Slow cooker turkey pumpkin chili with freezer meal instructions

This slow cooker turkey pumpkin chili is a quick healthy and hearty meal made with ground turkey, beans and pumpkin puree. It also makes a great freezer meal.

I love a good comforting bowl of chili during the cold months of the year. Living in Alaska means that more than half of the year is chili eating weather. Lucky me? Well, if I get to eat this pumpkin chili more often, then yes! Lucky me.

I have made slow cooker turkey chili and crock pot vegetarian chili and even veggie filled vegan chili. If I’m not making these delicious chili recipes then I’m making these awesome soup recipes. I love Autumn, can you tell!?

This turkey pumpkin chili is healthy and hearty and has a secret ingredient. Okay, well, it’s not so secret since it’s in the title. The secret ingredient is PUMPKIN! I love savory pumpkin recipes and this one hits the spot. Pumpkin is so good for you and good for supporting good heart health. Pumpkin is high in fiber, potassium and vitamin C (to just name a few). This superfood (yes, superfood!) is one of the healthiest fruits out there.

The pumpkin just adds a hint of pumpkin flavor, it isn’t in your face and you probably won’t even notice it unless you’re thinking about it. My daughter was helping me in the kitchen and I gave her a taste and she said, “That’s really good! But I’m nervous about not liking the pumpkin, maybe you shouldn’t add it.” Then I surprised her and told her it was already in the chili. 🙂

It’s easy and perfectly fine to use canned pumpkin, but did you know it’s super easy to make your own pumpkin puree and I think it tastes way better too! Check out the recipe for pumpkin puree here.

This recipe is also super fast and simple. It’s a dump in the crock pot and go meal, which I love. It’s perfect for a busy day and it’s easy to double and then throw half into the freezer for another day. Follow the directions below for the freezer meal.

One more thing and I’ll get to the recipe. This is also a perfect after Thanksgiving meal because you can swap out the ground turkey for chopped up Thanksgiving turkey. Use 2 to 2 1/2 cups of cooked turkey and leave all other ingredients and directions the same. Easy Peasy!

Now the recipe! Enjoy!

How to make this turkey pumpkin chili into a freezer meal:

Prepare your gallon size freezer bag by writing the recipe name and date. Add instructions: “Thaw overnight in fridge. Add to crock pot, cook on low 4-5 hours.”

In a large skillet heat the olive oil on medium high heat. Add ground turkey, onion and red bell pepper, season with a sprinkle of salt and pepper and cook until ground turkey is cooked through and onion is translucent. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 more minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, stir to combine remaining ingredients and add to prepared gallon size freezer bag. Add ground turkey mixture and seal bag.

Freeze and use within 3 months.

This recipe is a lot, but will fit in a gallon size freezer bag. It helps to have these baggy holders, to help hold the bag while you’re dumping in the ingredients. If it helps, you can leave out the chicken broth and add to your slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients later. Just make sure to add a note on your freezer bag to remind yourself.

 

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