This lightened-up Turkey Bolognese recipe (aka Sunday Sauce) is made with ground turkey and mushrooms. It’s hearty, robust, and full of deep umami flavor! Make it in a slow cooker, on the stovetop, or in an Instant Pot.
I now make this once a week for my family. Thank you so much for a firm favorite!
This hearty Turkey Bolognese is incredibly rich and flavorful. To lighten this up, we use ground turkey and mushrooms. Make this in a slow cooker, on the stovetop, or even in your Instant Pot, your choice!
Make a big batch, perhaps even a double batch, in your crock pot and freeze in smaller portions for quick and easy dinners. Serve with pasta, zucchini noodles, or my favorite, roasted spaghetti squash, keeping it gluten-free.
Why you’ll love this Turkey Bolognese!
A lightened-up bolognese. While still bold and rich in flavor, this bolognese variation uses ground turkey and mushrooms for a lighter, healthier alternative to ground beef or pork. It’s the ultimate comfort food!
Use the slow cooker, stovetop, or Instant Pot. This recipe follows a simple method, no matter which way you choose to prepare it!
Freezer-friendly. I like to make a double batch and freeze smaller portions for quick and easy dinners on busy weeknights.
Turkey Bolognese Recipe Ingredients
- Ground meat: This recipe uses lean ground turkey as a lean, healthy alternative to traditional ground beef or pork. Feel free to use ground elk, beef, pork, lamb, or a combo.
- Onion and garlic cloves: Add flavor, depth, and aroma to the sauce.
- Olive oil: Used for sautéing the ground turkey and onion.
- Carrots: Provide natural sweetness and texture to the sauce.
- Celery: Adds flavor and crunch to the sauce.
- Mushrooms: Enhance the umami and depth of flavor in the bolognese. We use mushrooms instead of pancetta here!
- Spices: Salt, black pepper, bay, and oregano.
- Tomato paste: Gives the sauce depth and richness.
- Red wine: Adds complexity and depth to the sauce. Feel free to sub in chicken broth or beef broth, and add a tiny splash of balsamic.
- Canned tomatoes: Whole canned tomatoes (mashed), crushed tomatoes, or diced tomatoes, along with their juice, form the base of the sauce.
- Soy sauce: As strange as it seems, it adds depth and enhances the umami flavor in the sauce. Give it a try!
- Parmesan rind (optional, but elevates!): Adds extra depth and richness to the sauce.
- Garnishes: Parmesan cheese or pecorino cheese and basil or parsley.
These ingredients work together to create a hearty, robust, and flavorful bolognese sauce.
How to Make Turkey Bolognese
1. Sauté the ground turkey and vegetables. Warm olive oil in a large Dutch oven and sauté the ground turkey for 7-9 minutes until lightly browned. If needed, drain excess liquid, and then set the browned turkey aside. Add garlic, carrots, celery, and mushrooms to the pot. Stir until the veggies are tender, about 7 minutes. Add the spices and salt.
2. Add the tomato paste. Make a well in the pan, add the tomato paste, and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the turkey back in and mix everything together. Add the wine and scrape up any brown bits.
3. Reduce and add tomatoes. Simmer for about 5 minutes over medium heat until the wine is reduced by half. Add the tomatoes and their juices, and use a metal spatula to help break them down. Stir in the soy sauce and add a Parmesan rind (optional) and a bay leaf.
4. Simmer. Simmer, covered, for 1-2 hours over medium-low heat, stirring every 20 minutes. Add chicken stock as needed to prevent drying out. See notes for Instant Pot and Slow Cooker instructions.
5. Season, taste, and adjust. Remove the lid, taste, and adjust, adding salt and black pepper as needed. Remove the bay leaf and Parmesan rind. If you want a thicker consistency, cook off any extra liquid.
6. Garnish and serve. Serve the meat sauce over your favorite pasta, creamy polenta, quinoa, or roasted spaghetti squash. Garnish with grated Parmesan and fresh basil or Italian parsley.
Expert Tips
- Don’t rush the browning process. Browning the meat, onions, and mushrooms gives the bolognese added flavor and depth.
- Sauté the tomato paste until it deepens in color. This step is crucial to adding a deeper layer of flavor.
- For extra depth of flavor, add a little soy sauce or (as weird as it seems) a splash of fish sauce, or a Parmesan rind.
- Simmer low and slow. Even though turkey is leaner than beef, long simmering helps the flavors meld and creates a richer, more developed sauce.
Ways to Serve Turkey Bolognese Sauce
Serve over pasta (try our homemade pasta) with fresh-grated pecorino cheese and fresh Italian parsley.
- Serve over creamy polenta
- Serve over a baked potato
- Use as the filling for lasagna
- Over roasted spaghetti squash
- Over zucchini noodles
- Over quinoa
Turkey Bolognese Sauce Storage
Store leftover Bolognese Sauce in the fridge for up to 4 days, or freeze leftovers in an airtight container for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating on the stovetop until warmed through.
Hope you enjoy this healthier version of Bolognese!
More Hearty Pasta Recipes You Might Like
After you try this recipe, let us know how it turns out in the comments below. Your review will help other readers, too! Sign up here to join our community and receive our latest recipes and weekly newsletter! xoxo Sylvia
Turkey Bolognese Recipe
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 mins
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Dinner, dinner idea, healthy dinner, Pasta, weeknight dinner
- Method: instant pot, slow cooker, Stove top
- Cuisine: American, Italian
- Diet: Dairy-Free, Diabetic, Gluten Free, Gluten-Free, high protein, Keto, Kosher, low carb, Low Fat, Low-Carb
Description
This Turkey Bolognese (aka Sunday Sauce) is hearty, robust, and full of depth and flavor! Make it on the stovetop, in a slow cooker, or in an Instant Pot.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 pounds ground meat- turkey, beef, lamb, pork or a mix
- 1 large onion -diced
- 6–8 cloves garlic- rough chopped
- 8 ounces mushrooms- sliced
- 2 carrots- diced
- 2 Celery stalks – diced
- 1 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt, more to taste!
- 1 teaspoon cracked pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon chili flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 3 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 1/4 cup red wine ( or chicken or beef broth)
- 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, preferably San Marsano (or use crushed or diced)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1Bay leaf
- Parmesan Rind (optional)
Garnish: Fresh basil ribbons or chopped parsley and grated parmesan or pecorino cheese
Instructions
- Saute. In a large Dutch oven, saute the ground turkey and onion in the olive oil for 7-9 minutes until lightly browned. If there is a lot of liquid, drain it, then set it aside. Add the onions, saute until softened. Add garlic, carrots, celery, and mushrooms. Continue sauteing and stirring, cooking the veggies until tender, about 7 minutes. Add all the spices and salt.
- Tomato Paste. Make a well in the pan and add the tomato paste; sauté for 1-2 minutes to give the sauce depth. Add the browned turkey and mix it all together, then add the wine, scraping up all the brown bits.
- Reduce. Let simmer on medium heat until the wine is reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the can of tomatoes and their juice, breaking them up with the metal spatula. Stir in the soy sauce. Toss in the parmesan rind (optional) to add even more depth and a bay leaf.
- Simmer. Simmer in the Dutch oven on the stove, covered, for 1-2 hours at a gentle simmer (medium-low heat), stirring every 20 minutes and adding chicken stock if needed to prevent drying out. See notes for Instant Pot and Slow Cooker.
- Season. Uncover, taste, adjust seasonings, adding salt and pepper to taste. Remove bay leaf and parmesan rind, and cook off any extra liquid if you want it thicker.
- Serve over cooked pasta, creamy polenta, quinoa or roasted spaghetti squash with grated parmesan, sprinkled with fresh basil or Italian parsley.
Notes
Instant Pot: Follow steps 1-5 using the saute function. Then use the meat/stew setting for 35 minutes (or manual LOW pressure for 35 minutes) followed by a natural release for 15 minutes. Cook off the extra liquid, uncovered, on the saute function, stirring often. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Slow Cooker: Follow steps 1-5, then place it in a slow cooker, set to its lowest setting for 6 hours (or medium heat for 3 hours). Taste, adjust seasonings; add more salt to taste. Discard the Parmesan rind and bay leaf.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 174
- Sugar: 5.9 g
- Sodium: 259.6 mg
- Fat: 7.1 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 11.9 g
- Fiber: 4.1 g
- Protein: 16.7 g
- Cholesterol: 48.9 mg
Love this recipe, I make in Slow Cooker and double up so I have plenty for freezing
Great idea Yvonne. Glad you enjoyed!
I used beef and pork, and added chanterelles from the freezer. My family is Whole30-ing right now so I subbed fish sauce for the soy sauce. We ate it with roasted parsnips because I don’t want to go to the store for spaghetti squash. No regrets! It’s delish!
Glad you gave it a try!
Excellent recipe! I made this as per directions 1-5 and then transferred to my instant pot. 35 minutes of pressure cooking seemed to be perfect. I did choose to make this sauce a little creamier and added 1/2 block cream cheese.
Oh that sounds yummy Sharon! Glad it worked out in the instant pot. Appreciate you taking time to leave a review.
I now make this once a week for my family. Thank you so much for a firm favourite!
Great to hear Olivia!
Can I add French lentils to up the fiber content?.
Yes, that should be wonderful. You’ll need to adjust liquid and seasonings.
Love this recipe. It’s a lot of work but its worth every minute.
Glad you enjoyed this!
I love this recipe ☺️ I don’t make a lot of things more than once but this one I have on rotation. We eat it over chickpea pasta. 👌🏻
Oh good to hear! Love it! thanks for the rating and comment- very appreciated Darragh ❤️
I modified the recipe some and it was delicious. I subbed the fennel seeds for Italian seasoning and once it cooked on the stove I put it in a baking dish with the pasta and covered it with mozarela and parmesan and broiled it. I will be doing this one again!
Yum Barbara! Sounds wonderful!
first recipe of yours that I made that tasted great but did not turn out as directions specified. I made it on my instant pot and followed the with the same ingredients and instructions. It came out a bit watery and maybe I could have reduced it some but instead I decided to add a can of cannellini beans in place of the pasta, added a little fresh basil and it turned into a delicious soup! Great flavors and texture.
Thanks Irene; sorry about that and glad you were able to salvage it! Yes, sounds like some of the liquid needed to cook off. I will note the recipe.
And, as some others have mentioned, my turkey did not brown but there was so much other flavor that it didn’t matter.
This is fantastic! I used 1/8 teas. of nutmeg and diced tomatoes. I’ll make this again and put even a little more fennel seeds- they are so good!
Thanks so much Josie!
Another fantastic recipe Sylvia! As I had a parmesan rind in the freezer, and was using Worcestershire sauce, I only used a teaspoon of salt, which was enough. I’ve never come across a recipe where you sauté the tomato puree, but will be doing this in other dishes from now on. Thank you.
Oh perfect- love that you stored one in the freezer!
Approved by my husband and I. Simple to make and very yummy! Love your recipes!
Great to hear Rayanne!
Wow! Took a chance and made this for a dinner party with all spices recommended, San Marzano tomatoes and anchovies. Topped with fresh herbs from the garden. This was outstanding, thank you!
Thanks Linda! Glad you enjoyed this!
Hi Sylvia
I’d like to make this and freeze it for later. Can I take it to step 5 and then freeze for later cooking or, is it better to cook completely and then reheat.
I’m sure it will be delicious.
hi Erik, I would cook it all the way through, freeze and reheat. 🙂
Hi Sylvia,
I have an abundance of tomatoes from my garden. Do you think I could use fresh instead of canned? If so how many and would they need to be peeled first?
I would sub 2 lbs fresh tomatoes (and their juices). If the tomato skin bothers you, you could cut in half, grate all the way down to the peels, leaving them behind? Or could finely dice, leaving the peels on.
I’m about to make this recipe for a family reunion. Do you think it freezes well?
I bet it would freeze great!
The good news is that this was pretty delicious. Lots of depth of flavor. There were several problems with the recipe, though. (1) First instruction is to saute onion and turkey in olive oil — but there is no olive oil in the list of ingredients. (I used about 2 Tbsp.). (2) I used a large pot on the stovetop to make the recipe. The recipe doesn’t tell you what temperature to set the stove at. (I started at medium, then realized it was going to take forever for anything to happen, so I set it to high. (3) Second ingredient is an onion: A small onion? A medium onion? A large onion? (I used a large-ish onion.) (4) Even at a high heat setting, it doesn’t take 3 minutes for the turkey to brown — it takes more like 12 minutes. Adjust your timing accordingly! (5) I used 93% lean ground turkey, and there was plenty of liquid in the bottom of the pot after the first step. I poured off the liquid — and after sauteing the vegetables, it was time to “fry” the tomato paste. But I had the same experience as another reader: there was a fair amount of liquid in the bottom of the pot, so it was more like braising the tomato paste than frying it. (6) Step 4 says to simmer until the wine is reduced — but reduced by how much? Till it disappears? Till you have half the volume you started with? (I got it down to about 1/4 of the original volume of wine.) (7) The recipe tells you what to do if the bolognese gets too dry. I had just the opposite problem. There was lots of liquid in the pot — my recipe wasn’t going to turn out anything like the pictures above — so I turned up the heat and cooked the bolognese uncovered for the last half hour, trying to boil off some of the liquid. I was only partially successful.
So, lots of problems with the recipe and with the timing, but the end product was very good.
Appreciate your notes. I adjusted the recipe to make it more clear. Sorry about that. This started off as a slow cooker recipe, that morphed into a stove-top recipe, but I see how it needed a little more direction. Glad you were able to adjust and come up with something tasty.
what side dish would you recommend with this?
Big hearty Salad and Garlic Bread!
Turkey and onions together won’t brown for me; I need to brown them separately. Should I brown the turkey or the onions first? Do I remove one from the pan to brown the other? Thanks for the tips!
Is your turkey kind of watery? Yes, you can do them separately, I’d do the onions first, then turkey.
A great sauce! Could you suggest a substitute for the fennel? I’d love to make it again but the kids didn’t care for the fennel.
I would just leave it out!
Mushrooms, unless I sauté/fry them in a pan, always turn out rubbery for me whenever I add them to a recipe. Am I doing something wrong? Using the wrong kind (Asian mushrooms)? Thank you.
When you say Asian Mushrooms, what kind specifically?
usually shiitakes
I wonder if you tried a different mushroom like cremini or portobello?
I had some turkey and mushrooms so I googled it, and found this recipe! I was impressed at the intentional ingredients to create that umami flavor. I’m sure it would have come out fantastic, but unfortunately it turned out to be incredibly salty. I felt like 2.5 tsp of salt was kind of a lot with the soy sauce but I followed the seasoning measurements to a T for once. Ultimately it turned out so salty that I had to add a bunch of half n half, more tomato, a teaspoon of sugar, and then made a slurry with cornstarch to thicken it back up. Even with all that, still a bit too salty for my taste. I can’t imagine what went wrong unless my taste buds went awry since no one else seems to have had the same experience. The only thing I did differently was add a quarter pound of ground lamb because I only had a pound of Turkey. I also used a prechopped mirapeaux so it may have had a few less veggies. Otherwise, I know this is a great recipe and it really did taste good once I was able to tone down the salt. I’ll have to go back to the drawing board – but just in case I’m not crazy, I recommend adding salt as needed since the meat is cooked by the time it’s ready to season. Will update when I try again.
Appreciate that and I will note the recipe. Sorry it was too salty for you.