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These Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowls are made with healthy ground turkey and veggies in a sweet teriyaki sauce served over white or brown rice.
We love quick and easy Asian inspired recipes, and have quite a few here on the site! Our favorites are included in our monthly dinner rotation, like Egg Fried Rice and Crockpot Orange Chicken and these delicious rice bowls.
Teriyaki turkey is one of my family’s favorites! The sweet and savory richness of the sauce really compliments the mild flavor of the ground turkey. Plus it’s loaded with veggies, which means my kids are eating them! You can pair this with steamed rice chow mein noodles, or wrapped in a tortilla or Lettuce Wrap.
Pin this recipe for later!Ground Turkey Teriyaki Rice Bowls
Ground turkey recipes are always a winner in our house, like Turkey, Kale and Rice Soup, Turkey Taco Stuffed Shells and Spicy Turkey Meatloaf. But these Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowls always top the list of favorites.
This ground turkey is juicy and the teriyaki sauce is sweet and flavorful. Add in all the wonderful veggies and you’ve got a perfectly complete meal that makes great leftovers.
Why We Love This Recipe
- It’s a quick and easy, a healthy alternative to ground beef, and an easy substitution in tons of recipes like chili and spaghetti sauce.
- We include lots of veggies and dice them up small so it’s very kid friendly and a great way to get kids to actually enjoy eating their vegetables.
- You can easily customize this recipe to include your favorite veggies or add a different base like rice or noodles.
How to Make Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowls
- Cook the ground turkey. After cooking the meat with some onions and garlic, grate few carrots and chop some broccoli very fine, and toss them in with the meat. This gave the illusion that there weren’t very many vegetables in there, but they couldn’t avoid what they couldn’t see! *Note – if you are serving this as a rice bowl, you’ll want to start cooking the rice before you start cooking the meat.
- Make the teriyaki sauce. The teriyaki sauce is made from scratch and is incredibly easy. Some readers have commented on the amount of sugar in the sauce, and you can see in the recipe notes that you can reduce to your liking. Teriyaki sauce is typically sweet on it’s own, but you can adjust the levels based on your needs. It will still taste great!
- Assemble the rice bowls. The teriyaki sauce is combined with the meat and veggies and simmered for a few minutes to let the flavors blend and get all happy. Then scoop it on top of white or brown rice, noodles, into lettuce cups or even flour tortillas for some Asian-Mexican fusion!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use ground beef instead of turkey?
Yes, you absolutely can! Ground turkey can be easily swapped for ground beef, pork or chicken. You will want to make sure to drain it really well since ground beef lets out a lot of liquid, but it will work just as well as the ground turkey.
Can I cut back the amount of sugar?
Yes. I wrote this recipe to have a sticky sweet teriyaki sauce, but some people have said they prefer it a little less sweet. Feel free to cut back as much as you like. As you are cooking the sauce, give it a quick taste – you can always add more sugar if you want it sweeter.
How to Serve
Sprinkle some sliced green onions and sesame seeds on top before serving. It’s a pretty garnish and adds a little flavor, too.
My kids love to eat their rice bowl with chopsticks. If you don’t have any, you can find them here, or try these adorable training chopsticks for kids.
Recipe Variations
Feel free to customize this recipe to fit your own personal tastes. Use leftover veggies and sauté or steam them before adding them to the turkey and sauce.
Some other veggie options:
- Bell peppers
- Snow peas
- Water chestnuts
- Bok choy
- Bean sprouts
- Zucchini
- Corn
- Cauliflower
- Water chestnuts
Storage Tips
How to Store Leftovers
- Refrigerating leftovers: This dish will keep for 3-4 days in the fridge if properly stored in an airtight container. Reheat in the microwave or on the stove.
- To freeze, allow to cool completely, then pour into a freezer bag or airtight container. Freeze for up to 6 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat as described above. Freeze rice or noodles separately from the meat.
Recipe Tips
- Ground turkey recipes are the tastiest when the meat is seasoned properly.
- Add some heat to this dish with some Sriracha or red pepper flakes.
- Not fans of rice? Use noodles instead. You can even use spaghetti noodles to mimic a lo mein and toss in some cabbage to saute it with.
- Feel free to cut the amount of sugar in this recipe. It won’t affect the flavor too much but it will swing more towards the savory side.
More Ground Turkey Recipes
- Creamy Cheesy Turkey Taco Pasta
- Turkey Taco Soup
- Spicy Turkey Meatloaf Recipe
- Easy Ground Turkey Tacos
- Ground Turkey Casserole
- Ground Turkey Enchiladas
- Ground Turkey Taco Salad
Teriyaki Turkey Rice Bowl
Ingredients
Teriyaki Sauce
- 1/2 cup Low-Sodium Soy Sauce
- 1/4 cup Water
- 2 tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Brown sugar or less as desired
- 2 tablespoons Granulated sugar or less as desired
- 2 teaspoons Minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon Ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon Cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons Warm water
Ground Turkey
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup Diced onion
- 2 tablespoons Minced garlic
- 1 pound Ground Turkey
- 1 cup Broccoli finely chopped
- 2 Large carrots peeled and grated
- 2 Green onions diced, for garnish
- 4 cups Cooked white or brown rice
Instructions
Teriyaki Sauce
- In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and warm water until cornstarch is completely dissolved. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, gently whisk soy sauce, water, red wine vinegar, sugars, minced garlic and ground ginger until sugars are completely dissolved.
- Slowly whisk in cornstarch mixture and simmer until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.
Ground Turkey
- Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add diced onions and cook, stirring frequently, until softened. If you notice the onions beginning to scorch, immediately turn down the heat.
- Stir in minced garlic. Add ground turkey and break apart with a spatula. Cook, stirring occasionally, until turkey is cooked about halfway through; 4-5 minutes. Add grated carrots and chopped broccoli and continue to cook until turkey is no longer pink and vegetables are soft; 5-6 minutes.
- Pour teriyaki sauce over the turkey and vegetables and stir. Simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Divide cooked rice into bowls then top with the teriyaki turkey. Garnish with sliced green onions and serve immediately.
Notes
- Teriyaki Sauce is generally sweet. However, feel free to cut back on the amount of sugar in the sauce. 1 tablespoon of each would suffice if you prefer a more savory flavor.
- The nutritional information is based on serving this teriyaki turkey over white rice. Use brown rice or just less rice to reduce calories and carbs.
- Feel free to customize this recipe with your favorite vegetables.
- A note about SERVING SIZE: A serving is approximately ¾ cup of rice and one cup of the meat/veggies.
- The serving sizes are approximate and will vary depending on a variety of factors, like how much you cook your veggies down and what size your cuts of vegetables are. As a meal, this recipe will make 4-6 servings.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
Delicious, perfect quick meal to make in the week when you don’t have much time, very nutritional and filling and the family loved it, thanks for sharing
You are so welcome Baljinder! Awesome feedback! Thanks for stopping by.
Absolutely love this recipe!! Definitely adding to the regular rotation. I made a few seasoning changes to the meat but that was only personal preference. Sauce is awesome! Thanks so much for sharing!!
You are so welcome Malissa! Thank you for the awesome feedback.
Oops, i too forgot to give a 5 star review! I also forgot to mention the only thing i did different was doubled the sauce ingredients as my boys love saucy things lol
Nice! Thanks for swinging back around to share the love Marianne.
Sorry will have to post this again; I was so excited to leave a comment I forgot to click on the stars. Wow – this recipe is a must make for anyone wondering! Thank you!
Thank you so much Cynthia for circling back around! Awesome feedback! and of course you are so welcome.
Thank you so much for this recipe. I have made this twice within a week. First time to test it out for dinner which my boys really loved. 2nd time was today. But i made it to be portioned out into quick heat up lunches for the boys during the school week. One boy doesn’t care too much for rice so will make a few portions with ramen noodles. ☺️
You are so welcome Marianne! Thanks for stopping by.
Wow – this really turned out awesome! I was looking for another recipe, other than my usual turkey meatloaf or spaghetti with turkey meatballs, and decided to try your recipe – this is the one! I didn’t have broccoli so I couldn’t add that, and it was delicious anyway. The sauce is very flavorful. Easy, quick recipe with extraordinary results! Thank you!
You are so welcome Cynthia! Awesome feedback, thanks for stopping by.
Yum! Just yum!!! So glad I found this! Will definitely be looking at more of your recipes.
That’s awesome Sue! Thank you so much for stopping by.
Though my kids and husband loved the turkey version – I’m a vegetarian and this teriyaki sauce and treatment also pairs well with a can of navy beans (drained and patted dry) in place of the ground turkey. I doubled the sauce recipe and made both. Loved the vegan version with beans too.
Thanks!
You are so welcome AJ, Thanks for stopping by.
Made it tonight. It was delicious and simple to make. Definitely making this again. Thanks!
You are so welcome John! Thanks for stopping by.
my boys loved this recipe. I used frozen mixed veggies cause I was too lazy to go to the store but it was delicious
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Kim.
Even my toddler, the picky eater, loved this! So good. We didn’t use all the sauce, maybe only 2/3 of it. But supper yummy
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Tyler.
I made this for dinner! Only changes are that I added a swirl of sesame oil to finish, and I cooked the meat, first, took it off the heat, then cooked the veggies separately and then added the meat back in to heat through with the sauce. Turned out great! Thanks for the reminder to start the rice first btw, I always forget! 😉
You are so welcome! Awesome feedback Bee! Thanks for stopping by.
We love this! One of my husbands favorite dinners now. I use rice vinegar instead of red wine and usually end up just using whatever veggies I have on hand. Always delicious!
Awesome feedback Dana! Thanks for stopping by.
I made this last night and it was superb! Thank you for providing such a good, healthy, delicious recipe!
You are so welcome Tony! Thanks for stopping by.
This was pretty tasty! I used ground beef and doubled the sauce. It was family-approved!
Awesome feedback Tracy! Thanks for stopping by.
Easy to make and tasty! I added sriracha for heat and cut back on sugar. Thanks for sharing your recipe!
You are so welcome Corey! Thanks for stopping by.
We make this dish at least twice a month. I use fresh ginger instead of ground and rice vinegar instead of red wine vinegar in the sauce but that’s the only change I make. We all love it.
Love the feedback Brandy! Thanks for stopping by.
This recipe was pretty good but not amazing. I would give a 7/10. My husband said the same. I didn’t taste the sauce by itself so I’m judging the final dish prepared.
Hi Kelsey, Thank you for your feedback.
THANK YOU FOR THIS DELICIOUS RECIPE. MY FAMILY LOVES IT AND IT HAS BECOME A STAPLE.
That’s awesome Barbara! Thanks for stopping by.
Wow! That’s the best homemade Chinese food I’ve ever made!!!
That’s awesome Rach! Thank you for stopping by.