Yesterday a friend wrote asking for our favorite turkey recipe as his son had just shot his first ever wild turkey. Grant is off to shoot this weekend in the Total Archery Challenge with the crew from G5 so he has asked me (wife, Tracy) to write the blog. Many of our readers now have fresh turkey in their refrigerators and freezers so I will take this opportunity to share a recipe for cooking wild turkey.

(If you are unsure on how to remove the turkey breast from your recently tagged bird watch this episode of GrowingDeer.tv to see how Grant does it!)

We use wild turkey breast to make Slow Cooker Southwestern Wild Turkey.

It’s traditional for a lot of hunters to cut their turkey up and fry turkey “nuggets” or strips. We did this for many years but as we strive to eat healthier I’ve searched for different ways to prepare the meat. I’ve found the key to cooking wild turkey so that it isn’t tough is to slow cook it with enough liquid to almost cover it.

This year I created something new that the family just loves. It’s pretty easy and tasty, if you like a southwestern/Mexican type dish. It’s very flexible and can be modified based on your personal preferences. For instance, a can of black beans could be added if everyone in your family likes them (Grant doesn’t so I put them as a side dish instead of in the main dish). It can be eaten as a stew or the breast removed from the broth and chopped for burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, tacos, or wraps. I guess it has to have a “name” so I’m going to call it…

Slow Cooker Southwestern Wild Turkey

One large crockpot (slow cooker)

Breast from a wild turkey
32 oz chicken broth (or enough to almost cover)
1 large can (28 oz) diced tomatoes (fire roasted or Rotel tomatoes to add an extra “zing”)
1 large can (29 oz) green chili enchilada sauce
1 4 oz can chopped green chilies
2 ½ tablespoons cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder (or to taste)
2 cloves finely diced garlic
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 medium onion and 1 medium green pepper chopped (can substitute a bag of frozen pepper/onion mix)
1 bag of frozen mixed vegetables (or 1 can corn, 1 can lima beans or green peas, 1 can green beans)
Cayenne or red pepper to taste
Black pepper

Cook for 6 to 8 hours on low in crockpot. For a little more southwestern flavor before serving add 1/4 cup lime juice and 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (cilantro is optional – some folks don’t care for it). Serve with shredded Colby-Jack cheese and traditional taco or burrito toppings of shredded lettuce, fresh chopped tomatoes, onions, refried beans, salsa, tortillas and/or tortilla chips.

One full turkey breast makes A LOT of food. We have it for several meals and also freeze portion sizes of it to have on hand for a quick future meal.

I hope your family enjoys this recipe!

Tracy