This Panera turkey chili recipe is a fabulous copycat of the beloved original. Such a delicious soup that's so easy to make at home.
I love the flavors, the colors, and the heartiness of this soup. Make it tonight - you won't be disappointed! Serve with my Southern Cornbread or Southern Butter Biscuits.
Some salads that go nicely with this turkey chili include my Mediterranean Cucumber Salad with lemon dressing, Shaved Brussel Sprouts Salad with creamy honey lime dressing, or my simple Mediterranean Salad with lime vinaigrette.
Substitutions
This recipe calls for ground turkey, but you can certainly substitute ground beef if that's what you have (instructions for both to follow).
Ground turkey is chosen for its lower fat content, and it has a delightfully different flavor as well.
If you choose to use leftover cooked turkey, I include instructions for that as well (in case you want to make it in the days following Thanksgiving).
As you may already know, I'm pretty fond of copycat recipes and love to replicate my own version at home. I typically shoot for "better than," but you can be the judge of that.
If you're not familiar with Panera Bread restaurant, not to worry. Suffice it to say that this recipe is a hearty, flavorful, colorful chili that's fairly mild in the spicy department.
The beauty of this chili is that you can spice it up or down based on your family's preference.
What You'll Need
- oil
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 medium onion
- 1 jalapeno
- tomato paste
- 1 can kidney beans
- 1 can garbanzo beans
- frozen edamame
- 1 small carrot
- frozen or fresh corn
- beef or chicken stock
- dry oregano
- ground cayenne
- garlic powder
- ground cumin
How to Make Turkey Chili
Preheat Dutch oven on medium heat on stove top. If don't have a Dutch oven, any heavy large pot will do. I really love to use my Dutch oven and wouldn't want to be without it. It heats so evenly and is wonderful to cook with!
Once your pot is nice and hot (about 5 minutes should do), you will then add your oil of choice (I typically use olive or coconut oil, but the oil you use is up to you).
Note: If using ground beef in place of the turkey, you will not need oil in the pan.
Next, you will add the ground turkey (or ground beef), onion, and jalapeno and cook 15 minutes, chopping and stirring often.
You will be cooking until the meat is browned and the veggies are softened and a bit translucent. If using ground beef, the time to remove any excess fat in the pan is now before adding the rest of the ingredients.
Once the meat is browned and the veggies softened, you will add the drained beans, frozen shelled edamame (no need to thaw), corn, carrot, beef broth, tomato paste oregano, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, cumin, black pepper, and salt.
Note: If you don't have fresh or frozen corn, you can use drained canned corn.
Bring the mixture to a boil on medium-high heat, all the while mashing and stirring in the paste to break it up.
Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and cook 45 minutes. Check periodically to stir and make sure it's not boiling too hard. You want a strong simmer not a rolling boil that might bubble over.
Stir and taste. Add more salt if needed. Serve hot with my Easy Homemade Biscuits, corn bread, or other bread of choice and side salad.
Tips & FAQs
Absolutely! Ground turkey sticks to the original recipe, but you can use ground beef as a substitute.
Due to the lower fat content of ground turkey, you'll want to select a leaner ground beef if possible. Otherwise, you'll want to make sure to remove most of the fat after browning the ground beef.
If using lean ground beef, you will likely not need to add any oil (and, as above, you make need to remove some of it after browning).
If you have more than 2 Tablespoons of fat in the pan after cooking the ground beef, it's best to remove the excess before continuing with the recipe.
Yes, you certainly can! If you want to use leftover turkey, simply add 2 cups of pre-cooked turkey in step 3 after cooking the onion and jalapeno.
If you don't want any spice at all in your chili, you may certainly omit the cayenne pepper. Or you can reduce the amount to ¼ teaspoon.
If you're unsure, you can make the recipe without the cayenne and then add a bit at the end if desired. Keep in mind that seasonings like cayenne and chili powder tend to get stronger as they cook.
📋 Recipe
Panera Turkey Chili Recipe (copycat)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 medium onion , chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 jalapeno , deseeded and finely chopped
- 12 ounces tomato paste
- 15.5 ounces canned kidney beans , drained and rinsed
- 15.5 ounces canned garbanzo beans , drained and rinsed
- 1 cup edamame , frozen
- ¾ cup carrot , chopped (1 small)
- ½ cup corn , fresh or frozen
- 4 cups beef broth or chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon oregano , dry
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper depending on heat level preferred
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt more to taste
Instructions
- Preheat Dutch oven on medium heat on stove top.
- Add oil, turkey, onion, and jalapeno and cook 15 minutes chopping and stirring often.
- Add rest of the ingredients and mix together.
- Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook 45 minutes.
Video
Notes
- Can use beef or chicken broth.
- Removing the seeds of the jalapeno will make it less spicy. Keep the seeds if you want more heat.
- Chili will tend to get more spicy the longer it cooks and will also tend to be spicier when reheating leftovers.
Kathryn says
I had Panera turkey chili for lunch and decided I wanted to try to make it at home. This was a fantastic recipe. I used both fresh and powdered garlic, adjusted seasonings to my preference and upped the cayenne (Panera’s version is actually a bit spicy and I LOVE it). I never thought about using beef broth and tomato paste (instead of how I usually make chili which is crushed tomatoes and tomato paste) it really adds a lot of flavor. Thank you so much for the recipe, I can’t wait to try to leftovers, it’s going to be even better the next day!!
Sally says
Thank you for your feedback, Kathryn - glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Sheryl says
I love this recipe and make it often. Our Panera doesn't carry it at all anymore. I leave out the jalapeño and cayenne and we season it individually with those options after the fact. Fantastic recipe and taste!!!
Galya says
I just made this chili and it’s very delicious! I also worked at Panera and it’s indeed even better than theirs.
Thanks for the recipe!
Sally says
Thank you so much for your feedback, Galya!
Sharon Griffith says
I used 3/4 of a jalapeño and cut back on the cayenne and it was way too hot for us. Also needed some salt.
Sally says
Sorry to hear about that, Sharon. Everyone has a different level of tolerance for spicy things. The recipe does call for 1/2 teaspoon of salt and to add more to taste. I usually underestimate for salt, as people also have a varying desire for salt in their food.
Daisy says
I too thought 1/2 tsp cayenne was too hot, so I've been reducing it to 1/4 tsp. De-seeding the jalapeno also reduces the spice level a ton. It still has a bit of heat, but it's a level I can tolerate.
Sally says
Daisy - Thank you for your input. The recipe does indicate to deseed the jalapeno, which does indeed reduce the heat level. I will make note in the recipe what you two have told me.
Cindy Boswell says
I left a comment before reading other comments. I see that it can be cooked in the crockpot. Thank you.
Sally says
Thanks for bringing this to my attention, Cindy. I'll update the recipe so others can see more readily that they can cook it in the slow cooker.
Cindy Boswell says
Can you use a crockpot to cook this?
donna hall says
Used turkey. Should be called better than Panera turkey chili; it’s that good. Thank you
Sally says
Awesome Donna - I'm glad you think so!
Reagen says
I loved Panera Bread’s turkey chili, even craved it while I was pregnant. I was so sad when they stopped selling it. I have tried a few copycat recipes, but this one is the absolute best!! Spot on and fulfilled the craving that Panera left me with!!
Sally says
Thank you for your feedback, Reagen! So happy to hear it satisfied your cravings!
deb says
12 oz of tomato paste? Other recipes call for 2 TBS.
Sally says
Yes, Deb, 12 ounces of tomato paste is correct. Thanks for checking!
Jessica says
Is this able to be made in an instant pot or crockpot?
Sally says
Jessica - You can definitely make it in a Crock Pot, but not sure about an instant pot. For the slow cooker, I would pre-cook the ground turkey, onion, and jalapenos first on the stove top, then transfer to slow cooker for the rest of the cook time. You could cook on low for 5-6 hours. Let me know how it turns out!
Jessica says
So I actually made it in my instant pot and it turned out beautifully. Sautéed the onion, pepper and meat first. Then add all the ingredients. Stirred to combine. Put in instant pot for 20 min. PERFECTO!
Sally says
Awesome Jessica! Thanks for the feedback!
Jay Martens says
This is the real deal. No exageration it is by far better than Panera and cost one forth the price you pay at Panera..
Sally says
Thank you, Jay!
Sylvana says
My husband has an allergy to anything mammal. Can this be made with chicken broth? Has anyone tried it and is it good?
Sally says
Sylvana - You can use chicken broth instead of beef. I have tried the recipe with both, and they are both delicious. Let me know how yours turns out!
Maria Martinuzzi says
Hi Sally, try as I might, I couldn’t extract flavor out of this recipe. I think you may want to specify 85/15 ground turkey, as mine was leaner and it begged for fat.
Iswarya says
This was delicious!!! I agree with the others that it tastes better than the original!! Definitely gonna become a regular in our household.
Thank you so much!!
Sally says
Awesome - that's great to hear!
Jen M. says
Wow! This recipe is truly an even better version of the Panera turkey chili 🙂 I added slightly more of each seasoning to our preference and a squeeze of lemon at the end, but otherwise I followed the recipe and it was perfect. This is a winner and will be going into our rotation. Thanks for sharing!
Sally says
Awesome Jen - You just made my day! The squeeze of lemon sounds delish!
Donette says
Excelent! Just made this and had to post a comment. It tasted just like the turkey chili at Panera Bread.
Sally says
Thanks for letting me know, Donette!