It’s almost spring (yay!) so I’m getting my fill on cozy slow cooker meals like this Turkey, Quinoa, and sweet potato chili before I start craving salads again.
This recipe is a client favorite for good reason and it’s perfect for cold-weather months thanks to the cozy and grounding ingredients like quinoa, sweet potato, and cumin. All three are Ayurvedic foods perfect for counteracting winter’s cold, windy weather because they literally warm and ground you from inside out. They’re like a big chunky turtleneck sweater for your belly.
Not to mention, quinoa packs a serious nutritional punch so it deserves the spotlight in this recipe and post.
Health Benefits of Quinoa
I don’t throw the term superfood around often, but when I do it’s usually associated with quinoa. Quinoa is often mistaken as a whole grain even though it’s really a seed. It’s an ancient Andean plant which originated from Peru and Bolivia. It was cultivated and consumed by pre-Columbian civilizations before being replaced by other cereal grains after the arrival of the Spanish to south America.
Nutritionally, quinoa is known for being one of just a few plants that’s a complete protein. A complete protein means it contains all nine essential amino acids that our body needs for tissue growth and repair. Our body can’t make these amino acids on its own so we need to get them from food. All animal proteins are complete proteins (e.g. eggs, steak, dairy, fish, and poultry). However, most plant foods contain just a couple of these amino acids and so need to be combined in order to form a complete protein (e.g. rice and beans, peanut butter and toast, hummus and pita).
There are, however, a two plants that are complete proteins: quinoa and soy (tofu, edamame, tempeh, and miso). One cup of cooked quinoa has a whopping 8 grams of protein. Additionally, quinoa is high in fiber, is gluten-free, and incredibly versatile. It can be eaten hot, cold, cooked, toasted, mixed into salads and soups, as porridge, or on its own.
Fiber, Fiber, Fiber!
One of chili’s selling points is its high fiber content thanks to the quinoa, beans, and other veggies. One cup of this chili contains 15 grams of fiber. Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that comes from plants and is indigestible by the body. It passes through our stomach and small intestine, and is then fermented by bacteria in the colon. Just like we consume probiotics to increase the good bacteria in our gut, we need to consume fiber (also known as a prebiotic) to feed that bacteria so they can produce postbiotics like short chain fatty acids which are beneficial for gut and heart health.
Adult women need 25 grams and adult men need 35 grams of fiber per day for optimal health. Unfortunately, the standard American Diet of processed foods and too much animal protein means we’re only getting around 15 grams of fiber per day. Increase your fiber intake by eating plenty of whole fruits (especially berries), vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, and legumes. And be sure to drink plenty of water as you increase dietary fiber to help keep things moving!
Ayurvedic Ingredients for Fall and Winter
Another reason to love chili is that it contains many traditional Ayurvedic fall foods. Ayurveda is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. It combines science with psychology, spirituality, and philosophy to enable you to achieve mind-body balance through specific lifestyle practices and seasonal recipes.
Fall and winter are Vata season in Ayurveda, characterized by wind, cooler temperatures, dry air, and a general feeling of being ungrounded and spacey. I always turn to Ayurveda when the seasons change because it emphasizes supporting the body throughout those transitions to keep your energy, immune system, and mind clear and strong.
To counteract fall and winter’s Vata energy, focus on diet and lifestyle practices that are especially grounding. Food-wise that means pumpkin spice and everything nice. Turns out Starbucks was onto something when they made PSL a thing. Grounding foods include winter squash like pumpkin, butternut, spaghetti, acorn, delicata, and kabocha; potatoes and sweet potatoes; and whole grains like oats, quinoa, and wild rice. Not-so-coincidentally, many of these are included in this chili recipe! Incorporate one at every meal and counteract the cooler temperatures with warming spices such as ginger, turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, rosemary and nutmeg.
Enjoy this recipe any time the temperatures drop and you need something comforting, grounding and warming!
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground turkey (or beef; leave out meat for vegetarian option)
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 sweet potato, washed and diced
- 2 bell peppers, diced
- 1 cup tricolor quinoa
- 1 can black beans, rinsed
- 1 can red navy beans, rinsed
- 1 can tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
- salt and pepper to taste
- Heat olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat
- Sauté ground turkey until no longer pink, season with salt and pepper
- Into a slow cooker (or large pot if making on stovetop), add cooked turkey, diced sweet potato, diced onion, diced bell peppers, uncooked quinoa, black beans, red navy beans, tomato paste, turmeric, cumin, chili powder, and chicken broth. Mix well.
- Cook on high for 4 hours in slow cooker (or about 1 hour simmering on stovetop), until sweet potatoes are cooked and quinoa has expanded
- Add salt and pepper to taste
- Serve warm with toppings of choice(shredded cheese, greek yogurt, avocado or microgreens)