serve on its own or over greens for a low carb meal, or with quinoa or brown rice for complete with complex carbs meal.
Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Do not freeze.
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating in the comments.
Delicious. Made it with quinoa
★★★★★
Made a version using this as inspiration and the family loves it. I sautéed onion and sweet peppers with the ground turkey used veggie seasoning and in an separate pan I softened some onion and added the zucchini added 2 tomatoes sliced and a small container of spinach, also used the veggie seasoning. Mixed together, using veggie pesto and lemon juice….
★★★★★
This recipe was a big hit ! Surprise by how much my husband liked it…
★★★★★
My father in law gave this dish a ten! It will be placed in my list of favorites.
★★★★★
Yay! I love hearing this Allison!
This was a winner. It’s the first time I used ground turkey. The pesto really made it. The one thing I did that was different was to add a small amount of whole wheat orzo. It made it a really complete meal. Loved it.
★★★★★
Glad you liked it Lori!
Very nice and easy meal.
★★★★★
My family loved it! I served it with GF TJ’s gnocchi. I also pan seared the ground turkey brick in a seperate pan first.
★★★★★
Awesome Lauire!
Made this for dinner tonight, it came out pretty good. Turkey came in 1.33lb package so that’s what I used. Four medium squash, zucchini and yellow squash, were about 2.5 pounds. Tomatoes from the garden. The only thing I’d change next time is to pre-salt the squash to release some moisture, I used a turkey baster to remove almost a cup of liquid from the pan and it’s still pretty liquidy.
★★★★
Delicious!!! I serve it with pasta and the whole family loves it!! Spiral pasta preferably but penne or macaroni if that’s what I have on hand. Really good!! Easy weeknight meal. Two thumbs up for sure!
★★★★★
Awesome
Super easy, super fast , super tasty 😀
★★★★★
this is a fantastic recipe! Im trying to cook a bit healthier, and this was a winner! Even my boyfriend loved it, and was excited to eat more for leftovers the next day!
★★★★★
Excellent! I make this once a week, healthy and delicious!
★★★★★
This recipe turned out amazing! I will definitely be making it again. 🙂
★★★★★
I don’t like tomatoes 🙁 Any other option?
★★★★★
Skip them or use diced avocado or bell peppers.
I was having one of those lazy dinner nights and I knew I had zucchini and ground turkey in the fridge, so I simply googled “ground turkey and zucchini recipe” and this one was the first result. I couldn’t be happier with this recipe! So so yummy and even better with a dash of crushed red pepper on top!
★★★★★
That’s fantastic Gabby 🙂
I love so many of your recipes and this was no exception. My 4 year old son loved it too. I used only one zucchini, and threw in a cup of cut green beans, and a whole diced yellow pepper. to add in more veggies my son would like. I also had only 1lb of ground turkey on hand. Delicious. Will add this to my recipe rotation 🙂
That’s awesome Christine! Love hearing that your son enjoyed the skillet too!
I loved this so much I am having it again this week!
★★★★★
Loved it.
★★★★★
So good and hearty. I subbed red pesto for green and used garlic. Added depth.
A keeper.
★★★★★
Hi Linda! So glad this recipe is a keeper!
Looking for something different. This hit the spot. I added garlic when cooking my onions and kale with zucchini. Loved it!
★★★★★
So happy to hear this Amy!
What a welcomed change to my usual go-to recipes- sadly, the grocery was out of turkey so I replaced it with minced chicken breast and added in white beans. I’ll be making this again, THANKS!
★★★★★
You are welcome Tiffany! As you now know turkey can easily be replaced with chicken!
We added feta cheese and lemon juice. (See were feeling greek for dinner) so good! Highly recommend.
★★★★★
I’m so happy to read this! Thanks for your positive feedback, Wesley!
Excellent flavour! Something different. Quick and easy to make. Used ground chicken added snap peas cause short on zucchini. Served with saffron basmati rice. Hubbie doesn’t care for zucchini however loved the meal!! It’s a keeper for sure!! Thanks!!
★★★★★
Glad this recipe won your husband over too!
I just made this tonight. This one is a keeper. I am a natural tweaker so I added Shiitake mushrooms that I sautéed on the side and added later. I also did yellow saffron jasmine rice (cooked separately). I grated parmesan reggiano cheese on the top. Next time I will add a sprinkle of pine nuts.
This is an excellent recipe. Thank you for sharing Olena.
★★★★★
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Patricia! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Made this last night and my son loved it. He’s not the most adventurous eater and getting him to eat a variety of vegetables is a challenge. I served it with some rice which made for a great meal. Even great the next day for lunch. Thank for the idea.
★★★★★
That is the best when kids (& the rest of the family) love what we moms make. That’s so great!
My husband and I loved this! I added more salt, about 1 tsp total. I can’t wait to try some of your other recipes!
★★★★★
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Pamela! Thank you for the wonderful review! Please let me know what else you try. 🙂
Absolutely amazing dishes I love all these recipes I don’t have a instant pot but I can make everything without one
Yes, you can. 🙂
Cut the recipe in half for my husband and I. It also made a good lunch for the next day. We enjoyed it and I will definitely be making it again. 1.25 lbs. of zucchini was not too much. It was perfect. As a cheese lover I did add a little extra! ?
★★★★
That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe, Jeanette! Who doesn’t love cheese?! LOL
Family enjoyed it
★★★★★
Yay! So happy to hear, Vivian!
This was kid approved in my house. I had a leftover jar of pesto, and lots of zucchini from the farmers market I needed to use and this was the perfect recipe. I wasn’t sure the little ones would like this, but they ate it up.
★★★★★
I’m glad everyone enjoyed this recipe, Tita. 🙂 Ha, good way to sneak in some veggies.
I loved this recipe. It was fast and easy. And my husband loved it. Will definitely make again
★★★★★
That is so amazing to hear, Angie! Glad your husband enjoyed my recipe!
I pinned this a while ago, but just made it today. Wow! It has all the flavors that I love. Since I pinned it, it is a rare day that I don’t get a notice from Pinterest that “someone” pinned your pin.” Since there are only 2 of us, I made the recipe as is through the point of saute the onions and turkey. I am freezing the other half. I also didn’t have grape tomatoes, so just used the small tomatoes that I had on hand and chopped them. This is a winner! Thank you for posting this recipe!
Yay. Awesome. Interesting about pinning…
Did it reheat well for you after freezing? I have a lot of leftovers I don’t want to go to waste.
My family lovedLOVEDloved this recipe! I did serve it over pasta instead of rice/quinoa, but only a small amount of pasta was involved because this recipe is the STAR of the show!
★★★★★
Absolutely amazing. Huge flavor for such a simple recipe. Definitely adding to my favorites!!
★★★★★
Thank you SO MUCH for sharing this recipe. I made this for my husband and I last night and we had HAPPY taste buds. Who knew pesto and turkey would make such a great combo?!
★★★★★
Yay, so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe!
Made this recipe really enjoyed it. It was fast and tasty. I did half it because it was a little to much for just my boyfriend and I.
★★★★★
Yay! Yes, it is a lot for 2 people. Perfect!!!
Delicious! But I accidentally used Asiago cheese instead of Parmesan! Only 5 WE freestyle smart points per serving!
★★★★★
2.5 to 3lbs of zucchini? Is that correct? Because that’s a TON of zucchini and I can’t fit all that AND 2lbs of ground beef in a large skillet. Plus your pic shows the zuchinni cut in half, and the recipe only says sliced. I chose this recipe because I knew I’d be making dinner late and wanted something quick. Instead, dinner looks lame and it’s taking way longer than expected. I wish mine looked like yours! What did I do wrong? How many zucchini’s is 2.5 to 3 lbs?
★
Yes correct. You just need a deeper or bigger skillet like on my pics. Sliced zucchini to size you like and that makes sense. Like if it’s big cut in half and slice. If it’s small just slice. It’s a quick dinner. I’m not sure what is your struggle honestly. Can’t tell you exactly how many zucchini’s because they are ALL different size. Don’t overthink it. Cut recipe in half if it’s too much for you.:)
Do you think it would be okay to substitute the grape tomatoes for sun-dried tomatoes?
Mmm, no, don’t worry about it. Sun dried tomatoes have too strong of a taste. You want to add bulky fresh and juicy veggies/fruit. Skip tomatoes together or add snap peas, corn, bell pepper etc. Thawed or fresh.:)
Made this last night for dinner and it was delicious. So easy and light. My family loved it and that was without the cheese. (I forgot to add). Thank you for your fabulous recipes.
★★★★★
You are so welcome! Life should be simple like this skillet.:)