Is anyone else in denial that September is THIS WEEK?! As in the month when we start baking all the pumpkin things, go apple picking, make chili, and unpack our cozy sweaters from storage. It’s craziness to me.
Well, before I go all pumpkin/apple/comfort food on you, today we’re talking BOWLS. Specifically, Thai Peanut Turkey Rice Bowls.
Are you into bowls? Like, rice bowls, noodle bowls, veggie bowls, all the bowls? Personally, I am a sucker for them. I’m pretty sure my obsession started with Chipotle’s burrito bowls, but now I like to make my own.
Since I absolutely love Thai flavors, I decided to do a Thai spin on chicken burrito bowls. I switched it up even more by using turkey breasts instead of chicken. While chicken breast is often my lean protein go-to, I am really digging turkey breast lately.
As part of my partnership with Jennie-O Turkey, they sent me some of their turkey breast tenderloins which I was expecting to be like a pork tenderloin, but actually was very similar to a chicken breast.
Since turkey, like chicken, pretty much takes in any flavors you add to it, I marinated it in a thai peanut sauce for a few hours to give it lots of flavor and also to keep it super moist after it cooked.
SO these bowls. It starts with your typical base of rice. I used jasmine rice because I love the stuff. Then you add the cooked marinated chicken and some of your favorite veggies. I did sweet potatoes, red bell peppers, and snow peas because they seemed to go well with the Thai flavors, but you could really use whatever veggies you like. Zucchini, kale, cauliflower, and broccoli all seem like equally stellar choices.
Although, it kind of doesn’t really matter what veggies you use because these Thai Peanut Turkey Rice Bowls are all about the SAUCE.
I’m pretty much always all about the sauce (condiment queen right here) but this sauce is OMG good. And so simple! I thought about adding some other ingredients to it but really wanted to make it as simple as possible and after I tasted it with just peanut butter, yogurt, soy sauce, Sriracha, and lime juice, I knew it didn’t need one more thing added. It was perfect!
Even better, Lars devoured this. If you’re feeding this to your kids and they’re not big on spice, either omit or just add a teeny tiny bit of Sriracha to the peanut yogurt sauce (and then add more to your own!). I actually added the full amount and he was fine with it. I guess we have a spicy food lover on our hands…that would explain my insane hot sauce craving while I was pregnant!
So tell me, what fall foods are you most excited about? While I’ve already started baking with pumpkin (#lifeofafoodblogger), I’m super excited for apple pie!
Looking for other bowl ideas? Check these out:
Korean Steak and Vegetable Noodle Bowls
Butternut Squash and Black Bean Bowls with Chipotle Sauce
Ingredients
- 24 ounces Jennie-O Turkey Breast Tenderloin
For the marinade:
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For the Peanut Yogurt Sauce:
- 1/4 cup peanut butter
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1/2-1 tablespoon Sriracha depending on how spicy you like it
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
Veggies:
- 1 large sweet potato peeled and chopped into small pieces
- 1 red bell pepper thinly sliced
- 2 cups snow peas sliced lengthwise
- cilantro for topping
To cook the turkey and veggies:
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3-4 cups cooked jasmine rice or your favorite kind of rice
Instructions
To make the peanut yogurt sauce:
- Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use.
To cook the turkey:
- In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat.
- Add turkey and cook until cooked through (internal temp should read 165 degrees F), which is about 7-9 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness of your meat.
To cook the veggies:
- Heat remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in separate skillet.
- Add sweet potatoes and cook 10-12 minutes, until softened.
- Add bell pepper and snow peas, and cook another 5-7 minutes. I like to add a couple of tablespoons of water to steam the veggies while they are sauteing.
- To assemble:
- Place desired amount of rice into bowl and top with chicken and veggies.
- Drizzle with peanut sauce and top with cilantro.
- Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I was compensated for this post by Jennie-O Turkey, however all opinions are my own.
Made this last night for the first time and it was AMAZING! Great sauce, liked the combo of veggies you chose, and was nice to switch it up with the turkey. This one will definitely go into our regular rotation. Thanks!
So happy to hear this Kelsey! Thanks for your comment 🙂
I made this tonight with chicken. Loved it!!! Wonderful flavors… I can see why Lars loves the sauce!