Instant Pot Tacos With Ground Turkey

Tacos with ground turkey are perfect for any weeknight, especially Instant Pot tacos. Nutritious, delicious, & ready in 10 minutes!

Why You’ll Love Instant Pot Tacos

The ground turkey meat in these easy-to-make tacos comes out tender and saucy every time. They’re so savory and flavorful, you don’t even need the usual condiments like extra salsa, sour cream, etc. Of course we love those, so we still bring them out for dinner.

What’s also great is the speed at which you can get dinner on the table. These only take 10 minutes because as the turkey pressure cooks in all of that salsa and chile goodness, you can prep your toppings—lettuce, tomato, cheese, whatever.

What to Serve With These

• Let’s get the obvious out of the way: a nice zippy margarita!
• These honey lime sweet potatoes are a killer companion for tacos.
• Garlicky Broccoli with “cheesy” nutritional yeast, whether air fried or roasted, is always delish.

Quick Tips

1. When you add your salsa and chilies to the pot, let them simmer a bit, then be sure to scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Browned bits from the turkey that remain stuck to the pot are typically triggers for that dreadful burn notice.
2. If you omit the green chilies, simply add two tablespoons of water or broth to make up for the liquid you’re losing.
3. Any jarred salsa will work for Instant Pot tacos, chunky or smooth. Using pico de gallo isn’t recommended since it’s not very liquid.

Ingredients

• Ground turkey. I use 93% lean / 7% fat, but you could use 99% fat free without losing moisture and flavor. I have tested this!
• Olive oil. You could also use avocado oil.
• Salsa. I use a basic chunky jarred salsa. Choose mild, medium, or hot based on your personal preference.
• Taco seasoning. I always use my homemade taco seasoning blend, but store-bought also works! If you have your own taco blend kicking around, that’s cool too.
• Canned green chiles. This adds a bit of that nice earthy chile flavor, and if you choose a hotter variety, it’ll add some nice heat to your meat mixture. These can be omitted, as well. (See Quick Tips above.)
• Taco shells. Hard or soft, it’s up to you! Or you could make a taco bowl, similar to this tasty burrito bowl. Of course if you’re looking for a low-car option, turning these tacos into yummy lettuce wraps is always great.
• Toppings. I keep it pretty simple with a smear of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt as a lighter option; then some shredded cheese and veggies like chopped lettuce, finely diced tomatoes, and a bit of hot sauce. Add chipotle hot sauce for a smoky flare, sliced jalapeño peppers, black beans, cilantro for garnish, etc.

How to Make Instant Pot Tacos

1. Activate the Instant Pot‘s sauté function on low or medium. (High gets too hot and the ground turkey tends to stick.)
2. Heat the olive oil in the pot, and once its hot, add the ground turkey.
3. Simmer for about two minutes, stirring and breaking the turkey down into crumbles as you go, until the meat is just partially cooked, then turn off the sauté function.
4. Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the ground turkey. Add the salsa and the green chilies (liquid included; don’t drain). Stir everything to mix it well, then lock the lid into place.
5. Position the valve to “sealing” and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.
6. While the ground turkey cooks, you can prep your toppings.
7. Once the Instant Pot timer goes off, do a quick release. When all of the steam has escaped, remove the lid from the Instant Pot and give everything a good stir.
8. Finally, pile the filling into your taco shells, top with your favorite stuff, and enjoy!

Stovetop Method for Ground Turkey Tacos

1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-low heat. When hot, add the ground turkey to the skillet and cook, breaking the turkey up with a spatula.
2. Once the turkey is about half cooked (this should take about 3-5 minutes), stir in the taco seasoning. Once the taco seasoning is evenly distributed throughout the meat mixture, stir in the chilies and the salsa.
3. Partially cover and let everything simmer for another 5 minutes, or until the turkey is cooked through, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove from heat and set aside.
5. Prepare your toppings and make your tacos!

How to Add Flavor to Ground Turkey

Since fat is flavor and turkey has less fat than beef, it has a reputation for being a little bland. But it doesn’t have to be that way! With these Instant Pot tacos, not only does the taco seasoning add flavor, but the salsa and chiles add a lot of depth and moisture to the meat, even after just a short pressure cook. What you get is saucy lip-smacking goodness.

Storage, Freezing, & Reheating

• Store leftover taco meat in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
• To freeze, transfer the meat to a freezer-friendly container and freeze for up to six months. Alternatively you can store it in a freezer bag. Lay it flat, push as much air out as possible, and seal tightly. Pop it in the fridge the night before to thaw it. out.
• When it comes to reheating, you can either pop it in the microwave and reheat it in 25-second increments, or transfer it to a pan and reheat it on the stovetop.

Have You Made This Recipe?

If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a STAR rating & commenting below with feedback!

You can also show off your creations on Instagram by tagging @killing__thyme

More Delicious Ground Turkey Recipes

• Ground Turkey Stir Fry With Cabbage
• Healthy Ground Turkey Chili
• Best Turkey Burger EVER
• Easy Ground Turkey Meatballs
• Instant Pot Sloppy Joes With Ground Turkey
• Easy Turkey Meatloaf With Oats

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4.93 from 27 votes

Instant Pot Ground Turkey Tacos

By: Dana Sandonato

Tacos with ground turkey are perfect for any weeknight, especially Instant Pot tacos. Nutritious, delicious, & ready in 10 minutes!

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 servings

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Ingredients 

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INSTANT POT TACOS WITH GROUND TURKEY

• ▢ 1-1.5 lb ground turkey
• ▢ 2 TBSP olive oil
• ▢ 1 cup chunky salsa
• ▢ 2 TBSP taco seasoning, Homemade taco seasoning here
• ▢ 4 oz canned green chilies (not drained)
• ▢ 6 taco shells, hard and/or soft; whichever your prefer!

TOPPING SUGGESTIONS

• ▢ Diced tomatoes
• ▢ Shredded lettuce
• ▢ Shredded cheese , Mexican blend, taco blend, or cheddar work great.
• ▢ Hot sauce
• ▢ Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

• Activate the sauté function [low or medium] on Instant Pot.
• Add the olive oil to the pot, heat it, and once its hot add the ground turkey. Let it simmer for about two minutes, stirring and breaking the turkey down into crumbles as you go. When the turkey is partially cooked, turn off the sauté function.
• Stir the taco seasoning into the ground turkey, then add the salsa and green chilies. Mix well, then lock the lid into place, positioning the valve to "Sealing".
• Cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.
• As the ground turkey cooks in the Instant Pot, get your toppings ready.
• When the Instant Pot timer goes off, move the valve to "venting" for a quick release. Once the pressure has completely released, remove the lid from the Instant Pot and stir everything up once more.
• Pile the filling into your taco shells, top with your favorite stuff, and enjoy!

Notes

Be sure to scroll up into the post for recipe tips, stovetop instructions, and storage suggestions.

Other notes:

1. Because you can prep the toppings while the meat cooks in the Instant Pot, I’ve clocked this recipe in as a 10-minute recipe.
2. Calorie count is based on the ground turkey mixture alone. Taco calories will vary depending on how you dress them, what kind of shell you use, etc.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 189kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 11g

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