Ground Meats
$1.35per plate
Prep
10 min
Ground Meats · Ground Turkey
Ground Turkey Skillet with Rice
Ground turkey is lean and mild on its own, but cooked right in with the rice it turns into a full, savory one-pan dinner. Everything happens in one skillet: brown the meat, toast the rice, then let it all simmer in tomatoes and broth until the rice is tender. A cup of corn and a handful of cheese turn it into a full dinner that feeds five for less than the price of a fast food combo. One pan, about half an hour, and no separate side to cook. For more cheap dinners from the same lean protein, see all our ground turkey recipes.
$1.44per plate
Estimated recipe total
$7.19 · serves 5
Cook
20 min
Total
30 min
Serves
5
Recipe from Budget Plates · https://www.budgetplates.com/ground-turkey-skillet
Equipment
- Large skillet
Variations
- Use ground beef or ground chicken; drain beef after browning since it adds more fat.
- Swap in peas, mixed vegetables, or chopped green beans for the corn.
- Use a cup of salsa in place of the diced tomatoes and spices.
- Skip the cheese to drop the cost by about ten cents a plate.
1 How to make it
1
Brown the turkey
Heat a splash of oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the ground turkey and onion and cook, breaking up the meat, until the turkey is no longer pink and reaches 165 F on an instant-read thermometer and the onion is soft, about 6 minutes. Stir in the garlic and spices for the last minute so they bloom without burning.
2
Toast the rice
Add the uncooked rice to the skillet and stir for a minute so it picks up the fat and seasoning. This small step keeps the grains separate instead of gummy.
3
Simmer everything together
Pour in the diced tomatoes with their juice, the broth, and the corn. Stir, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on low for 18 to 20 minutes, until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed. If it looks dry before the rice is done, add a splash more water.
4
Melt the cheese and rest
Sprinkle the cheese over the top, cover for two minutes to melt, then turn off the heat and let it sit five minutes. Fluff with a fork and taste for salt before serving.
2 Cheaper ingredient swaps
- Ground beef or ground chicken for the turkey. Use whichever is cheapest that week. Ground chicken often costs even less; ground beef adds more fat, so drain it after browning.
- Any frozen vegetable for the corn. Peas, mixed vegetables, or chopped green beans all work. Frozen is usually the cheapest vegetable and there is no waste.
- Salsa for the diced tomatoes and spices. A cup of salsa brings tomatoes and seasoning in one jar. Use it if you already have some open.
- Skip the cheese. The dish is filling without it. Leaving the cheese off drops the cost by about ten cents a plate.
3 Budget tips
- Buy ground turkey in the larger family pack and freeze what you do not use in one-pound portions. The bigger pack almost always costs less per pound.
- Rice is cheapest in a big bag, not the boil-in-bag boxes. One large bag of rice covers this dinner a dozen times over.
- A can of diced tomatoes and a bag of frozen corn are two of the cheapest ways to add vegetables and stretch a pound of meat to five servings.
- Double the recipe and pack the extra into lunch containers. Cooked once, it reheats all week for pennies.
- See more recipes priced per serving in the Budget Plates Index.
4 Storage, freezing & reheating
Fridge
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days. The flavors deepen overnight, so this is a great make-ahead lunch.
Freezer
Freeze cooled portions for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating so the rice warms evenly.
Reheating
Reheat in the microwave with a splash of water to loosen the rice, or warm gently in a skillet over medium-low. Add a little broth if it dried out in the fridge.
5 Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
360
Protein
24g
Fat
11g
Carbs
38g
Estimates per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not a substitute for medical advice.
6 Frequently asked questions
Do I need to cook the rice separately?
No. The rice cooks right in the skillet with the tomatoes and broth, which is the whole point. It soaks up the flavor and saves you a second pot to wash.
My rice was still hard, what happened?
The liquid cooked off before the rice was done, usually from too high a heat or a loose lid. Add a splash of water, cover tightly, and give it a few more minutes on low.
Can I make this with ground beef or chicken?
Yes. Ground chicken is often even cheaper and works the same way. Ground beef is fattier, so drain the pan after browning before adding the rice.
How is $1.44 a plate calculated?
The skillet costs around $7.19 and serves five. Ground turkey is the main line, and the rice and vegetables stretch it across the extra plates.
Helpful Tools for This Recipe
As an Amazon Associate, Budget Plates may earn from qualifying purchases.
- 12-inch nonstick skillet. A wide nonstick skillet browns ground meat, fries rice, and builds a one-pan sauce with less oil and easier cleanup. Best for everyday stovetop dinners like skillet meals, fried rice, pasta sauces, and patties.
- Cast iron skillet. Cast iron holds heat for a deep sear and moves from stovetop to oven, and it lasts for decades with basic care. Best for searing chops and chicken, and recipes that start on the stove and finish in the oven.
- Chef's knife. One sharp chef's knife handles almost all the chopping, from onions to chicken, and replaces a drawer of gadgets. Best for all-purpose prep in essentially every recipe on the site.
- Cutting board. A large, stable cutting board makes prep faster and safer, which matters when you cook most nights. Best for everyday chopping of onion, garlic, and vegetables across nearly every recipe.
This one's also part of our skillet dinner recipes collection and our quick 30-minute dinners collection.
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