The Burroughs I don’t know about you, but for us there is never any easing into the start of a new year. Instead, January is an all-hands-on-deck, gotta-hit-full-speed-straight-outta-the-gates, how-did-things-get-so-crazy-so-quickly, where-the-heck-is-time-going kinda month for us at Bear & Bug Eats. From getting budding foodie Kyla back in the swing of going to daycare, to Robby starting a new semester of classes, and everything else on the side, it seems like there is rarely enough time to do everything.
Enter one of our favorite kitchen appliances- the slow cooker! Whether it’s doing some incredibly tasty Cuban-inspired Black Beans with Chicken, Slow Cooker Corned Beef (cuz St. Patrick’s Day is gonna be here soon), or a big vat of good ole’ Slow Cooker Garlic Mashed Potatoes, we are huge fans of the low-and-slow deliciousness that often comes out of our slow cooker.
This week is no different. January in Florida means it’s time for COLD WEATHER! GRAB YOUR PARKAS FROM THE BACK OF THE CLOSET! IT’S A BONE-CHILLING 40 DEGREES OUTSIDE!!!! Okay, so maybe we’re a bit spoiled when it comes to “cold weather” here in Orlando. I mean, a few weeks ago, there was an over 80-degree differential between the weather here in Orlando and at the house of one of our friends who lives in Minnesota.. But that doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy some nice hearty meals during this time of year.
Enter this week’s recipe. It came about after talking with some friends that were, at the time, following the RP (Renaissance Periodization) Strength diet template, and mentioned how others on the RP templates were often looking for tasty, easy, several-portioned recipes. So we decided to come up with a tasty Asian-inspired slow-cooker meal that uses lean ground turkey instead of ground beef, yet doesn’t compromise on flavor.
We start by making a pretty easy Korean barbecue-esque sauce, whisking together some soy sauce, turbinado, sesame oil, ground ginger, garlic powder, onion powder, and some red pepper flakes. Then you simply put the ground turkey into the slow cooker, add some broccoli or other veggies (if desired), pour in the sauce, turn on the slow cooker, and come back in a few hours. TA-DA!!!
Slow Cooker Korean BBQ
Slow Cooker Korean BBQ is a super easy, super flavorful way to meal prep! Ground turkey and broccoli make healthy leftovers for days!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 3.5 hours
- Total Time: 3 hours + 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Method: slow cooker
- Cuisine: asian
Ingredients
1 lb ground turkey
1 lb broccoli florets
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup turbinado sugar
½ tablespoon sesame oil
2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon ground red pepper
Garnish: Sesame seeds, scallions (sliced on a diagonal)
Instructions
1. Whisk together all ingredients for the sauce in a glass bowl.
2. Put ground turkey in slow cooker, breaking up into pieces.
3. Add broccoli on top of ground turkey.
4. Pour sauce onto the ground turkey and broccoli.
5. Put the lid on the slow cooker, turn on to Low, and cook for 3.5 hours.
6. After the 3.5 hours, remove the lid, and stir, breaking up the ground turkey into small pieces.
7. Replace the lid, and cook on Low for another 30 minutes.
8. Serve atop rice, garnished with sesame seeds and scallions.
Notes
*We like to add a step right before serving. We thicken the sauce by combining 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to a couple tablespoons of the warm sauce (removed from the slow cooker) to create a slurry, then stir the slurry into the slow cooker and serve.
** Some other options to try with this recipe include using ground beef or sausage in place of the turkey, subbing brown sugar for the turbinado, and subbing some chili paste for the ground red pepper.
*** We always double this and eat it for leftovers!
Keywords: asian, slow cooker, rp strength, meal prep
