Cooking shouldn’t necessarily be long and tedious and the food processor is very helpful in making a cooking routine fast and even pleasant. I use my Kichenaid extensively for shredding, grinding, chopping, mixing and pureeing: it is a real time saver! I particularly like the idea of throwing everything into a food processor and ending up with an interesting dish out of an ordinary set of products. Indeed, if I didn’t have my KichenAid I wouldn’t even think of making this dish…
It was one of those days when I had to prepare something urgently but fridge didn’t offer much of a choice. However, I happened to have carrots and turkey thighs sitting in the fridge. I proceeded by mixing a couple of carrots with turkey meat and, as the meat seemed a bit runny, I thought that maybe coconut flakes could help to hold it together (I thought of coconut flour initially, which also happened to be used up). So, I proceeded with the coconut flakes, thinking that it was a weird idea, considering that I used coconut flakes for desserts only before, but it worked! I also added some spices and parsley leaves and my turkey coconut meatballs were ready in no time! Later on I tuned up the recipe a bit, but it is still very similar to its original version.
- 1 pound turkey meat* (thighs, breast)
- 1 medium carrot
- 4 tablespoons shredded coconut
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 3 fat garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
- Handful cilantro leaves (or other aromatic herbs)
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Start by cutting turkey meat into large chunks.
- Grate the carrot in a food processor or by hand.
- Add the turkey meat, shredded coconut, herbs, spices and the oil and pulse everything several times.
- Set your food processor on a low setting and process until everything is well incorporated.
- Form meatballs, arrange them in a greased baking dish and bake for 20 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
Maria is the blogger behind the Zesty Paleo website. As a Hashimoto's patient for more than a decade, Maria has constantly been taking steps to improve her quality of life, including nutrition and lifestyle choices.
Do you use raw poultry or cooked poultry?
Hi Janice, I used a combination of raw turkey thighs and breast in this recipe. Alternatively you can use ground turkey to make these meatballs.
These look Ahhhhmazing!!! Adding them to foods to make!:) Thank you!
These are so yummy! I’ve made them twice with ground turkey. Once I used a bit of coconut flour because I couldn’t find my shredded coconut. Other time I used the shredded coconut. So good! I like to make a little broth with cilantro, chicken broth, and coconut cream for these beauties to rest in. I’ve also paired with broccoli. Thanks!
Thanks Katherine, I am glad that you liked my turkey coconut meatballs! And I totally support your idea to pair them with broccoli or any other nutrient dense veggies!