This famous Deer Valley turkey chili recipe is full of robust flavors with a touch of sweetness and a touch of savory that makes it the perfect combination. What might surprise you is the main ingredient–it’s not ground turkey, but shredded cooked turkey.

This recipe happens to be my favorite soup to make during the cold winter months. I love the aromas it fills the house with and the unique flavors that pop in my mouth. And anytime I make it for a potluck or get-together, everyone raves about it.

How I Discovered the Deer Valley Ski Resort’s Famous Recipe

Rumor has Deer Valley’s legendary turkey chili recipe was secretly shared by a chef from the Deer Valley Resort in Utah. This heavily guarded resort recipe was shared with me when I was a teenager visiting a friend’s church function in Arizona.

I have seen variations of this turkey chili recipe on the Internet and have tried several variations. However, I think mine is the best.

I don’t know if my version truly originated from a resort, but whoever decided to put all of these ingredients together is a genius. It is absolutely delicious.

Ingredients

1 stick butter
one 4 oz. can mild green chilies
2/3 cup finely chopped red onion
2/3 cup finely chopped celery
2/3 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
2/3 cup finely chopped leeks, white part only
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 T. oregano
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups stock, turkey or chicken

2 1/2 c. frozen corn, thawed
4 cups cooked, shredded turkey
2 cans of black beans, drained
2 T. chili powder
2 T. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup coconut sugar or brown sugar
shredded cheddar cheese, optional
sour cream, optional
fresh cilantro, optional
green onions, optional

Tip: Since the main ingredient is shredded turkey, it’s great to make after the holidays with leftover turkey. If I don’t have any leftover turkey on hand, I like to do a combination of dark meat and white meat so I cook a large turkey breast and a couple of turkey legs.

How I prepare the Deer Valley turkey chili Recipe

It does take a little extra time to prepare this dish because it involves a lot of dicing, and I like to dice the ingredients very finely. One of the ingredients in the recipe is celery, and my husband doesn’t like celery. However, if I chop it really fine, he doesn’t even know it’s in there—score!

Tip: If I don’t have leftover turkey for this recipe and have to cook some, I usually put it in the oven to bake while I’m dicing everything. Alternatively, you can cook the turkey in the Instant Pot.

After dicing all of the ingredients, the steps are very simple.

In a large pot, melt butter and sauté chilies, onion, celery, pepper, leeks, garlic, and oregano over moderately low heat until softened—about 15 minutes.
Gradually add the flour cooking over low heat until the mixture is golden—about 15 minutes.
Gradually stir in the chicken broth.
In a blender, puree 1 ¼ c. of the corn.
Add corn and the remaining ingredients.
Continue to cook over medium until heated through.
Serve with optional ingredients.

Tip: When pureing the corn, use a blender or food processor to puree and add a cup of stock to make it easier to scrape it into the pot.

Substitutions

The original recipe uses brown sugar, but I substitute coconut sugar instead. I do this for two reasons—first, the brown sugar makes it too sweet, and second, the coconut sugar is a healthier alternative. The hint of sweetness really helps give this turkey chili the added flavor it needs. I just don’t like my main dish to be overpowered by sweetness, so that is why I use coconut sugar.

To be honest, not this recipe is difficult to substitute. The robust flavors come from all of the ingredients merging together. The following are the only substitutions I would suggest:

scallions instead of leeks
shallots in place of onions
yellow or orange bell pepper in place of the red pepper
garlic powder in place of the fresh garlic
turkey broth or chicken broth instead of turkey stock or chicken stock

How to Serve the Turkey Chili

A great way to serve this famous Deer Valley chili is with a dollop of sour cream, cheddar cheese, and green onions on top. It’s also delicious served with tortilla chips or a cheese quesadilla.

Note: Leftover turkey chili is the best way to serve this dish because the next day the flavors have had a chance to really blend together.

this recipe is worth the effort

I hope you give this dish a try because it does not disappoint. My husband is a pretty picky eater, and he really likes this turkey and black bean chili. His favorite is still my Grandma’s Chicken and Dumplings, but on a cold day, he doesn’t complain when I make a big pot of hot soup, chili, or dumplings.

xoxo,
Molly