Thai-Inspired Ground Turkey Stir Fry

If you’re a fan of Thai food you have to try this amazing Thai-Inspired Ground Turkey Stir Fry; you’re going to love this recipe! And with the right side dishes this low-carb stir fry can work for a Keto meal! 

PIN the Ground Turkey Stir-Fry to try it later!

One of the things that’s a blessing-in-disguise about being a food blogger is the need to constantly update older recipes with new and improved photos. And today I’m happy to have new photos for this ultra-popular Thai-Inspired Ground Turkey Stir Fry.

This recipe was inspired by one of my favorite Thai dishes from a restaurant in Salt Lake, and Thai food has a lot less sugar when you make it at home! And we loved everything about this ground turkey stir fry when we re-tested the recipe! If you like Thai flavors, peppers, and Thai basil or sweet basil, you have to try this recipe!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

• fresh-squeezed lime juice, I used my fresh-frozen lime juice
• fish sauce, preferably Red Boat Fish Sauce (affiliate link)
• Sriracha Sauce (affiliate link)
• soy sauce or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link)
• Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) or sweetener of your choice 
• onion
• red bell peppers
• Peanut Oil (affiliate link) or any neutral-flavored oil
• large cloves garlic, cut in slices
• lean ground turkey
• basil leaves or Thai basil leaves

What gives this ground turkey stir fry Thai flavors?

In this dish the oil is seasoned with garlic, and the cooked turkey is flavored with a stir-fry sauce that has lime juice, Red Boat Fish Sauce, Sriracha Sauce, Soy Sauce and just a touch of Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (or sweetener of your choice.)

Is this ground turkey stir fry an authentic Thai recipe?

This recipe was created by me and my nephew Jake, based on a dish we both loved in a Thai restaurant, so I am certainly not claiming it’s an authentic Thai recipe. But the recipe does have the sour-sweet-spicy-salty-bitter flavor notes that make Thai cooking so distinctive.

My Tips for Stir-Frying:

If you’re new to stir-frying, before you make this Thai Turkey Stir-Fry you might want to read the basic rules for stir-frying that I learned many years ago when I studied Chinese cooking. Once you’ve mastered those basic techniques, you can make an endless variety of good-tasting dishes!

Want More Tasty Stir Fry Dinners?

Check out the Stir Fry Category to see all the stir fry recipes on this site!

How to Make Thai-Inspired Ground Turkey Stir Fry:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. Whisk together lime juice, Red Boat Fish Sauce, Sriracha Sauce, soy sauce or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce, and sweetener to make the stir-fry sauce.
2. Cut the onion and red bell pepper into same-size strips. We doubled the amount of red pepper in the updated version.
3. Cut the garlic cloves into slices. 
4. Coarsely chop the basil after you’ve prepped the other ingredients; this would be a great reason to splurge on Thai Basil if you don’t have fresh basil growing. 
5. If you don’t have a Wok, use a large heavy frying pan. Heat the pan for one minute over high heat before you add the oil.
6. Add oil and when it’s hot add garlic and cook just until it’s fragrant. Remove garlic and discard. (This is called “seasoning the oil.”)
7. Then add red bell pepper and onion and stir-fry over high heat for 1-2 minutes. Remove to a bowl.
8. Add the other teaspoon of oil if needed, add turkey, and stir-fry about 5 minutes, breaking it apart as it cooks.
9. Cook the turkey until any liquid has evaporated and it’s starting to brown slightly.
10. Add the peppers back to the wok with the cooked turkey and cook 2 minutes more.
11. Add the chopped basil and cook 1 minute.
12. Add the sauce and cook until it’s absorbed into the meat and the whole dish is hot, about 2 minutes.
13. Serve hot and enjoy!

More Tasty Stir Fry Recipes to Try:

• Cauliflower Fried Rice with Shrimp
• Ginger Chicken Stir Fry
• Stir-Fried Shrimp and Sugar Snap Peas
• Spicy Szechuan Green Beans
• Pork and Broccoli Stir Fry with Ginger

Continue to Content

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Yield: 6 servings

Thai-Inspired Ground Turkey Stir Fry

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Thai-Inspired Ground Turkey Stir Fry with basil and peppers is great for a quick stir-fry meal!

Ingredients

Stir Fry Sauce Ingredients

• 2 T fresh-squeezed lime juice (see notes)
• 1 T fish sauce (see notes)
• 1 T Sriracha Sauce
• 1 T soy sauce (see notes)
• 1 T sweetener of your choice (see notes)

Ingredients

• 1 onion, cut in slivers
• 2 red bell peppers, cut into long strips
• 1 T + 1 tsp. peanut oil (see notes)
• 3 large cloves garlic, cut in slices (for seasoning the oil)
• 1 1/2 lb. lean ground turkey
• 1 cup chopped basil leaves or Thai basil leaves (see notes)

Instructions

1. Whisk together the lime juice, fish sauce, Sriracha Sauce, soy sauce, and Agave nectar (or preferred sweetener) to make the stir-fry sauce.
2. Cut the onion into thin slivers.
3. Cut the red bell pepper into strips.
4. Peel and slice the garlic.
5. Heat the wok or large heavy frying pan over high heat for about 1 minute before you add the oil.
6. Then add the 1 tablespoon of oil, heat about 45 seconds (or until it looks shimmery).
7. Add the garlic cloves, and cook the garlic just until it’s fragrant.  When you smell garlic (less than one minute) remove the garlic and discard.
8. Add the onion slivers and bell pepper strips to the wok and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes (just until they’re starting to soften), then remove to a bowl.
9. Add the other teaspoon of oil if it seem like you need it.
10. Then add the ground turkey and stir-fry 5 minutes, breaking apart with a turner as it cooks.
11. Cook the turkey until any liquid evaporates completely and the turkey is starting to get lightly browned.
12. Add the vegetables back into the wok, stirring to combine with the meat, and cook about 1 minute.
13. Add the chopped basil and cook about 1 minute more, just until the basil starts to wilt.
14. Then add the stir-fry sauce and stir to distribute it in the meat/veggie mixture.
15. Cook about 2 minutes more, or until the sauce is mostly absorbed into the meat and the whole dish is hot.
16. Serve right away.

Notes

I make this with my fresh-frozen lime juice. I love Red Boat Fish Sauce (affiliate link) and it’s gluten-free and Paleo. I used Tamari Gluten Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link). If you don't have Peanut Oil (affiliate link) or can't use peanuts, use a high smoke-point oil such as avocado oil or grapeseed oil.) Use more or less basil to taste and depending on whether you have to buy basil.

I used to make this recipe with agave nectar, which is good to hold the sauce together if you don't mind the carbs. But now I would probably use Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) for this recipe.

Recipe created by Kalyn and Jake

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 279Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 118mgSodium: 555mgCarbohydrates: 7gFiber: 1gSugar: 4gProtein: 32g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
If you’re eating this Ground Turkey Stir-Fry for a low-carb diet or Phase One of the original South Beach Diet, you’ll need to use an approved sweetener in the sauce. Everything else here should be approved for low-carb, Keto, and low-glycemic diets, as well as South Beach.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Stir-Fry Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This ground turkey stir fry recipe was posted in 2014. It was updated with better photos in 2020 and was last updated with more information in 2023.

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