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Taco night is a favorite here! This is our go-to, featuring ground turkey and homemade taco seasoning.
Taco night is a regular fixture in our house. It’s easy, fast, yummy and it never fails to satisfy. Plus, everyone can fix their tacos just as they please, so it works for families that have varying tastes or picky eaters.
I use ground turkey for my tacos, but feel free to use ground beef or ground turkey. I also use homemade taco seasoning – I make a big batch every couple of months so it’s always there in the pantry. I use it on my cheesy fiesta grilled chicken, too – an easy way to bring some extra fun and flavor to grilled chicken. But I won’t tell if you want to sub in the stuff from a packet.
Turkey tacos are our go-to version for taco night, but see below for a few variations to try. Enjoy!
Turkey tacos
Turkey tacos are an easy, healthy weeknight dinner. Just add your favorite toppings!
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown rice
- 1.25 pounds ground turkey (the average size of a package)
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning (homemade or from a packet)
- 8-10 taco shells (we're partial to the crunchy stand-n-stuff variety)
- Toppings: Shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, salsa, Greek yogurt (or sour cream), chopped pickled jalapeños, sliced avocado, chopped black olives
Instructions
- Cook brown rice.
- While rice is cooking, preheat oven to 325 for taco shells (or follow package instructions).
- Heat a pan over medium heat. Add ground turkey. (I don’t use olive oil or cooking spray and have no problems with sticking.) Cook on one side until browned then turn over and cook on other side while breaking up with a spatula.
- Once turkey is cooked through, sprinkle taco seasoning and add about 1/3 cup water. Less if your turkey rendered a lot of moisture/fat, a bit more if it didn't. Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 5 minutes or until most of the water is absorbed.
- Assemble tacos: Layer brown rice and taco turkey mixture in your taco shells and top with your favorite toppings.
Recipe Notes
You can certainly skip the rice and these will come together even faster! Also, see below for more ideas of variations.
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Serving Size | |
| Amount Per Serving | As Served |
| Calories 534kcal Calories from fat 166 | |
| % Daily Value | |
| Total Fat 18g | 28% |
| Saturated Fat 5g | 25% |
| Transfat 0g | |
| Cholesterol 98mg | 33% |
| Sodium 486mg | 20% |
| Carbohydrate 57g | 19% |
| Dietary Fiber 4g | 16% |
| Sugars 1g | |
| Protein 33g | |
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs:
| Calories | 2000 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Fat | Less than | 65g |
| Sat Fat | Less than | 25g |
| Cholesterol | Less than | 300mg |
| Sodium | Less than | 2,400mg |
| Total Carbohydrate | 300g | |
| Dietary Fiber | 25g | |
Change it up with these variations:
* Add black beans to the rice to make a more hardy meal.
* Serve the taco turkey in lettuce wraps for a lighter version.
* Use soft shell corn or flour tortillas instead of the hard shells.
* Change up your cheese. Instead of cheddar, try Monterey Jack, Jalapeño Jack or a mix of cheeses.
* Add in some corn or even small diced zucchini with the taco turkey mixture. More veggies!
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