Ted's Habanero Turkey Bacon Stir Fry

This is a guest recipe post by Katie’s husband Ted. By day, he invests globally in mobility technology startups transforming how people and goods move around. By night, he’s wrangling 3 kids. And when Katie’s gone, he’s experimenting in the kitchen. Give him a shout on Twitter.

Katie here chatting first: I can tell you that during the month of April I was out of town more [with Lily and/or the boys] more than I was home. So that meant Ted had to “man” the kitchen. And what was the favorite meal that he made? This habanero turkey bacon stir-fry. Don’t try to google it. And don’t feed it to your toddlers. Now let’s hand it over to Ted!

I scoured the fridge and texted Katie while she was in Tennessee, “hey is this ground turkey still good?” I could barely read the, “use by date,” so decided to call in support. With a, “yes, that’s a great idea,” I decided to make my goto recipe: stir-fry. It’s quick and easy, with minimal dishes to clean and gives flexibility to winging it instead of exact amounts of ingredients. Just my kind of cooking.

I told Katie I’d use some veggies and the ground turkey. She said great idea and, “why don’t you add some soy sauce and peanut butter.” I thought easy enough, then realized, how much of each?! I’ll figure it out.

Well not only did I figure it out, but this was the absolute best stir fry I’ve ever made. With some help from the boss (who bought all of the ingredients in the fridge and gave me a few tips along the way) and a glass of wine (actually 3), here’s how I made it:

Simple set of ingredients. To the left is homemade habanero jam (which is optional, not really toddler-friendly) and some red wine for the chef (REQUIRED if you have 3 kids under 3).

Sautée bacon, cooking halfway till doneness on each side.

In the same pan to cook the bacon, cook ground turkey for 4-5 minutes or about 2/3 of the way done.

Chop up vegetables. Our go-to knife is our Wüsthof Classic Nakiri Knife, 7″ – super fast to chop up veggies in place like this.

Add a dash of salt, pepper, and olive oil and cook 8-10 minutes or until vegetables are about half their original size.

Notice how the pan looks half as full. The liquid from the veggies is mostly gone!

Add all ingredients together and sautée 6-8 minutes or until turkey is cooked through (don’t forget the habanero jam!)

What the boys ate: whole carrots and green peppers with ranch for dipping, some turkey and bacon (without the sauce, cooked separately), and some cheese quesadilla!

The boys dug in, Anthony going for turkey first and Joey the veggies. Typical behavior for both.

Anthony devoured the turkey, he preferred Dad’s spicy turkey to his plain turkey.

Ted's Habanero Turkey Bacon Stir Fry

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

35 mins

Author: Ted Serbinski

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1 lb. ground turkey
4 strips of bacon
1 lb. asparagus, sliced
1 green bell pepper, diced
½ cup red onion, diced
½ cup baby carrots, diced
2 tablespoons habanero jam
3 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

Instructions

Heat large non-stick skillet to medium-high heat. Add bacon and sauté until cooked through.
Remove bacon, and add ground turkey. Sauté, breaking into crumbles and cooking through for about 8-10 minutes.
Remove turkey from pan. Add veggies and sauté until softened, about 8-10 minutes.
Return bacon and turkey to pan with vegetables. Add soy sauce, peanut butter, and habanero jam. Sauté for 5 minutes or until ingredients are combined.

Katie again: I have no idea what just happened here, but it looks like my family was well-fed thanks to Dad! Notice the boys didn’t get the habanero sauce on their plates, but they still enjoyed a well-balanced, wholesome meal! I’d take this or carry-out without complaining!