Quick Turkey Ragu with Spaghetti Squash

The beauty of this recipe is the use of unconventional ingredients for flavor (fish sauce, balsamic vinegar). It also doesn't take long to cook in the pot, and using presliced kale and mushrooms makes this a breeze to prep.

Turkey Ragu with Spaghetti Squash

Recipe adapted from The Official Mind Diet by Dr. Martha Clare Morris

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 2 ea spaghetti squash or 3 lb
• 4 Tb extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 2 c sliced cremini mushrooms
• 2 ea garlic clove minced
• 1 Tb balsamic vinegar
• ½ tsp fish sauce
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• 2 c shredded kale
• 24 oz tomato sauce I used Rao's brand of marinara sauce
• ¼ c grated Parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast optional

Method

 

Prepare Spaghetti Squash

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Spaghetti squash skin is very tough. Do your best to safely cut off the ends and split the squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and put cut side up on a baking sheet.
3. Sprinkle 2 Tb of the olive oil over the squash halves. Season with some salt and pepper as well.
4. Put squash in the oven and bake for 45 minutes or until the squash can be easily pierced with a fork or paring knife.

Turkey Ragu

1. While the spaghetti squash bakes in the oven, you can make the turkey ragu sauce.
2. Heat a Dutch oven (at least 3 qt in size), over medium high heat. Add 1 Tb olive oil and the turkey. Brown the turkey, stirring only occasionally so it has a chance to brown. This should take 5-8 minutes. Remove the turkey from the pot and set aside.
3. Add the last tablespoon of oil to the pan along with the sliced mushrooms. Cook for 3-5 minutes until cooked through. I add a little salt to the mushrooms to help release their juices, if the pan is too dry.
4. Add the remaining ingredients to the pot along with the turkey. Bring to a simmer and cook fo 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed. Turn off the heat and cover to keep warm until the squash is cooked.

Assemble

1. Once the spaghetti squash is cooked, remove from the oven and gently scrape up the flesh of the squash. It will yield short strands of flesh.
2. You can either use the squash as a serving vessel or scoop out the flesh onto a plate.
3. Serve the hot turkey ragu over the spaghetti squash. Top with parmesan cheese or some nutritional yeast.

Notes

1. If you buy presliced kale and mushrooms, there is very little prep time.
2. You don't want to cook the kale too much. It kind of turns blackish after stewing for 10 minutes or so. 
3. If you want to add a whole lot more kale, you can pile in as much as will fit. Just taste for seasoning. 
4. What's interesting about this recipe is the lack of onion. Not having to sweat down onions really shortens the cooking time. 

Wine Pairing

I chose to pair this Barbera, a red wine from Piedmont, Italy for an Italian inspired Thanksgiving menu.

You can serve a whole half squash of spaghetti sauce as a large main course, or