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These Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowls are made with healthy ground turkey and veggies in a sweet teriyaki sauce served over white or brown rice.
We love quick and easy Asian inspired recipes, and have quite a few here on the site! Our favorites are included in our monthly dinner rotation, like Egg Fried Rice and Crockpot Orange Chicken and these delicious rice bowls.
Teriyaki turkey is one of my family’s favorites! The sweet and savory richness of the sauce really compliments the mild flavor of the ground turkey. Plus it’s loaded with veggies, which means my kids are eating them! You can pair this with steamed rice chow mein noodles, or wrapped in a tortilla or Lettuce Wrap.
Pin this recipe for later!Table of Contents
Ground Turkey Teriyaki Rice Bowls
Ground turkey recipes are always a winner in our house, like Turkey, Kale and Rice Soup, Turkey Taco Stuffed Shells and Spicy Turkey Meatloaf. But these Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowls always top the list of favorites.
This ground turkey is juicy and the teriyaki sauce is sweet and flavorful. Add in all the wonderful veggies and you’ve got a perfectly complete meal that makes great leftovers.
Why We Love This Recipe
- It’s a quick and easy, a healthy alternative to ground beef, and an easy substitution in tons of recipes like chili and spaghetti sauce.
- We include lots of veggies and dice them up small so it’s very kid friendly and a great way to get kids to actually enjoy eating their vegetables.
- You can easily customize this recipe to include your favorite veggies or add a different base like rice or noodles.
How to Make Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowls
- Cook the ground turkey. After cooking the meat with some onions and garlic, grate few carrots and chop some broccoli very fine, and toss them in with the meat. This gave the illusion that there weren’t very many vegetables in there, but they couldn’t avoid what they couldn’t see! *Note – if you are serving this as a rice bowl, you’ll want to start cooking the rice before you start cooking the meat.
- Make the teriyaki sauce. The teriyaki sauce is made from scratch and is incredibly easy. Some readers have commented on the amount of sugar in the sauce, and you can see in the recipe notes that you can reduce to your liking. Teriyaki sauce is typically sweet on it’s own, but you can adjust the levels based on your needs. It will still taste great!
- Assemble the rice bowls. The teriyaki sauce is combined with the meat and veggies and simmered for a few minutes to let the flavors blend and get all happy. Then scoop it on top of white or brown rice, noodles, into lettuce cups or even flour tortillas for some Asian-Mexican fusion!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use ground beef instead of turkey?
Yes, you absolutely can! Ground turkey can be easily swapped for ground beef, pork or chicken. You will want to make sure to drain it really well since ground beef lets out a lot of liquid, but it will work just as well as the ground turkey.
Can I cut back the amount of sugar?
Yes. I wrote this recipe to have a sticky sweet teriyaki sauce, but some people have said they prefer it a little less sweet. Feel free to cut back as much as you like. As you are cooking the sauce, give it a quick taste – you can always add more sugar if you want it sweeter.
How to Serve
Sprinkle some sliced green onions and sesame seeds on top before serving. It’s a pretty garnish and adds a little flavor, too.
My kids love to eat their rice bowl with chopsticks. If you don’t have any, you can find them here, or try these adorable training chopsticks for kids.
Recipe Variations
Feel free to customize this recipe to fit your own personal tastes. Use leftover veggies and sauté or steam them before adding them to the turkey and sauce.
Some other veggie options:
- Bell peppers
- Snow peas
- Water chestnuts
- Bok choy
- Bean sprouts
- Zucchini
- Corn
- Cauliflower
- Water chestnuts
Storage Tips
How to Store Leftovers
- Refrigerating leftovers: This dish will keep for 3-4 days in the fridge if properly stored in an airtight container. Reheat in the microwave or on the stove.
- To freeze, allow to cool completely, then pour into a freezer bag or airtight container. Freeze for up to 6 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat as described above. Freeze rice or noodles separately from the meat.
Recipe Tips
- Ground turkey recipes are the tastiest when the meat is seasoned properly.
- Add some heat to this dish with some Sriracha or red pepper flakes.
- Not fans of rice? Use noodles instead. You can even use spaghetti noodles to mimic a lo mein and toss in some cabbage to saute it with.
- Feel free to cut the amount of sugar in this recipe. It won’t affect the flavor too much but it will swing more towards the savory side.
More Ground Turkey Recipes
- Creamy Cheesy Turkey Taco Pasta
- Turkey Taco Soup
- Spicy Turkey Meatloaf Recipe
- Easy Ground Turkey Tacos
- Ground Turkey Casserole
- Ground Turkey Enchiladas
- Ground Turkey Taco Salad
Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowl
Ingredients
Teriyaki Sauce
- 1/2 cup Low-Sodium Soy Sauce
- 1/4 cup Water
- 2 tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Brown sugar or less as desired
- 2 tablespoons Granulated sugar or less as desired
- 2 teaspoons Minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon Ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon Cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons Warm water
Ground Turkey
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup Diced onion
- 2 tablespoons Minced garlic
- 1 pound Ground Turkey
- 1 cup Broccoli finely chopped
- 2 Large carrots peeled and grated
- 2 Green onions diced, for garnish
- 4 cups Cooked white or brown rice
Instructions
Teriyaki Sauce
- In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and warm water until cornstarch is completely dissolved. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, gently whisk soy sauce, water, red wine vinegar, sugars, minced garlic and ground ginger until sugars are completely dissolved.
- Slowly whisk in cornstarch mixture and simmer until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.
Ground Turkey
- Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add diced onions and cook, stirring frequently, until softened. If you notice the onions beginning to scorch, immediately turn down the heat.
- Stir in minced garlic. Add ground turkey and break apart with a spatula. Cook, stirring occasionally, until turkey is cooked about halfway through; 4-5 minutes. Add grated carrots and chopped broccoli and continue to cook until turkey is no longer pink and vegetables are soft; 5-6 minutes.
- Pour teriyaki sauce over the turkey and vegetables and stir. Simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Divide cooked rice into bowls then top with the teriyaki turkey. Garnish with sliced green onions and serve immediately.
Notes
- Teriyaki Sauce is generally sweet. However, feel free to cut back on the amount of sugar in the sauce. 1 tablespoon of each would suffice if you prefer a more savory flavor.
- The nutritional information is based on serving this teriyaki turkey over white rice. Use brown rice or just less rice to reduce calories and carbs.
- Feel free to customize this recipe with your favorite vegetables.
- A note about SERVING SIZE: A serving is approximately ¾ cup of rice and one cup of the meat/veggies.
- The serving sizes are approximate and will vary depending on a variety of factors, like how much you cook your veggies down and what size your cuts of vegetables are. As a meal, this recipe will make 4-6 servings.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
Why wouldn’t you use rice vinegar instead of red wine vinegar. Also you do not need to cook the sauce separately you can just put it all together and then it will cook in the pan with the turkey. Just a suggestion.
Let me know when you’ve posted your recipe online so I can come check it out.
Loved the recipe. So much flavor, easy week night dinner, and healthy too! Big win!
Thank you Inge!
So easy and delish perfect for a weeknight dinner! Love that it’s healthy too! Was hit with the family tonight and
only change I made was chopped a little jarred organic sliced sushi ginger as I was out of ground ginger and reduced the garlic a little. Served over jasmine rice.
Teen approved! “Mom this def needs to go into the rotation!”
Thank you for the Mom win!
You are so welcome Heather! Mom for the WIN!
Loved this recipe! Easy and tasty. I was running low on soy sauce so I had to cut the teriakyi sauce in half and it was still delicious! Added some peanuts for a bit of crunch. I’ll be making this again.
Thank you Fosterbeach! Awesome feedback, thanks for stopping by.
Made it twice this week! Yummy!!
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Marlo.
We love this recipe! It’s easy and delicious and makes great leftovers too. I usually use ground beef since that’s what we usually have on hand and I always add more carrots and broccoli because I like them. Thanks for the recipe!
You are so welcome Katie! Thanks for stopping by.
So good! We absolutely loved this recipe!
Thank you Ashleigh!
Can you use organic lean ground beef instead of turkey?
Sure, any ground meat will work.
This stir fry has such a delicious flavour and satisfies all of your taste buds. A favourite we enjoy again and again!
Awesome feedback Donna! Thanks for stopping by.
LOVE this recipe! The teriyaki sauce was amazing, although I didn’t have ginger. I also switched my veggies for zucchini and bell peppers! Did the rice in the instant pot, turkey in a cast iron and everything was just… excellent. Thank you for this!!
You are so welcome Michelle! Thanks for stopping by.
Made this a while ago and it turned out amazing. The younger people in my family aren’t a huge fan of ground turkey (we make tacos with it the majority of the time) but they loved this recipe. I will definitely make it again in the future!
Nice! Thanks for stopping by.
Fantastic dish! Family loved it and I even doubled it. I’d cut back on the sugar but only to 2 1/2 TBS of the sugars.
Awesome feedback Jul! Thanks for stopping by.
This recipe is a weekly staple in our house for me and my husband. I have even started to use the sauce recipe in chicken stir fry and it is perfection! Such a yummy, easy recipe that is nutritious and filling
Awesome feedback Annalise! Thanks for stopping by.
I made this last night and it was very good. The sweetness of the sugar doesn’t come out until you start cooking the sauce, so start with 1 tablespoon each of the white and brown sugar and taste as you go. Added eggplant and zucchini to give it more variety. Would keep this as a staple!
Awesome feedback JL! Thanks for stopping by.
Excellent recipe! Will add to my regular rotation. Blanched broccoli beforehand, halved sugar for sauce (as I looked at the reviews), added cabbage and put on top of brown rice. Will do on top of vermicelli noodles next time. Delicious 😋 recipe! Hubby super happy with it too! Thank you!
You are so welcome Erin! Awesome feedback, thanks for stopping by.
Delish, I replaced the ground turkey with chicken breast that I cut into strips. Definitely a new favorite, my family said it tasted like I went to a Chinese restaurant and got it lol. Thank you so much for this recipe, love it!
You are so welcome Alyssa! Thanks for stopping by.
This was a fan favorite! Love the sauce and will use for my next meals.
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Mackenzie.
So good! I wanted to make something different with my turkey meat and it was a major hit for my kiddos. I diced additional veggies and even my 2 year old couldn’t get enough!
Awesome feedback Jess! Thanks for stopping by.
I was surprised by how delicious these were! I had to supplement based on what I had on hand (I was out of brown sugar) and added a splash of chili oil for some heat. So good! They will definitely be in the weekly rotation.
Nice! Awesome feedback Carrie! Thanks for stopping by.
Absolutely delish! Used coconut aminos and coconut sugar in addition to arrowroot for the cornstarch. All healthier swaps and couldn’t have tasted better 🙂
Awesome feedback Kara! Thanks for stopping by.