Ground Turkey Soup with Beans & Spinach (20 minutes!)
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Healthy ground turkey soup recipe comes together in 20 minutes or less, it is packed full of protein, vegetables, and most importantly, flavor! Your whole family will love it.
I love to give you ideas to make weeknight meals a breeze. My two biggest tips are these:
- Plan ahead (try making Pepperoni Pizza Lasagna Rolls)
- Have a stocked pantry — this recipe depends on it.
I make this healthy soup recipe using all ingredients I keep regularly stocked in my pantry.
Here’s what I keep in my stocked pantry/fridge/freezer to make recipes like these:
- Diced tomatoes
- Grated Parmesan Cheese
- Canned beans — this recipe uses great Northern but I typically keep black beans and chickpeas stocked as well.
- Chicken broth/stock
- Ground turkey
- Spinach. I always have spinach. Always. If I don’t, I’m headed to the store.
- Onions. A must have for so many recipes.
- Garlic. Duh.
- Spices — this recipe uses oregano, red pepper flakes and basil.
- Olive oil. I always have a bottle of it in my pantry.
Other staples in my pantry are a variety of grains, pasta, bacon, carrots, celery, a variety of vinegars, and some fruit and vegetables in the freezer. But you don’t need any of those for this particular healthy soup recipe.
Of course, everyone is different and you might not keep your pantry stocked just like mine. You might not like ground turkey. Ground beef is fine, or try this recipe with Italian sausage, it’s phenomenal!). Maybe you don’t have baby spinach — try a different green in this soup such as kale or chard.
About this Ground Turkey Soup
The really important thing here is that this recipe can be prepared in 20 minutes. I make this soup A LOT on weeks where I slip behind on my meal planning. Or maybe I have something planned and I just don’t have the time and energy to prepare it. Or it might just not sound good on that particular night.
No problem! Out come those pantry staples to save the day. Healthy, easy, and no trips to the grocery store required. I’m pretty sure that’s as good as it gets. Plus it can warm you up on a chilly day. Hot soup is always a good thing.
How to Make this Soup
To make this recipe, heat up your soup pot with some olive oil. To that, add ground turkey, onions, garlic, red pepper flakes, and some black pepper.
Cook until the onions are translucent and the ground turkey is fully cooked.
Throw in beans, herbs, tomatoes — stir to combine.
Then PILE on the spinach. You can do this in batches if need be, but if you have a big pan, it will probably fit. Cover for a couple of minutes to let the spinach wilt.
You might have to stir it a couple of times to help it along.
Add chicken stock and bring the soup up to a boil to make sure it is good and hot.
Once the soup is hot, remove it from heat and sprinkle in the grated Parmesan cheese. This is what makes it really, really good. If you’re not a cheese-lover, don’t worry, your soup will still taste great!
There ya have it! A healthy soup recipe ready in 20 minutes that’s good for you, is ready in less than 30 minutes, and doesn’t come from a can.
Soup’s on!
Looking for more hearty soup recipes? Try:
- Homemade vegetable soup, packed with lots and lots of garden veggies
- Easy Hamburger Soup Recipe
- Lentil Soup Recipe with Pasta
- Red Lentil Soup Recipe — one of my most popular recipes!
- Instant Pot Minestrone Soup Recipe
- Crockpot Pumpkin Soup (5 Ingredients!)
- Vegetarian Lasagna Soup (VIDEO)
- Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup with Noodles
- Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup — Instant Pot and stovetop directions.
Interested in a weekly meal plan (it’s free!) that includes this ground turkey soup? Take a look at my Meal Plan #9. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let me do the planning for you this week!
We’ll be adding a new meal plan weekly. If you’re interested, browse all of our meal plans.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound extra lean ground turkey
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- 1 can (14.5 ounce) diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 can (15.8 ounce) great northern beans, rinsed and drained
- 8 ounces baby spinach
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Brown the turkey with the onions, garlic, red pepper flakes, and black pepper until the turkey is cooked through and the onions are translucent (about 7 minutes).
- Add oregano, basil, tomatoes (with liquid), and beans. Stir to combine.
- Reduce heat to medium-low, add spinach and cover for about 2 minutes or until spinach is wilted. Stir to combine.
- Add broth, stir, and increase heat to medium. Continue to cook until heated through, about 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat, stir in Parmesan and serve.
Notes
- Ground beef, sausage, or ground chicken can be substituted for the ground turkey.
- Any tender green can be substituted for the spinach, such as baby kale or escarole.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
Kiki says
Oh my goodness so easy, so quick, and so delicious!!! This is entering my rotation! Thank you for this recipe which uses many of my pantry staples so it’s perfect for when I need something quick, easy AND delicious!! Every member of my family loved it. Definitely a winner.
Rachel Gurk says
I’m so glad it was a hit! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review, it really means a lot to me!
Donella says
As you said…made quickly. I had 5 oz. package fresh spinach. Could have used more and it was A-OK as it was.
Nutritious, filling and tasted GOOD!
Even better the second day.
Rachel Gurk says
So glad you liked it! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review!
ClairBrock says
Amazing! I feel better when I eat healthy so I’m constantly looking for quick, easy healthy recipes, but TASTY is most important. This recipe checked ALL boxes and can’t wait to check out more here.
Rachel Gurk says
I’m so glad to hear it was a hit! Tasty should always be important, no matter what. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review, it means so much to me.
Paula says
This was delicious! I will certainly be making it again. Thank you Rachel for all your yummy recipes!
Rachel Gurk says
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you liked it!
Carey says
Very quick to pull together and has a nice flavor. I only had a can of tomatoes on hand that included celery, peppers and onions and I will use this again next time I make this recipe. I also had some leftover tiny pasta shells and threw them in as well. I’ll keep this in my recipe repertoire when I want a quick, filling, but low calorie meal. Thanks!
Rachel Gurk says
One of the things I love about the recipe is how adaptable it is! I’m so glad you liked it too!
Cheryl says
This is THE MOST DELICIOUS SOUP!!!! I make it fine and time again. I often substitute kale for spinach and use fresh Parmesan instead of the can. SO GOOD!!!! Super easy to make as well.
Rachel Gurk says
So glad you like it! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!
Diane Lawrence says
Hello! Second time to make the Turkey and Bean soup. I’ve been using black beans, didn’t have the northern. Black beans are really great with this recipe. Its my new favorite soup. Thank you for sharing this wonderful and so easy to make recipe!
Rachel Gurk says
So happy to hear you like this recipe! It’s so versatile and easy to adapt, that’s one of my favorite things about it!
Kelsi Mellor says
Hi! Would love to make this tonight but I don’t have beans. Can I add in orzo? Would I do that at the end?
Rachel Gurk says
Yes, I bet that would be delicious! I’d add it the the soup while it’s boiling and cook it according to the package directions that way. (So yes, at the end.) Let me know how it turns out!
Tina says
This was delicious! So easy to throw together and with such great flavors. The bag of baby spinach I bought was 5 oz. It was plenty. I will make this again, my husband said it’s his new favorite
Rachel Gurk says
So glad you like it! It’s one of our favorites, too. And it freezes great!
Leon says
Thank you for this great recipe. I cooked it over 10 times now, I am sure. Tasty, easy and healthy.
Rachel Gurk says
I’m so glad to hear it! It’s one of our favorites, too!
Kathy Z says
Can I make this with leftover roasted turkey breast?
Rachel Gurk says
Yes! I think that would be so delicious!
denise says
sound delicious and easy
Rachel Gurk says
It’s always a huge hit!
Sharon Johnson says
I made this today. My house smells amazing !!! I did not have any beans except black beans so I omitted beans. I did slice up couple carrots & green pepper to add. I used sodium free broth so I also added small can of tomato paste to add little more flavor. I only had small amount of spinach so I added kale along with it. It sounds like I totally changed your recipe but using no salt & no salt broth I have to adjust to give extra flavor. Delicious.
Rachel Gurk says
I’m so glad you liked it! I love the extra veggies you added! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
Kathy says
Great easy soup! It lends itself well to variations but is wonderful as written. Thank you!
Rachel Gurk says
Thank you so much! I’m really glad you like it – thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
Jackie says
Excellent soup recipe! Healthy, tasty, and quick. I will definitely add this to my weekly meals. Thank you!
Rachel Gurk says
I’m glad you like it, Jackie! It’s one of my go-to recipes as well.