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These fall/Thanksgiving-inspired Turkey Pumpkin Chipotle Nachos are all spicy, savory, and sweet. Moreover, I am so grateful for how great they taste. Roasted pumpkin, ground turkey, and chipotle chilis in adobo sauce are layered over black bean-topped tortilla chips. Then the whole thing is smothered in jack and cheddar cheese.
Dollops of cool sour cream and a sprinkling of chopped scallion rings finish off the dish. So I have two suggestions for making this recipe. Firstly, if you are too lazy or have not planned to make a Thanksgiving dinner, make these Turkey Pumpkin Chipotle Nachos and serve them with some fall-flavored margaritas, like my Cherry Chili version. That’s definitely a Thanksgiving meal alternative I can get behind.
These are festive enough to impress your guests, even as a pseudo-Thanksgiving meal. Since the nachos take 40 minutes to make, you can throw them together last minute if you substitute canned pumpkin for the freshly roasted version. Bonus: Stand back and laugh at all your friends and family who have been cooking for a week.
Use up your Thanksgiving leftovers
Secondly, this Turkey Pumpkin Chipotle Nachos recipe is a great option for using up your leftover Thanksgiving turkey. Substitute the ground turkey for 2-3 cups of leftover turkey meat chopped up into small pieces . Then you have a delicious Mexican spiked post-Thanksgiving meal. And did I mention they take 40 minutes to throw together? A great option after slaving for hours or days over your Thanksgiving meal.
I like the look of the blue corn chips. Alternatively, if you have a bag of yellow or white ones hanging around, use those. however, the chip variety won’t make much of a difference in the taste department. Furthermore, substitute a can of kidney beans or refried beans if you have one of those hanging out in your pantry.

Turkey Pumpkin Chipotle Nachos
Prep Time 10 minutes
Servings 8
Ingredients
- 1 medium-sized bag blue corn tortilla chips
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 red onion
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1/3 cup tomato paste
- 1-2 chipotle peppers depending on your spice preference in adobo sauce, chopped into small pieces
- 2 tablespoons water.
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 2 cups chopped roasted pumpkin pieces* (see instructions below) or 1 can pumpkin flesh.
- 1 can black beans
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh scallions
- 1+1/2 cups Shredded jack and cheddar cheese mixture
Instructions
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Line a baking sheet with foil. Spread the blue corn chips out on the pan.
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Heat the olive oil in a large skillet.
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Peel and chop the onion and add it to the pan.
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When the onions have softened, add the ground turkey and cook, stirring to combine.
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Cook the turkey and onions, stirring until the turkey is no longer pink.
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Add the tomato paste and chipotle peppers to the pan. Stir to combine.
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Stir in the water
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Mix in the pumpkin pieces.
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Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
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Drain the black beans and spread them evenly over the corn chips.
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Add the turkey pumpkin mixture over the top.
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Sprinkle the shredded cheese over the top and bake for 10 -25 minutes, until the cheese has melted.
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Garnish with sour cream and scallions, and serve.
Recipe Notes
*Fresh Roasted Pumpkin:
You will need one pie pumpkin.
- Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Place the pumpkin WHOLE on the baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes.
- Use a sharp carving knife to cut off the stem and discard it unless you want to save it for a craft or decoration. If the knife does not cut easily through the pumpkin, return the whole pumpkin to the oven for another 10 minutes.
- Slice the pumpkin into quarters and lay them flesh side up on the baking sheet. Return the pumpkin quarters to the oven and bake for another 15-20 minutes until the pumpkin is completely soft.
- Let the quarters cool completely. Scoop out the seeds along with any tough, stringy parts. Save the seeds if you wish to roast them later.
- When the pumpkin quarters have completely cooled, peel off the skin. Cut the flesh into small pieces.










