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.
Michael says
This is fabulous! For meal prep, this freezes beautifully for days ahead. And as a healthy option, this will definitely be a "go to" for me. Thank you for sharing!
Matt says
This is an amazing recipe… So good!
Sally says
So glad you liked it, Matt!
Diana says
I was suspecting that it actually uses lima beans instead of edamame. Thoughts?
Sally says
Diana - They definitely use edamame. You can buy them frozen (that's what I used). You could certainly substitute limas if you wish. Thanks for stopping by!
Kate says
Really excited to try this. Do you recommend beef broth? Or would veg broth or chicken broth be better? I’m weird about mixing proteins but seems like the reviews speak to how good this recipe is. 🙂
Sally says
Kate - Beef stock is going to be more flavorful, but you could certainly use chicken or vegetable stock instead. I regularly interchange my stocks depending on what I have on hand.
Bobbie Ly says
Oh my goodness. Spot on!!!! Just enough heat. Made it for a family who just had a baby and they both loved it too. I shared the recipe. Will be making again, and again, and again!
Sally says
That's awesome, Bobbie! Thank you so much for letting me know!
Linda says
Can you cook this recipe in a crockpot?
Do you chop up the jalapeño?
Thanks, Linda
Karen says
Excellent is all I can say!
Sally says
So glad you liked it, Karen! Thanks for letting me know!
Sally says
Yeah, Amy, you can't go wrong with making your own at home! Thanks for commenting!
Michael says
I forgot to 5 Star! Excelent!
Sally says
Thank you, Michael!
Kim says
Can you put it in a crockpot after you cook the meat?
Sally says
That should work, Kim - I just haven't tried it. Let me know how yours turns out!
Marie says
Can you freeze it?
Sally says
Should freeze nicely, Marie!
Stephanie says
This turned out so yummy!!!! Made it alongside your cornbread. First time making cornbread from scratch 🙂
Sally says
Glad you liked it, Stephanie! And cornbread makes it complete!
Caroline says
This is amazing! I sort of mistakenly only put half the tomato paste in (6oz) and it still turned out great.
Sally says
Thanks for letting me know, Caroline!
Diane says
This is the BEST chili I have ever made. It is not heavy like most traditional chili and I love that I get all the colorful vegetables as well as my protein. It is also pretty low calorie compared to others. My whole family of picky eaters love it.
Sally says
I'm so happy to hear this, Diane! We love it too!
Kellye Stevenson says
I live in Texas, and Panera still serves this turkey chili here! I had it for lunch today. I also enjoy your copy cat recipe, I am making it for dinner tomorrow!
Sally says
Awesome Kellye! Thanks for sharing with me!
Lisa says
Panera has discontinued this dish (which is such a mistake) so we googled a copycat and found your AMAZING recipe!! Thank you for this. We LOVE it!!! It's not only fresher than Panera but much more affordable.
Sally says
Awesome Lisa! So happy to hear that you love it! I also was saddened that they discontinued it, but we'll just make it at home, right? Thanks for commenting!
Heather Curl says
Is a serving 1 cup??? I made this but am trying to figure out points for weight watchers
Sally says
Thanks for your question, Heather. I think a serving is more like 2 cups or what would be a normal bowl full. It's not exact, though. My apologies for not having a more accurate answer for you.