Sweet and Spicy Turkey Chili

There’s been a lot of talk of the polar vortex.  It’s time for some sweet and spicy turkey chili, methinks.

It’s coming – extremely negative air and wind chill temps are expected this week. We got hit with quite a bit of snow yesterday and we’re slowly digging out, but the cold, it’s coming.  To put it dramatically, winter is coming. Most definitely.

The last time I faced the PV, I was living in Chicago and life was quite different. While then I had to face a walking commute to and from work, the store, the gym – everywhere, really – with lake shore winds whipping every which way, now I face the bitterness as I walk from my house to my car, my car to my office and back again. I don’t spent long minutes waiting for trains, or getting sweaty under my thick coat as my eyelashes freeze. These days, the words polar vortex just don’t drive the same sort of fear home as they once did.

Last time, as I was stuck in my house alone for two days straight, I recall learning every dance in Britney’s repertoire, cooking more food than I could eat, and being straight up bored. Now that I have a furry being to distract me and keep me from getting so stir crazy, I am not-so-secretly wishing for a few days off this week. I mean, there’s nothing to say I won’t be refreshing my “oops, I did it again” moves, but I doubt I’d be quite as bored as before.

In any case, to bring a bit of coziness home, regardless of how cold the temps outside are, I’ve got a chili for you because hey, it’s still chili season and, also hey, the Super Bowl is this weekend! Did you think I forgot? While my team isn’t in it, and I don’t really care who is actually in it, we know that I’m really just here for the food. It’s like, the anti- Thanksgiving food holiday, lacking the ceremony, traditions and gravity, and a chance to have a little fun with the menu. And I’m taking that notion and running with it and my sweet and spicy turkey chili.

As you saw last week, I’m slowly digging through six years of archived recipes and in doing so, I came across my recipe for Cape Malay seafood curry.  Please ignore the horrendousness of the photos, but the recipe was actually delicious, and while I wanted to just remake it as it was, I couldn’t help myself, and instead took those flavors and here we have a chili.

This chili is spicy in that it has a lot of spices, but don’t be food, hot-spicy it is not. It’s got the sweet undertones from the cinnamon, cloves and apricots, and the curry-ness from the traditional turmeric, coriander and cumin. Throwing in tomatoes and beans in the typical chili- way and we have this-totally-random-but-hey-it-really-really-works, dish.

The garnish is a dollop of plain yogurt or sour cream and a sprinkle of green for green’s sake. It makes a nice hearty pot, so invite your friends, grab some bowls and tuck in for a long winter’s night.

(Oh, and hey, I’ve founded up some of my Game Day faves, so check ’em out!)

Sweet and Spicy Turkey Chili

January 29, 2019

Servings: 8

Prep: 10 min

Cook: 20 min

Total: 30 min

Difficulty: Easy

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Sweet and spicy ground turkey chili has the sweetness of apricots, cinnamon and cloves and the warmth of curry powder to make a truly unique chili.

By: Chrissy

Ingredients

• 2 TB olive oil
• 1 3/4 pound ground turkey thigh
• 1 1/2 cup diced onion (~ 1 large onion)
• 1 jalapeno, seeds removed and diced
• 1 carrot, grated (~ 1 cup)
• 1 TB fresh ginger, minced
• 1 TB fresh garlic, minced
• 2 TB curry powder
• 1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup dried apricots, diced
• 5 TB rice wine vinegar
• 2 cups chicken or turkey stock
• 1 14-oz can diced tomatoes
• 2 14-oz cans white beans
• 1 lime, juiced
• chives, to garnish
• sour cream or plain yogurt, to garnish

Directions

• Step 1 In a large stock pot, add the olive oil, diced onion, jalapeño and carrot and cook until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, spices and turkey thigh and, using a wooden spoon, break up and cook until the turkey is no longer raw. Add the bay leaves and apricots and cook about 2 minutes.
• Step 2 Add the vinegar, stock, beans and tomatoes. Cover halfway and simmer about 20 minutes until all the vegetables are tender and the stew is heated through. Add the lime and give it a stir.
• Step 3 Serve with chopped chives and a dollop of sour cream or yogurt.