Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Chili
No time to cook healthy during season? Try this super easy and cheap sweet potato and turkey chili. It requires minimal cooking skills and is less than $2 a serving!
Why the Slow-Cooker?
Do you ever get home from training and are too exhausted to make dinner? You know you need to fuel properly to maximize post-practice recovery but your bed looks so inviting. You don’t have the energy or the patience to whip up a fancy dinner. Maybe you’ll lie down for a little bit and close your eyes before making dinner?
Fast-forward and you wake up in the middle of the night. Your stomach rumbles. You are HUNGRY. And not to mention sore. You missed out on an important recovery period and now your muscles HURT.
As you lay in your bed, your stomach growls and you begrudgingly head into the kitchen. You aren’t cooking anything now. Time to reach for your favorite cereal and fill up a bowl. Two or three helpings of cereal later you are still hungry and now starting to feel guilty. You wanted to prioritize fueling properly after training but are just not in the mood to prep a complicated dinner after a hard training session.
Has this ever happened to you? It happened to me all the time as a college athlete. That is until I started using my slow-cooker! The slow-cooker can be a lifesaver for a busy athlete like yourself. Easily throw all of the ingredients into the crockpot at the beginning of the day and you will easily have a hot and balanced dinner when you get home from training!
Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Chili
My go-to slow-cooker meal has always been chili. There is nothing like coming home to a big bowl of chili after a long hard practice. During college, my mom used to send me back to school after winter break with little care packages full of chili making ingredients because I loved it so much! This crockpot sweet potato chili is not only delicious, but it also helped me stay strong for my practices.
And did I mention it is healthy and CHEAP! Beans, which make up a bulk of the meal, are only 79 cents a can. This easy chili comes out to less than $2.00 a serving too (for 8 servings) and only takes three steps!
Performance Benefits of Sweet Potato Chili
Sweet Potato
Sweet potatoes are packed with fiber to keep you satiated for longer and rich in beta carotene. Beta carotene (Vitamin A) is an important nutrient that improves vision for better hand-eye/leg coordination to aid your performance.
Turkey
Turkey is a great source of lean protein that can enhance muscle recovery and maintain lean muscle mass. The turkey paired with the beans gives you >20g of important protein to help with muscle protein synthesis after training.
Black Beans
A great source of complex carbohydrates and plant-based protein, black beans are a nutritious addition to any recipe! Black beans are high in magnesium, calcium, and iron, which are important minerals in maintaining healthy bones and nutrient circulation
Tomatoes
Tomatoes are rich in the antioxidant lycopene, which can reduce fatigue and aid muscle repair post-workout. It helps decrease the inflammatory by-products that can build up after a hard workout. By incorporating lycopene, you can decrease inflammation and not feel as sore for your next session.
Now you have no excuse to eat dinner after training and I can’t wait for you too! I know you will enjoy both the taste and training benefits! Check out the recipe below and let me know what you think.
Sweet Potato Crockpot Chili
Equipment
- crockpot
Ingredients
- 1 large sweet potato (diced into big chunks)
- 1 can black beans
- 1 can kidney beans
- 1/2 green pepper
- 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 16 oz ground turkey
- 1/2 white onion
- 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp chili powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in the base of your slow cooker and stir to mix well. Cook on low for 8 hours.
- Top with chopped tomatoes, plain Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, Mexican cheese, avocado or tortilla strips.
- Enjoy!
* If you do not have all seasonings, it is okay to omit some. The chili will still taste amazing!
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Do you recommend draining the beans before cooking?
Yes I do drain the beans before cooking them! If you like your chili with more liquid or an athlete that needs extra electrolytes (sodium), I would put the entire can into the chili.