Zucchini & Ground Turkey Skillet with Ricotta
This easy skillet dinner is everything good about lasagna, just waaaaaay simpler. With ground turkey, marinara, and dollops of creamy ricotta; it’s light yet satisfying without turning on the oven or dirtying half your kitchen!
5 star review
“Made this tonight! 10/10 for how easy it was to make and for the flavours!! Husband loved it too! Made it with extra lean ground beef instead of turkey. Super delicious on noodles. The ricotta topping is perfection.”
– Janelle
This Ground Turkey Skillet is Made for Real Life
If you’re craving comfort but don’t have it in you to layer noodles, make a béchamel, or wait for a casserole to bake, my ground turkey skillet is your answer! It’s all the best parts of lasagna, simplified into a quick stovetop dinner with golden bits of ground turkey, tender zucchini, a touch of tomato sauce, and creamy dollops of ricotta melting into every bite. It’s a great way to use zucchini, too, because it uses 4 cups!!! of the garden veggie! Plus, you only need one-pan, 20-minutes, and a few everyday ingredients to make it.
What makes this one really stand out, though, is how much flavor you get with so little effort. Just like my ground beef and gnocchi skillet, it gives lasagna vibes without all of the fuss. The zucchini soaks up the garlic and marinara, the turkey adds protein and richness, and the ricotta-parmesan topping brings that creamy, luscious finish. I personally love using homemade marinara here if I have it, but store-bought totally works.
Serve it as-is for a light, veggie-forward dinner (feels like a reset meal, tastes like a win), or spoon it over pasta, rice, or even toast (trust me) to make it heartier. And if you’re into easy dinners that taste like more than the sum of their parts, you’ll love my no-fuss zucchini and beef casserole, which is similarly quick, cozy, and very real-life approved!
Welcome to My Kitchen – Let’s Make this Ground Turkey & Zucchini Skillet!
Getting the Most Out of This One-Pan Dinner
- Salt in stages. I found that seasoning the turkey and the zucchini separately helps the flavor build naturally and avoids bland veggies.
- Don’t overcook the zucchini. In testing, I got the best texture when I left it with a bit of bite. You’re looking for tender, but not mushy.
- Make it your own. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes for heat or stir in spinach for bonus greens. I like a sprinkle of fresh basil at the end for that cozy-but-fresh finish.
- Use good marinara. Whether homemade or store-bought, I recommend something you actually like, as it’s seriously key to flavor here.
Zucchini & Ground Turkey Skillet with Ricotta
Ingredients
- 4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
- 1 pound 93% lean ground turkey
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 1 teaspoon no-salt-added Italian seasoning
- 3 medium zucchini, diced (about 4 cups)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ¼ cups good-quality marinara sauce (about a 15.5 ounce jar)
Ricotta Topping
- ¾ cup ricotta cheese
- ¼ cup Parmesan, freshly grated
- ¼ cup fresh basil, finely chopped
- red pepper flakes, for serving (optional)
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 2 teaspoons of the olive oil, turkey, ¼ teaspoon of the salt, and Italian seasoning. Cook, breaking up the meat with a spoon, until browned and mostly cooked through, about 5-6 minutes. Remove the turkey from the pan and set aside.
- To the same pan (no need to wash it first), add 2 teaspoons of olive oil, zucchini, and ¼ teaspoon of salt. Turn up the heat to medium-high and cook until the zucchini is just tender, about 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, stirring frequently.
- Add the turkey back to the pan, then pour in the marinara sauce and simmer for 3-4 minutes, until everything is warmed-through and slightly thickened. Add a splash of water if the sauce thickens too much.
- Meanwhile, make the ricotta mixture by mixing the ricotta, Parmesan, and basil in a medium bowl until smooth.
- Turn off the heat. Add spoonfuls of the ricotta mixture over the top, letting it melt slightly into the sauce. Sprinkle with a bit more basil and parmesan, plus red pepper flakes, if desired.
Notes
- I highly recommend using the best quality marinara sauce you can find since there are so few ingredients here, level-up with my homemade marinara sauce.
I’m definitely saving this for later, it sounds delicious. I love the idea of the flavors of lasagna but without the carbs of the noodles.
Lisa, yes, that’s the perfect description of this recipe! I hope you make it and enjoy it soon!
Made this tonight! 10/10 for how easy it was to make and for the flavours!! Husband loved it too! Made it with extra lean ground beef instead of turkey. Super delicious on noodles. The ricotta topping is perfection.
Janelle, ohhhh, love that you subbed ground beef, such a great tip! Thanks for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
This was SO good! I had some sweet potatoes that were about to go bad, so I chopped those up and added them in too… DELICIOUS! Thank you for a great recipe!
Berlin, great idea to add sweet potatoes to this turkey zucchini recipes, great tip! Thanks for sharing your notes and for leaving a review.
I love zucchini, but my kids do not. Any substitution ideas? They like most other veggies.
Hi Cam, you could try sweet potatoes, which would change the flavor a decent amount, but would still provide a nice balance agains the turkey. You could also try butternut squash. In both cases you’d probably want to cook the veggies for longer, since they are denser than zucchini. If you give it a try let me know how it turns out!
This was delicious and super simple. I didn’t have any ricotta so I used Good Culture Cottage Cheese (which has a similar texture to ricotta imo). Hubby who doesn’t love zuchinni and was apprehensive about the cottage cheese said it was “Delicious” and “I should def make it again”. I served it over pasta but would also be good with some toasted bread or on its own for a lower carb option. And could easily be made df but omitting the ricotta or using Kite Hill. Makes great leftovers.
Jamie, so happy to hear you enjoyed this easy dinner and thanks for sharing all your great notes and for leaving a review. Cheers!
We absolutely loved it! I adapted the cooking method because I only had canned sauce that I knew needed doctoring and I felt like the ground turkey tomato mixture needed time for all the flavors to meld. I sauted the ground turkey, and garlic in the digital pressure cooker, added the tomato sauce and seasoning. Left that part on the slow cooker setting. Came back 4 hours later and finished up.
I love that you adapted this one for the pressure cooker, Ellen, what a great idea! Happy to hear it was a hit – thanks for sharing your tips and for leaving a review!
Can I use a bechemal sauce instead of marinara
Hmmmm, I haven’t tried it, but I think it would work. Depending on how thick the sauce is you might need to add a splash more liquid so it doesn’t thicken up too much, but the zucchini might produce enough liquid… If you give it at try let m e know how it turns out!
Excellent! Wonderful flavors and perfect for a summer dinner (without turning on the oven!). Thanks so much ❤️
Nancy, happy to hear you enjoyed this one, and thanks so much for leaving a review!
We loved this! I used Rao’s sauce and the ricotta mixture and red pepper flakes took the flavor over the top. Such a delicious low carb dish. I served it over pasta for my son (who picked out the zucchini but we’ll keep trying).
Brooke, yay, so happy to hear this one was a hit! Sometime I grate the zucchini with a box grater instead of dicing it (bonus points for peeling the zucchini first so there’s no detectable green) and my daughter doesn’t even notice it! Possibly worth a try? Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and for leaving a review!
I found this a perfect balance of creaminess, not too heavy, felt really healthy. Loved the basil and parmesan mixed into the ricotta! Will definitely make again soon!
Karen, yay, so happy to hear you enjoyed the balance of this recipe! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts and for leaving a review!
Can you clarify the instructions for how much marinara sauce to use? Is it 1 1/4 cups or 15 ounces? Because 1 1/4 cups would only be 10 oz.
Hi Hailee, sorry for the confusion, it’s 1 1/2 cups, or about a 15-oz jar of marinara sauce if you’re using jarred sauce. Basically just enough to evenly coat the turkey and zucchini with enough to simmer for a few minutes. You can also add more if you like a saucier skillet or want to serve it over noodles, etc. I hope that helps!
Made it tonight, absolutely delicious!
Hailee, yay, so happy to hear you enjoyed, thanks for sharing your thoughts!