Easy Slow Cooker Turkey Chili

Name: Easy Slow Cooker Turkey Chili
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 7 h 30 min
Total time: 7 h 50 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 lb ground turkey lean; 1 medium onion diced; 3 cloves garlic minced; 1 can 15 oz kidney beans rinsed; 1 can 15 oz black beans rinsed; 1 can 15 oz fire-roasted diced tomatoes with juice; 1 cup chicken broth low sodium; 2 tbsp tomato paste; 2 tbsp chili powder; 1 tsp smoked paprika; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper; 1/2 tsp dried oregano; 1/4 tsp black pepper; Salt to taste; Shredded cheddar sour cream green onions for topping

By Emma

Certified Culinary Professional

Published on 21 January 2026 • Recipe tested & approved

Slow cooker turkey chili with ground turkey, kidney beans, black beans, smoked paprika, and fire-roasted tomatoes. Brown the meat first. Dump everything in. Seven hours later it’s thick, rich, done. Top with cheddar and sour cream. Feeds eight.

Prep: 20 min

Cook: 7h 30min

Total: 7h 50min

Servings: 8 servings

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Before You Start

Slow cooker turkey chili was the first thing I made when I got my crockpot. Picked turkey because that’s what was in the fridge. Turned out better than the beef version I’d been making for years. Ground turkey soaks up the spices different. Lighter but still hits. I brown it first — always. Skip that step and the whole thing tastes flat. Fire-roasted tomatoes instead of regular. That one swap changed everything. Smoky, a little charred, way more interesting. This easy slow cooker turkey chili basically cooks itself after that. Seven hours on low, walk away, come back when the kitchen smells insane. The best crock pot turkey chili recipe I’ve made is this one and I’ve tweaked it maybe twenty times. Smoked paprika over regular chili powder. Kidney and black beans together. Don’t skip the tomato paste — that’s what makes the sauce thick and clingy instead of watery. Top it with sharp cheddar not mild. Sour cream. Green onions. Leftovers taste better the next day. Every time.

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey lean
1 medium onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 can 15 oz kidney beans rinsed
1 can 15 oz black beans rinsed
1 can 15 oz fire-roasted diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup chicken broth low sodium
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp black pepper
Salt to taste
Shredded cheddar sour cream green onions for topping

About the ingredients

Ground turkey not beef. Lighter, less grease, takes on spice better for this ground turkey chili recipe slow cooker style. Lean is fine but not extra lean — too dry. Fire-roasted tomatoes add smokiness regular diced can’t. Don’t swap them out. Kidney beans for bite. Black beans for creaminess. Both. Tomato paste is the thickener — don’t skip it. Smoked paprika not regular. Different flavor. Low sodium broth because the sauce reduces a lot and concentrates. Salt at the end always. Swaps in the tips.

Method

Brown the turkey in a skillet on medium. Break it up. No pink left. Drain the fat.
Same pan. Onion and garlic in. Cook till soft. Three four minutes.
Everything goes in the slow cooker. Turkey, onion, garlic, beans, tomatoes, broth, tomato paste, all the spices. Stir it.
Low heat. Seven and a half hours. Don't touch it much. Check edges around hour six — bubbling slow, smells deep. That's it working.
Stir once or twice. Don't go crazy. Too much stirring breaks the beans.
Too watery near the end — take the lid off. Last thirty minutes uncovered fixes it.
Taste before serving. Add salt if it needs it.
Bowl. Cheddar on top. Sour cream. Green onions. Done.

Cooking tips

Brown the turkey before it goes in. Color means flavor. Skip it and the chili tastes like nothing. Drain the fat after browning — not all of it, just the excess. Onion and garlic in the same pan after, picks up everything left behind. Stir the spices in properly so there’s no dry pockets. Low heat the whole time. High heat makes the beans fall apart. Check thickness near the end — too thin, lid off. Too thick, splash of broth. Taste right before serving. Slow cookers dull the seasoning over hours.

Chef's notes

💡 Brown the turkey first. Don't skip it. That's where the flavor starts for this crock pot chili turkey. Pink meat going straight into the slow cooker gives you pale, bland chili. Two extra minutes in the pan changes the whole thing.
💡 Fire-roasted tomatoes not regular. The char on them adds smokiness that chili powder alone can't give you. Already in your pantry probably. Just grab that can instead.
💡 Lid off the last thirty minutes if it's watery. That's the fix. Simple. Works every time for slow cooker chili with turkey. Don't add thickeners, just let it reduce.
💡 No smoked paprika — chipotle powder works. Use less though, it's hotter. No turkey — lean ground chicken is the closest swap for this chili recipe slow cooker turkey style. Beef works too but it's a different dish.
💡 Leftovers are better. Next day the beans soak up everything and the flavor goes deeper. Make it the night before if you can. Best crock pot turkey chili recipe trick right there.