Creamy Korean Turkey Rice Skillet (Printable)

Ground turkey simmers in a sweet and spicy Korean-inspired sauce with fluffy rice, crowned with jammy eggs for a satisfying one-pan meal.

# What You Need:

→ Protein & Eggs

01 - 1 pound ground turkey
02 - 4 large eggs

→ Vegetables & Aromatics

03 - 1 small onion, diced
04 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
05 - 1 inch piece fresh ginger, minced
06 - 1 medium carrot, julienned or diced
07 - 1 cup baby spinach

→ Sauce

08 - 2 tablespoons gochujang
09 - 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
10 - 1 tablespoon honey or brown sugar
11 - 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
12 - 1 tablespoon sesame oil
13 - 1/3 cup chicken or vegetable broth
14 - 2 tablespoons heavy cream or coconut cream, optional

→ Rice

15 - 3 cups cooked short-grain rice, preferably day-old

→ Garnish

16 - 2 tablespoons sliced scallions
17 - 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
18 - Kimchi, optional for serving

# How-To Steps:

01 - Bring water to a gentle boil in a saucepan. Carefully add eggs and simmer for 7 minutes to achieve jammy yolks. Transfer eggs to an ice bath, allow to cool completely, then peel and set aside.
02 - Heat sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add diced onion, minced garlic, and minced ginger. Sauté until softened and fragrant, approximately 3 minutes.
03 - Add ground turkey to the skillet and cook, breaking it apart with a spatula, until browned and cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain excess fat if necessary.
04 - Stir in diced carrot and cook for 2 minutes until slightly tender.
05 - Lower heat to medium. Add gochujang, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, and broth to the skillet. Stir thoroughly to coat the turkey evenly and bring to a simmer.
06 - Add heavy cream or coconut cream if using, and baby spinach. Cook until spinach wilts completely, approximately 1 minute.
07 - Fold cooked rice into the skillet mixture, stirring thoroughly until rice is heated through and evenly coated with the sauce.
08 - Taste the dish and adjust seasoning as needed with additional soy sauce or gochujang.
09 - Divide rice skillet among serving bowls. Top each portion with a halved jammy egg, sliced scallions, toasted sesame seeds, and kimchi if desired.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • Everything happens in one skillet, which means fewer dishes and more time to actually enjoy eating.
  • The jammy egg yolk becomes a luxurious sauce that makes even simple ingredients taste restaurant-quality.
  • Gochujang brings a complex depth that tastes like you spent hours cooking when you really spent minutes.
02 -
  • Day-old rice is not a suggestion; it's essential. Fresh warm rice will turn into mush when it meets all that sauce, and you'll lose the texture that makes this dish special.
  • The 7-minute egg timer is non-negotiable if you want that perfect jammy yolk. Too short and it's runny; too long and you've lost the magic that makes people close their eyes when they eat this.
03 -
  • Toast your sesame seeds in a dry skillet for 2 minutes before garnishing to unlock their nuttiness and make them taste like you care deeply about details.
  • Make your sauce in a small bowl before adding it to the skillet so you can check that the gochujang is fully dissolved and smooth, preventing lumps from hiding in the final dish.
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