Ready to wake up your taste buds?! This Spicy Ground Turkey & Cabbage Stir Fry Meal Prep is a flavorful mix of ground turkey, ginger, garlic, chili sauce, fresh cabbage, and carrots. It’s served over your favorite kind of rice for the easiest meal prep I bet you’ve never tried!
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Before I started really cooking for myself at home, I would have never guessed ground turkey could be so versatile. I wasn’t a beef eater (still not really a beef eater) and somehow I was still oblivious to the fact that ground turkey worked for more than just a ground beef substitute in tacos.
Turkey burgers were my first realization. They aren’t even difficult to make – I just hadn’t thought about it until I needed to cook up some more ground turkey options to avoid boredom. One of the very first recipes on Project Meal Plan were these Feta Basil Turkey Burgers. After that came the Smoky Green Bean Turkey Skillet, and then later, some Spicy Baked Turkey Spinach Meatballs.
Ground turkey is incredibly easy to cook with. Not to mention the fact that it usually has less calories and is a cheaper option than ground beef (examples: Homemade Ground Turkey Sloppy Joes or Best Ground Turkey Breakfast Sausage Patties). Have I blown your mind with all the ground turkey possibilities?? Okay I’ll stop – after this new stir fry recipe!!
This is the Spicy Ground Turkey & Cabbage Stir Fry Meal Prep. No special equipment is required for this easy dinner recipe – anyone can make this with just a big pan on the stove!
Excellent!! The Pinterest recipe I’ve made the most cause it’s my kid’s favorite (minus the hot sauces)
– Maya, from comments
Do I have to chop up a whole head of cabbage?
No, you totally don’t. If you’re feeing lazy, buy a 16 ounce bag of shredded coleslaw mix with green cabbage, red cabbage and some shredded carrots, OR just plain shredded green cabbage.
This tends to be a bit less cabbage than a small head shredded, but it works just as well. I would still add the extra carrots even if you buy a mix with some inside.
HOWEVER, here are reasons I do not normally do this shortcut:
- pre-shredded cabbage comes in a plastic bag – a head of cabbage has no packaging.
- it’s usually cheaper to cut your own veggies – the bagged, pre-shredded cabbage might be more expensive.
Speaking of cabbage…
How much shredded cabbage is in one head?
For this recipe, I recommend purchasing the smallest head of cabbage you can find – generally around 28 ounces is considered a small head of cabbage (32 ounces is medium, 39 ounces is large).
According to the How Much Is In produce converter, one medium sized cabbage gives you about 8 to 8.5 cups of shredded cabbage. A smaller cabbage would give you maybe 7 cups of shredded cabbage. Anywhere from 6-7 cups of shredded cabbage would work for this recipe.
The cabbage will reduce down to about half the size when cooking is complete.
In the recipe, can I use another ground meat instead of turkey?
Sure! I think this recipe would be delicious with virtually any ground meat. This recipe was adapted from a ground beef original – plus I’ve made this exact recipe with ground beef and it was also delicious.
Try ground chicken, and let me know how it is! I’m thinking that would almost taste like a chicken egg roll in a bowl? Yum!!
I used ground pork and topped it with sesame seeds. It was great!
– Jennifer, from Pinterest
How to meal prep it:
- Before you get going with this recipe, make sure you’ve got some reliable meal prep containers (these 4-cup Pyrex round glass containers (affiliate link!) are pictured). They should be airtight, and preferably glass.
- Decide how much rice you want in your meal prep – 1 cup of DRY white rice is about 600 calories. Rice generally triples in volume when cooked. 1 cup of dry rice will equal about 3 cups cooked. This recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups of dry rice, equally 4.5 cups of cooked rice. Each serving will have just over 1 cup of rice for about 225 calories. If you want less calories, reduce the amount of rice included with each portion of meal prep.
- After all the components are cooked, let them cool separately, then add an equal portion to each meal prep bowl. This recipe makes four generous helpings of the cabbage stir fry, so be sure to use containers that will fit all ingredients (the containers linked above work very well). Make sure all lids are secure and airtight.
- Keep refrigerated and eat within 4 days. I think this meal prep tastes better as leftovers! Do not freeze this meal prep, as the cabbage would not do well after being thawed.
Quick and easy. Added a poached egg bc everything is better with an egg
– Ashley, from Pinterest
How to make Spicy Ground Turkey & Cabbage Stir Fry Meal Prep (90 secs):
More meal prep ideas from Project Meal Plan:
- Easy Turkey Pinwheels Meal Prep
- Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Meatballs Meal Prep
- Meal Prep Ground Turkey Snap Pea Stir Fry Rice Bowls
Spicy Ground Turkey & Cabbage Stir Fry Meal Prep
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4 generous portions 1x
- Category: Lunches
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Inspired
Description
Ready to wake up your taste buds?! This Spicy Ground Turkey & Cabbage Stir Fry Meal Prep is a flavorful mix of ground turkey, ginger, garlic, chili sauce, fresh cabbage, and carrots served over your favorite kind of rice for the easiest meal prep I bet you’ve never tried!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups dry white rice (or your preferred type/amount of rice)
- 2 cups water or broth (for cooking rice – adjust according to your method/directions of your specific rice)
- 1/3 cup soy sauce (or liquid coconut aminos)
- 1 tablespoon toasted or untoasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce (I use Huy Fong Chili Garlic Sauce (affiliate link!))
- 1 tablespoon sriracha hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/2 tablespoon olive or avocado oil
- 1 pound ground turkey meat (I use 93% lean)
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 1 small head of cabbage, cut into fine shreds (OR a bag of coleslaw mix – SEE NOTE)
- 2 small-medium carrots, cut into 1 inch matchsticks (julienne)
- salt/pepper for seasoning
Instructions
- Before beginning the stir fry, cook your rice according to package directions, or in your preferred method. I always cook my rice in a rice cooker or Instant Pot so it’s cooking while I cook the stir fry, but you can also do it on the stove top. Cook your rice in broth for better flavor.
- In a bowl or jar with lid, combine soy sauce, sesame oil, chili garlic sauce, sriracha, and water. Stir or shake until thoroughly mixed.
- In a large deep non-stick skillet or Dutch Oven, heat oil over medium heat. When hot, add ground turkey meat. Add onion powder, and season with salt and pepper. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to break the meat into small pieces as it cooks. Cook the meat for about 5 minutes or until cooked through, stirring occasionally.
- Add garlic and ginger to the pan and stir for about 20 seconds until dispersed. Next, add shredded cabbage and carrots. Give the sauce a quick stir and add it to the pan as well. Stir thoroughly as the mixture cooks, the cabbage will reduce to about half its size. Reduce heat to low and cook for another 5-10 minutes, depending on how wilty you like your cabbage.
- Remove from heat and serve over rice – top with additional sriracha or cilantro. If meal prepping, portion into 4 airtight meal prep containers and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Notes
CABBAGE NOTE: If you are shredding your own head of cabbage, please purchase the smallest one you can find! Small is generally 28 ounces or less. If you go with a medium or large cabbage, please use only half the head and save the rest for another recipe. ALTERNATIVELY, grab a 16 ounce bag of pre-shredded coleslaw mix and use that instead. This will give you a bit less cabbage than a small head would, but that’s okay. You want around 6-7 cups shredded cabbage total.
Recipe adapted from Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry by Budget Bytes. Nutrition information estimated with My Fitness Pal and includes just over 1 cup of rice per serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
- Calories: 516
- Fat: 18g
- Carbohydrates: 64g
- Protein: 29g
Thanks for checking out this Spicy Ground Turkey & Cabbage Stir Fry Meal Prep – it’s perfect to try on your next meal prep Sunday! Tag me or use #projectmealplan on social media to share!
Hey, I'm Danielle. I made Project Meal Plan because being prepared and saving time are my favorite things. It doesn't hurt that I LOVE cooking and photography too. 
I love the flavor combo in this recipe. I can’t wait to try it!
Excellent!! The Pinterest recipe I’ve made the most cause it’s my kid’s favorite (minus the hot sauces)
Hey Maya! So happy to hear that you and your kid love this stir fry! Isn’t it so easy and delicious? Thank you so very much for your kind review and rating! – Danielle
Any suggestions for a vegetarian protein to use? Tofu, beans, any ideas what would be best?
Hi Christina – I’m not familiar with cooking tofu, so that could work but I’m unsure! I do think that black beans would be a good substitution. Please let me know how it goes! Thanks for your question 🙂