Turkey Lentil Tacos
Make these Turkey Lentil Tacos in less than 1 hour! A delicious and healthy meal for busy weeknights!
While I’m not wishing our summer away, once August arrives my mind does turn towards the fall, with thoughts of back to school. Mostly with regards to meal planning. I like this shift in thinking and actually welcome it with open arms…fall meals are my favourite!
Making the transition from relaxed days, later bedtimes, sleeping in and weekend fun, to schedules, routines and healthy habits can be hard. I also know that meal planning for busy weeknights can also be a challenge for families, so that’s why I like to share simple, delicious and healthy meal ideas with you. Why not start now, so we can hit September head on, and ready!
These Turkey Lentil Tacos are a perfect dinner for busy weeknights. They’re delicious, healthy and ready in 45 minutes.
Add Cooked Lentils for Extra Nutrition
Lentils are a perfect protein-packed staple that you can add to many breakfast, lunch or dinner dishes. They are a nutritional powerhouse, high in protein and fibre, and are a great source of minerals such as potassium, iron, and folate. And they’re delicious…add them to soups, stews, casseroles, salads, and tacos!
Ground Turkey is Perfect for Taco Night!
Taco nights are always a favourite in our house, and probably the most asked for dinner by my kids. To try something new, I made Turkey Lentil Tacos. As an alternative to hamburger, I paired lentils with ground turkey, making this a doubly nutritious, lean, protein packed meal!
I cooked the turkey/lentil filling with a batch of homemade taco seasoning, and the end result is a flavourful base for taco night! Nutritious and delicious…can’t beat that. And topped off with all of your favourite taco toppings, this taco night is complete!
Make Taco Night Buffet Style!
Lay out your taco night in a buffet style and let everyone make their tacos to their tastebuds. Set out cheese, salsa, mango, purple cabbage, lettuce, green onion, peppers, avocado, cilantro, sour cream, soft flour tortillas, and your turkey lentil filling. Delicious.
All ready to load up!
Your family will really enjoy these…my kids went back for seconds!
Turkey Lentil Tacos
Make these Turkey Lentil Tacos in less than 1 hour! A delicious and healthy meal for busy weeknights!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Ingredients
Turkey:
- 1 1/2 lb ground turkey
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
Lentils:
- 3/4 cup cooked red split lentils
Taco Toppings:
- shredded cheese
- shredded lettuce
- shredded purple cabbage
- chopped mango
- chopped red pepper
- chopped tomatoes
- chopped cilantro
- sliced avocado
- sliced green onions
- salsa
- sour cream
- soft flour tortillas
Instructions
Cooking the Lentils:
- In a saucepan add 1/2 cup dried, red split lentils, and cover with about 2 inches of water.
- Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat to low, and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the lentils are cooked.
- Drain and set aside.
Cooking the Turkey:
- In a skillet add the ground turkey and chopped onions.
- Stir and cook until the turkey is no longer pink, and the onions are soft.
- Add the spices: chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, sugar and salt. Mix well.
- Stir in the cooked lentils.
- If the mixture seems to dry, mix in about 2 tbsp of water.
Putting the tacos together:
- Lay all the taco toppings out in a buffet style on your table, and let everyone make their own delicious tacos!
5 Tips to Make Back-To-School Easy with Canadian Turkey and Lentils:
- Batch It! Turkey and lentils are the perfect choice for batch cooking. Cook a little extra turkey to provide planned leftovers, so you can cook once and eat twice! And lentils can be cooked in large batches and refrigerated or frozen in pre-set amounts, so that they’re ready to thaw and use for your next recipe.
- Get Healthy! Both lentils and turkey are a great source of protein and important minerals, and lentils are a great source of fibre. Combine the two, and you’ll power up your plate!
- Keep It Simple! Lentils are quick and easy to cook, and they don’t require pre-soaking. Both turkey and lentils can be cooked ahead of time and freeze well, so they’re ready when you are!
- Versatility Plus! Turkey adapts to all of your favourite flavour profiles and spice combinations, and with so many cuts to choose from you can find choices that please the whole family. With lentils, the options are endless since they can be used in countless different recipes, including salads, smoothies and even desserts! Turkey and lentils are delicious at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and everything in between. Both can be enjoyed hot or cold, and taste great the next day, too!
- Boost It! Add lentils and turkey to your favourite dishes for an instant protein boost! Salads, soups, pasta sauces and casseroles all benefit from the added nutrients lentils and turkey contribute.
Try More Turkey Recipes:
- Coconut Lime Grilled Turkey Noodle Bowl
- Asparagus and Swiss Cheese Stuffed Turkey Cutlet Recipe
- Lemon Rosemary Roasted Turkey
- Visit the Canadian Turkey website for More Turkey Recipes
- Brown Sugar Rubbed BBQ Turkey Breast
Cooking with Lentils and Turkey:
For more information on cooking with lentils and cooking turkey in your every day, visit the Canadian Turkey website and Lentils.org for great recipes, cooking tips and how-to videos! Or follow their social channels: Canadian Turkey on Pinterest and Facebook; and Lentils.org on Pinterest and Facebook.
Have a delicious day!
Disclosure: This post has been sponsored by Canadian Turkey and Lentils.org. This recipe, all pictures and words are my own. I only partner with brands and products that I use in my own home.
The Spiced Lentil Taco Salad sounds like something my family would enjoy.
The Apple Mac and Cheese Bake would definitely become a family favourite.
We love taco night in our house, so I’ll definitely try these! Also love the idea of getting organised for September, my eldest starts school this year so we are in for big changes, being that bit more organised will really help!
Oh that is a big change! Good luck with everything..I’m sure it will be a great experience!
My family would enjoy the turkey quesadillas
The turkey tacos! YUM! Thanks!
The SMOKED TURKEY WRAPS look so good we are going to try them tonight we love wraps and turkey in our house
my family would like ASPARAGUS AND SWISS CHEESE STUFFED TURKEY CUTLETS
The Breakfast Tacos with lentils would appeal to my family
I think the SAUCY TURKEY MEATBALL SUBS would definitely be a hit with this family.
One Pan Thai Turkey Bowls would be one lentil recipe worth giving a try out.
My family would love the One Pan Thai Turkey Bowls.
My family would love the ASPARAGUS AND SWISS CHEESE STUFFED TURKEY CUTLETS.
just curious what the protein number would be on that turkey lentil mixture… is it close to 20g…???? that mixture just seems like a great substitution for a number of uses depending on how you season the meat/ lentils,, thank you
My family is sure to love the HONEY GARLIC TURKEY CASSEROLE.
My family would love the Broccoli, Lentil & Shrimp Sheet Pan Dinner.
This recipe looks very yummy.
Thank you!