One-skillet ground turkey Thai yellow curry with rice. This quick and easy one-pot recipe makes a complete meal of lean protein and aromatic coconut milk sauce with vegetables.

One Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry Skillet with Rice - an easy one-pot meal of aromatic coconut milk sauce | TheRoastedRoot.net

When I go out for Thai food, I immediately combine the bowl of rice with my bowl of curry, and eat it like so. With a spoon.

For me, the best way to enjoy curry is to have the rice soaking in the sauce for as long as possible for optimal flavor and creamy texture. 

This recipe serves up curry in the exact way I enjoy it: with the rice already mixed in, sufficiently soaked in sauce.

For this particular recipe, I used ground turkey, which I have found to be one of the sources of animal protein my digestive system readily accepts with joy.

You can replace the ground turkey with one pound of boneless skinless chicken breasts, pork, steak, shrimp, salmon, or white fish. Almost any form of animal protein works! 

During those times youโ€™re looking for a meatless meal, you can skip the animal protein and add one can of chickpeas.

One Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry Skillet with Rice - an easy one-pot meal of aromatic coconut milk sauce | TheRoastedRoot.net

This one-skillet Thai yellow curry recipe couldnโ€™t be any easier to make. Hereโ€™s how it goes down:

How to Make One-Skillet Thai Yellow Curry:

This recipe does require a bit of forethought, as I recommend soaking the rice prior to preparing this recipe. Soak the rice for at least 1 hour, up to 24 before using it in this recipe. I soak mine in a tupperware container and keep it in the refrigerator.

Once your rice is sufficiently soaked, drain the water from it and set aside until ready to use.

Pour โ…“ cup of coconut milk into a skillet add the ground turkey. Brown for 3 to 4 minutes, flip to other side and continue browning another 2 to 3 minutes. Essentially, youโ€™re browning the turkey meat in its cube form prior to breaking it into smaller pieces. 

Add ginger and spices and stir, chopping up the turkey. 

Add the carrots, remaining coconut milk, broth, coconut aminos, and fish sauce, and stir well. Stir in the rice. Cover, and bring to a full boil.

Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. 

Stir in the zucchini, cover, and cook an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until much of the liquid has been absorbed and the vegetables are cooked to desired done-ness. Stir in the chopped basil and taste the curry. Add sea salt to taste and serve in bowls.

One Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry Skillet with Rice - an easy one-pot meal of aromatic coconut milk sauce | TheRoastedRoot.net

What Type of Rice Should I Use?

To keep the prep time on this recipe low, use white rice. If you donโ€™t mind adding another 30 to 40 minutes onto the cook time, feel free to use brown rice. 

I use Lundberg Organic Sushi Rice (not sponsored) because it is so, so stinking starchy and delicious. It soaks up the sauce so well, which results in the most flavorful, amazing, chewy delightfully carby meal. 

My preference when it comes to brown rice is Lundberg Organic Sprouted Brown Rice  (again, not sponsored). The sprouting helps unlock the protein contained in the rice. Without sprouting, the protein in rice isnโ€™t actually bioavailable. 

Regardless of which rice you choose, be sure you do soak it for at least one hour prior to using it. Every single time I prepare rice, I soak it overnight (up to 24 hours) prior to cooking it.

The soaking process helps remove the oxalates and phytates, which ensures the rice doesnโ€™t act as an anti-nutrient and ensures your body is able to absorb the vitamins and minerals in your meal.

One Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry Skillet with Rice - an easy one-pot meal of aromatic coconut milk sauce | TheRoastedRoot.net

Recipe Adaptations:

  • Replace the ground turkey with chicken breasts, shrimp, pork, beef, or animal protein of choice.
  • For a saucier curry, reduce the amount of rice from 2 cups to 1 cup.
  • Skip the animal protein and add one can of drained chickpeas for a protein source.
  • Add ยฝ yellow onion and 4 cloves of garlic if you can tolerate them.
  • Add 1 to 3 Tbsp sriracha to spice it up (the curry is very mild the way the recipe is written).

I use this ground turkey curry as meal prep for the week. Iโ€™ve been meal prepping every Monday for the last couple of months, and this exact recipe (or some rendition of it) has been on the menu each week. It covers all my macro bases and is just so tasty!

More Curry Recipes:

My cookbook, Paleo Power Bowls, is now available! CLICK HERE to check it out. Thank you for your support!

If you make this One-Skillet Ground Turkey Curry Skillet, please feel free to share a photo and tag @The.Roasted.Root on Instagram!

Ground turkey curry each and every week!

One Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry Skillet with Rice - an easy one-pot meal of aromatic coconut milk sauce | TheRoastedRoot.net

One-Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry with Rice

4.42 from 98 votes
One-skillet ground turkey Thai yellow curry with rice = a complete meal in one skillet or pot.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 (15-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
  • 1 pound lean ground turkey
  • 1 Tbsp fresh ginger peeled and grated
  • 2 large carrots peeled and chopped
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp ground paprika
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon optional
  • 1 1/2 cups white rice soaked at least 1 hour
  • 1 2/3 cups chicken broth
  • 3 Tbsp coconut aminos
  • 1 to 3 Tbsp fish sauce to taste
  • 1 medium zucchini squash chopped
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt to taste
  • 1/3 cup fresh basil chopped

Instructions

  • Place rice in a bowl and cover with 2 inches of water. Soak rice at least 1 hour (up to 24 hours). Drain the rice. It's okay if it still has a light coating of water over the grains, but be sure to drain all the water as best as possible. I use a saucepan with a lid to soak the rice and employ the lid to help drain it.
  • Pour โ…“ cup of coconut milk into a skillet add the ground turkey. Brown for 3 to 4 minutes, flip to other side and continue browning another 2 to 3 minutes.
  • Add ginger and spices and stir, chopping up the turkey.ย 
  • Add the carrots, remaining coconut milk, broth, coconut aminos, and fish sauce, and stir well. Stir in the rice. Cover, and bring to a full boil.
  • Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 10 minutes.ย 
  • Stir in the zucchini, cover, and cook an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until much of the liquid has been absorbed and the vegetables are cooked to desired done-ness. Stir in the chopped basil and taste the curry. Add sea salt to taste and serve in bowls.

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 5 ยท Calories: 542kcal ยท Carbohydrates: 41g ยท Protein: 20g ยท Fat: 41g ยท Fiber: 2g ยท Sugar: 7g
Author: Julia
Course: Main Dishes
Cuisine: Thai
Keyword: gluten free, ground turkey, healthy, one pot meal, one skillet, paleo, Thai
Did You Make This Recipe?I want to see it! Tag @the.roasted.root on social media!
One-Skillet Ground Turkey Thai Curry with rice - an easy, quick approach to curry! | TheRoastedRoot.net #glutenfree #healthy

Julia Mueller
Meet the Author

Julia Mueller

Julia Mueller is a recipe developer, cookbook author, and founder of The Roasted Root. She has authored three bestselling cookbooks, – Paleo Power Powers, Delicious Probiotic Drinks, and The Quintessential Kale Cookbook. Her recipes have been featured in several national publications such as BuzzFeed, Self, Tasty, Country Living, Brit.co, etc.

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Questions and Reviews

    1. No worries, Amber! I don’t stir the water when I soak rice, but it couldn’t hurt! Happy cooking!

      1. I have the same question – do you drain the rice before you stir it in to the curry or do you add the rice and its water together?

    1. Hi Kathleen! “Curry” is a mix of spices/aromatic flavors, so the curry portion of the recipe is the ground turmeric, paprika, ginger, and cinnamon. I leave out the ground cumin because I’m personally not a fan but you can always add it if you enjoy the flavor ๐Ÿ™‚ Curry paste works as a replacement or an addition if you prefer.

  1. Hi!
    This dish sounds yummy! I donโ€™t have fish sauce and I donโ€™t really want to buy a bottle of it for one recipe. Is it a major flavor here or if I omit it will it not be a big deal?
    Thanks!

    1. Hi Stephanie! You can omit it! If you’d like, you can replace it with 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, liquid aminos, or coconut aminos to add some umami flavor. Hope you enjoy the dish! xo