Turkey Taco Bowls: A Simple Dinner for when You Need Something Quick

  •  in Nutrition
  • .

Alan Cohen, a contributing writer for Chicken Soup for the Soul, has suggested that we’re often “hardaholics”. That is, we tend to make things more difficult than they actually are, specifically when emotion is involved. (Which, let’s be honest, is almost always.)

He suggests that we ask ourselves the following question in order to begin to overcome the tendency: What if this was easy?

If that seems like too simple a solution, what if it actually was that easy? 😉

I kid. But I’m also serious.

Obviously, asking the question won’t magically change the difficulty of the challenge. However, it can shift our mindset and perspective. And that usually sparks some creativity which then produces a novel, and often simple, answer to our problem.

What’s for dinner?

While making dinner isn’t necessarily a major challenge, it can sometimes feel that way when you’re hungry after a long day and would like to have eaten ten minutes ago.

At times like that, my favorite quick, simple, tasty, and healthy recipe is Turkey Taco Bowls. (Click to download the PDF.)

You’ll notice a few things about the recipe:

  1. The protein suggestion is ground turkey as opposed to beef. It’s usually a bit leaner and is good for a different flavor profile than what’s common for tacos. Of course, feel free to substitute as desired.
  2. There’s no shredded cheese in the ingredient list. Who eats tacos without cheese?!? OK, ok, fine… Add it if you’d like. That said, a healthier nutritional fat choice would be the optional avocado. On the flip side (or in addition to), add the black or pinto beans if you’re in need of some fiber or slow-digesting carbs and plant-based protein.
  3. The ingredient list is written a little differently than what you might be used to seeing. It’s a modified version of a method used to simplify the cooking process. I was first exposed to the idea when reading Tim Ferriss’ book The 4-Hour Chef, which is actually a great book if you currently aren’t very comfortable in the kitchen and want to level-up your cooking skills.

In any case, this dinner will take less than 20 minutes to throw together. It’s not quite as easy as making a frozen pizza, but it’s close. And the nutritional content is of significantly higher quality.