Jump to Recipe - Print Recipe
A lighter and easier take on the popular Pinterest dish, this Firecracker Ground Turkey is the perfect combo of sweet and spicy. And it comes together in just 15 minutes!
Years ago, there was a recipe for Firecracker Chicken that was all the rage on Pinterest. I made it multiple times and absolutely loved it, but it definitely wasn’t light by any means. The original recipe calls for lots of sugar, along with breaded chicken that is sauteed in quite a bit of oil.
Don’t get me wrong–it’s a fantastic recipe. But it’s not something that I can make regularly and still stay on track.
Lightening it up
My first task was cutting back on the sugar to lower the points. If you’ve read my blog for a while, you know that I love to use unsweetened applesauce to sweeten things naturally, which is great since it’s zero points on WW. It’s the key ingredient in my Naturally Sweetened BBQ Sauce (0 SP).
I also needed to cut back on the oil. You can find plenty of recipes on my site with breaded chicken, and I did think about doing that here. But I had some ground turkey that I needed to use up, so I tried it out with that. I didn’t miss the breading at all!
Keeping It Simple
Another advantage to using ground meat (you could use ground chicken breast instead) is that it significantly cuts back on the prep and cook time.
The original recipe would usually take me around 45 minutes to make. This one clocks in at 15 minutes!
The key to making the ground turkey look kind of like chicken is to smoosh it together a bit with your hands before placing it in the skillet. I mean, it will still taste the same if you don’t take this step, but I like the way it looks when I do it.
Another advantage to going with ground meat? You don’t have to dirty up a bunch of equipment!
This is a one-pot, 15-minute meal that will be on rotation here quite a bit! It’s the perfect quick dinner or lunch prep.
VEGETABLE Add-Ins
Firecracker Ground Turkey makes A LOT of sauce, so I like to throw in some frozen veggies towards the end to bulk it up. As you can see here, broccoli works really well.
Any mixed veggie blend would be delicious as well. Toss in some fresh sliced zucchini. Or mushrooms. Get creative with it!
More recipes like Firecracker ground turkey
If you’re looking for more quick and delicious meals with Asian flavors, check out these other great recipes:
- Easy Korean Ground Beef
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Pineapple Teriyaki Meatballs
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you make it, be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook (@litecravings) and use the hashtag #litecravingsrecipes. I sometimes miss a tag here or there, but I always check in on the hashtag.
Print Recipe
4.96 from 21 votes
Firecracker Ground Turkey
This light Firecracker Ground Turkey is the perfect combo of sweet and spicy. And it comes together in just 15 minutes!
Cook Time15 minutes mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Asian
Servings: 4
Calories: 230kcal
Author: Geri
Ingredients
- 1.25 lbs 99% fat free ground turkey
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 1 small bunch green onions, chopped (about green onions)
- (optional) 2 cups frozen or fresh veggies of choice
FOR THE SAUCE
- 1/3 cup buffalo sauce, like Frank's Red Hot
- 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 1/4 cup brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or rice wine vinegar
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- (optional) add in 1/4-1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes if you want some extra spice!
Instructions
Heat cooking spray in a large skillet over medium, high heat.
Mix meat around with your hands, forming small pieces. Place those pieces in your skillet. Season meat with garlic powder, ginger powder, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and no longer pink in the middle, about 5-7 minutes.
While meat is cooking, mix together sauce ingredients and chop green onions. Set aside.
When meat is no longer pink, add in sauce and half of the green onions. Bring to a boil, then simmer until sauce has thickened and coated the meat, about 5 minutes. Add in a splash or two of water if the sauce gets too thick.
In the last few minutes of cooking, add in your frozen veggies and cook until just defrosted, about 3-4 minutes. If using fresh veggies, you may need to add them in earlier in the process to ensure that they cook through.
Garnish with remaining green onions.
Notes
Click here to determine your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe (if you are logged in to your WW app, it should calculate for you automatically). The recipe is calculated for meat and sauce only. Adding veggies may alter your points slightly.
WW Green SmartPoints: 4 for 1/4 of the recipe.
WW Blue SmartPoints: 2 for 1/4 of the recipe.
WW Purple SmartPoints: 2 for 1/4 of the recipe.
**The actual size of your serving will depend on if you add veggies, and what kind you use. My serving with 2 cups of broccoli added in was 1 1/4 cups.
Nutrition
Calories: 230kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g
