Three Pepper Turkey Chili – An Overnight Delight

Three Pepper Turkey Chili

Ingredient List:

• 4 pounds Ground Turkey
• 2 Large Yellow Onions, large dice
• 3 Zucchini, large dice
• 3 Poblano Peppers, large dice
• 2 Green Bell Peppers, large dice
• 2 Red Bell Peppers, large dice
• 7 Hatch or Anaheim Chiles, large dice
• 1 Bulb Garlic, peeled and smashed
• 3 Tablespoons Kosher Salt
• 1/2 Cup Chili Powder
• 2 Tablespoons Ground Cumin
• 2 28oz. Can Crushed Tomatoes
• 1 8oz. can tomato paste
• 4 Tablespoons honey
• 4 Tablespoons olive oil

Preparation Instructions:

1. Place the garlic and olive oil in the bottom of a 6 or 7 quart slow cooker crock.
2. Add turkey and break in to chunks with a spoon.
3. Add Kosher salt, chili powder, ground cumin and garlic.
4. Combine onions, peppers, chiles and zucchini in a large bowls and toss until mixed well.
5. Pour veggie mixture over turkey.
6. Pour tomatoes and honey over turkey and veggies and stir lightly to combine.
7. Cook on high for 8-10 hours. I prefer to cook overnight.
8. Allow to cool for a bit, stir to incorporate all ingredients and break up turkey further. Then, portion out into 12 3-block portions. Refrigerate for up to a week or freeze for up to 6 months.

“Keep It Paleo!”

Zone Breakdown:

Proteins: (36)

Our protein all comes from the ground turkey.  We start with four pounds which weights about 1,816g.  After we cook it, it reduces down to about 1,507g.  With 42g of cooked ground turkey weighing one block, we therefore have 36 blocks of Protein from Turkey.

Carbohydrates: (47)

We have a lot of different sources of carbs in this Chili.  Our first source comes from our onions.  When we dice up 2 large onions, it fills about 4 cups.  With 2/3 of a cup giving us one block, we therefore get 6 blocks from onions.

Our next source comes from the 3 Zucchinis.  On average, about 1 zucchini chopped fills a cup and with 1 cup equaling one block, we end up with three blocks.

Next up we have our assortment of peppers/chiles.  We will say that each pepper type is one block as about 2 cups chopped up raw equals one block.  Therefore, each of these will fill about 2 cups cut up so therefore we have four blocks from them.

Then we move to our crushed tomatoes.  One cup of crushed tomatoes equals one block, so out of each 28oz can we get 3.5 cups, for a total of 7 cups between the two cans.  Therefore we have 7 blocks total.

The tomato paste, because its much denser, we count it the same as tomato sauce.  Therefore we count it as ½ cup equals one block, so we end up with 2 blocks as we are using 1 cup total.

Finally, our honey gives us a large quantity of the carb blocks with a total of 24.  With ½ teaspoon equaling one block, we get 6 blocks per tablespoon, and a total of 24 from the 4 tablespoons of honey.

Fats: (36)

Our fats all come from the four tablespoons olive oil we use.  1/3 of a teaspoon equal one block of fat, so with 9 blocks per tablespoon, we end up with a total of 36 Blocks of fat.

Balancing Act:

Out of this Chili, we can get 11 meals.  Each meal would consist of 4 Carbs, 3 Protein, and 3 Fats.  It is a great meal and for the most part fairly balanced, but make sure you supplement the extra protein in somewhere in your day, maybe have an extra egg for breakfast that day!