Name: Healthy Ground Turkey Soup Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling; 1/3 cup chopped shallots (2-3 large shallots); 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 1 pound ground turkey; 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt; 4-6 cups low-sodium chicken broth; 2 cups tomato puree; 1 medium cauliflower, leaves and core removed, the rest roughly chopped (See notes for using riced cauliflower.); 2 teaspoons dried basil; 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano; 1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes; 1 bunch of curly kale, leaves pulled from the thick stems and roughly chopped; Grated parmesan cheese for serving (see note for diary-free option)

Jump to Recipe

Keep dinner easy and healthy with our veggie-packed Ground Turkey Soup. A hearty, comforting one-pot meal that tastes rich and comforting despite being SUPER HEALTHY. It's made with lean ground turkey, a whole chopped up cauliflower and a big bunch of kale. Ready in 30 minutes!

Ceramic bowl filled with tomato based soup that has lots of ground turkey, chopped cauliflower and kale. Topped with grated parmesan.

You have to love a dish that delivers serious comfort food vibes while being incredibly healthy. That was my goal when developing this healthy ground turkey soup recipe.

Ground turkey is a fantastic source of lean protein. Not only is it lower in fat and calories than beef, but its mild flavor easily soaks up all the delicious seasonings in this soup. If you're a fan of healthy comfort food, try my other favorites made with ground turkey: Turkey Meatballs, Turkey Meatloaf, Turkey Meat sauce and, of course, this Ground Turkey Soup.

✅ Why this Ground Turkey Soup is a Weeknight Win

This ground turkey soup checks all of my boxes for the perfect weeknight dinner recipe because it's:

Quick and Easy - Ready in 30 Minutes
Healthy - Packed with lean ground turkey and veggies, including a full head of cauliflower and a full bunch of kale.
Hearty and Comforting - This soup has a thick, rich texture from the ground turkey and chopped cauliflower, plus a deeply flavorful tomato broth from the aromatics and spices. Everyone will be coming back for seconds!
Diet-Friendly: Naturally gluten-free, low-carb and dairy-free (skip the parmesan topping)
One-Pot Dinner: No time or need for a big mess on a busy weeknight.

Ground turkey soup is a favorite in our weeknight dinner rotation. It's quick to throw together and most of the ingredients are common pantry staples. I usually have everything in house except the turkey, cauliflower and kale.

chopped cauliflower on a wooden cutting board

Ingredients for Ground Turkey Soup

Ground Turkey: I prefer using dark meat turkey for the best flavor, or a mix of dark and white.
Aromatics: Shallots and garlic
Chicken Broth: Use homemade or your favorite low-sodium chicken broth. My favorites are Swansons or Pacific.
Tomato Puree: Use your favorite canned tomato puree
Cauliflower: A whole head, chopped (or 4-5 cups of riced cauliflower)
Dried Spices: Basil, oregano and crushed red pepper flakes
Curly Kale: A whole bunch of Curly Kale to give you a good dose of super healthy dark leafy greens.
Toppings: Extra virgin olive oil and grated parmesan Cheese (For dairy-free, omit the parmesan or make vegan parmesan.

How To Make Ground Turkey Soup

This recipe is super fast requiring just ten minutes of chopping, a few minutes of sautéing and ten minutes of simmering. Ten minutes is enough time to develop a flavorful broth while still keeping the vegetables bright and fresh.

Here's a walkthrough of the recipe, with photos. For full details, scroll down the recipe card below.

To start, sauté the chopped shallots and garlic for a few minutes, until tender and translucent. Then add the ground turkey and cook it, stirring, until it loses its pink color.

Raw ground turkey in an oval Dutch oven being stirred with a wooden spoon.

Partially cooked ground turkey being stirred and cooked in an oval dutch oven.

Add the broth, tomato puree, chopped cauliflower and spices.
Simmer for 10 minutes.

Raw chopped cauliflower and tomato puree being stirred with a wooden spoon, in a dutch oven.

chunky ground turkey soup in tomato broth in a dutch oven.

Use an immersion blender to puree a half to three quarters of the soup, depending on whether you want a smoother or chunkier texture. If you don't have an immersion blender, puree the soup in a food processor or blender and then return it to the pot.

Stir in the chopped kale and simmer the soup for a few minutes more, just until the kale wilts and the soup is heated through.

an immersion blender immersed in a Dutch oven, pureeing ground turkey soup.

Raw chopped curly kale being stirred into a pot of ground turkey soup, using a wooden spoon.

Ladle the soup into bowls.

A ladle in a pot of ground turkey, kale, cauliflower soup with tomato broth.

Drizzle each bowl with a little olive oil and top generously with grated parmesan. Enjoy!

What to serve on the side

Although this ground turkey soup is a whole balanced meal by itself, a good green salad or this Italian Tricolore Salad will be great alongside. There's nothing like a crisp salad with a steaming bowl of soup. Crusty bread on the side will be delicious, too.

Be sure to check out our big collection of Soup Recipes for more cooking ideas.

If you try this Healthy Ground Turkey Soup Recipe, I hope you'll come back to leave a star rating and a comment. I'd love to know what you think!

Recipe

Healthy Ground Turkey Soup Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 7 reviews

Author: Lisa Goldfinger
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4-5 servings 1x

Print Recipe

Description

A flavorful, comforting, veggie-packed dinner soup, made in one pot, and ready in 30 minutes.

Ingredients

Units Scale

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
⅓ cup chopped shallots (2-3 large shallots)
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 pound ground turkey
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
4-6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups tomato puree
1 medium cauliflower, leaves and core removed, the rest roughly chopped (See notes for using riced cauliflower.)
2 teaspoons dried basil
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
1 bunch of curly kale, leaves pulled from the thick stems and roughly chopped
Grated parmesan cheese for serving (see note for diary-free option)

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Sauté shallots over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic and sauté for a minute longer. Add turkey and salt. Cook, stirring and tossing, until turkey loses its pink color, 4 minutes or so.
Add 4 cups of broth, tomato puree, cauliflower, basil, oregano and crushed red pepper. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
Use an immersion blender to puree three quarters of the soup, or less if you prefer a chunkier texture. If you don't have an immersion blender, puree the soup in a food processor or blender and return it to the pot. Add additional broth if you want to thin the soup.
Add shredded kale to the pot and heat the soup for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until the kale wilts and the soup is heated through.
Ladle the soup into bowls. Drizzle with a little olive oil and top generously with grated parmesan.

Notes

Cauliflower Rice Substitution: Instead of coring and chopping a whole cauliflower, you can substitute 4-5 cups of riced cauliflower.
For Dairy-Free: To make this recipe Dairy-Free, simply omit the grated parmesan topping or use a vegan parmesan substitute.
Nutrition Information: We do our best to provide accurate nutrition values using an online nutrition calculator however our nutrition information should only be used as an approximation.

Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 15 min
Category: Soup
Method: Simmer
Cuisine: Italian

I first published this recipe on December 23, 2020. I have recooked and retested this dish and I've updated this post and added: new higher quality photos, more helpful information in the written post, clearer directions in the recipe card, and a new title that more accurately describes this dish. The previous title was "30 Minute Healthy Turkey Vegetable Soup." The same delicious recipe!

Healthy Ground Turkey Soup (Weeknight Easy!)

✅ Why this Ground Turkey Soup is a Weeknight Win

Ingredients for Ground Turkey Soup