24 Best Turmeric Recipes for an Anti-Inflammatory Boost

Turmeric recipes to brighten your meals! These dishes incorporate the health benefits and vibrant flavors of turmeric, making them not only delicious but also beneficial for your well-being.

Turmeric, known for its distinctive color and health properties, is a versatile spice that can be used in a variety of dishes.

Its earthy and slightly bitter flavor pairs well with different ingredients, bringing both color and depth to your meals. Whether you’re familiar with turmeric or just starting to explore its uses, these recipes will show you how to incorporate it creatively and tastefully.

I’ve compiled a collection of recipes that highlight turmeric in both subtle and bold ways. These dishes range from comforting classics to innovative new creations, all enhanced by the unique flavor of turmeric.

These turmeric recipe ideas include:

• Turmeric-infused soups and stews
• Golden turmeric rice and pilafs
• Healthy turmeric smoothies and drinks
• Flavorful turmeric marinades and sauces
• Spiced turmeric vegetables and sides
• Turmeric-based curries and stir-fries
• Healing turmeric teas and tonics
• Turmeric-enriched breakfasts and snacks

Each recipe is designed to maximize the flavor and health benefits of turmeric, making your meals both nourishing and enjoyable. Whether you’re cooking for health reasons or just love the taste of turmeric, these recipes will add a delightful twist to your culinary repertoire.

24 Best Turmeric Recipes for an Anti-Inflammatory Boost

1

Turmeric-Roasted Cauliflower

Roasting cauliflower transforms it into a crispy, tender vegetable. Serve as a simple side dish, or stir it into salads or grain bowls to add more plant power.

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2

Anti-Inflammatory Golden Tonic

The momentum behind functional foods and wellness elixirs is at an all-time high. Expensive products are touted as having the power to do everything from restoring gut health to boosting immunity and fighting inflammation, but their health claims are often backed by little solid science. So instead of pricy supplements, we’re mixing up a more affordable antidote that’s both healthy and homemade. A tonic, by definition, is a combination of ingredients that have the potential to enhance or restore health. While this tonic (or any tonic) is not a cure-all remedy, consuming more anti-inflammatory foods–like the ones found in this tonic–over time may only not only ease current symptoms (such as fatigue, joint pain and chronic bloating), but it may also reduce the risk of future diseases and s

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3

Easy Chicken Tikka Masala

This full-flavored, deeply spiced chicken tikka masala comes together in just 30 minutes. Learn how to make this one-pot recipe.

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4

Chopped Veggie Grain Bowls with Turmeric Dressing

In about 10 minutes, you can prep a week’s worth of lunches using 4 simple ingredients from your local specialty grocery store. To minimize prep, we’re taking advantage of prechopped fresh veggie mix and frozen quinoa (which heats in the microwave in under 5 minutes). These crunchy chopped salad bowls are high in fiber but lower in calories, making them perfect for those following a reduced-calorie diet.

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5

Parchment Packet Baked Tuna Steaks & Vegetables with Creamy Dijon-Turmeric Sauce

How to bake fish perfectly? Wrapping the fish and vegetables in parchment packets creates steam that keeps the tuna moist while it cooks. Plus, it’s a fun presentation.

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6

Ginger-Turmeric-Carrot Shots

This refreshing shot captures the sweetness of carrots and coconut water, with a slight hint of heat from fresh ginger. If your blender is big enough, this would be easy to double and have in your fridge, ready when you are.

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7

Lamb & Beef Balti

Balti, a stew created by Pakistani chefs in Birmingham, England, is named after the metal pot it’s cooked in. We found a large skillet works too. Topping with a dollop of yogurt adds a hint of creaminess. Serve with a side of sautéed spinach for a satisfying dinner.

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8

Butternut Squash, Tomato, Chard & Chickpea Soup

This vegan soup recipe is chock-full of colorful vegetables. All those veggies give this soup plenty of fiber, upping the satisfaction factor while keeping calories low—a combination that can aid in weight loss overtime and potentially help you lose belly fat. Vibrant turmeric adds a golden color to the flavorful broth, while cumin and ginger give it a bright, fresh finish. And the best part? This healthy soup recipe takes only 20 minutes, start to finish!

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9

Turmeric Rice Bowl with Garam Masala Root Vegetables & Chickpeas

This fragrant turmeric rice bowl topped with leftover spiced roasted root vegetables and chickpeas is inspired by flavors from India for an easy, vegetarian dinner.

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10

Chicken & Broccoli Curry with Turmeric Brown Rice

Massaman curry is a traditional Thai-style curry, popular for being milder in flavor and rich in taste. When students in Georgia were challenged to use local ingredients to come up with a creative dish that could be easily made in cafeterias, this recipe was a finalist. The kids wanted to cook their rice in milk with turmeric to give it a creamy texture and golden color, but they swapped in rice milk to keep the dish dairy-free. Regular milk works just as well. Adapted from Georgia Farm to School.

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11

Vegan Pumpkin Soup

This vegan pumpkin soup, filled with spices and creamy cashews, can make an easy weeknight dinner or be elevated to a vegan main dish worthy of a holiday dinner by serving it in a hollowed-out freshly roasted pumpkin.

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12

Easy Saag Paneer

This saag paneer recipe is packed with flavor and can be prepared in less than 30 minutes. Learn how to make it today.

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13

Turmeric-Ginger Tahini Dip

Flavored with turmeric, ginger and garlic, this tahini dip recipe is perfect for dipping vegetables or topping your next falafel.

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14

Turmeric Latte

Studies on turmeric’s health benefits, particularly for reducing inflammation, are preliminary but promising. Try this vegan turmeric “latte” made from steamed almond milk and sweetened with a touch of maple syrup.

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15

Slow-Cooker Shrimp & Chorizo Paella

Paella is an iconic Spanish dish made with rice, seasonings and various meats or seafood, depending on the paella type. Our slow-cooker paella recipe features shrimp, brown rice, turmeric, a host of vegetables and Spanish chorizo–not to be confused with Mexican chorizo, which isn’t dried or cured like the Spanish variety.

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16

Golden Milk Frappe

This frappe harnesses the flavor power of a turmeric spice mixture for a cool treat. The golden-milk spice mix is combined with kefir, coconut milk and honey before being whirred together for a frothy delight.

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17

Chickpea Salad with Broccoli & Golden Milk-Poached Chicken

Poaching chicken in turmeric-infused milk for this healthy salad recipe yields tender results with a golden hue. Bright yellow turmeric has been used for centuries in traditional Indian medicine. The early spice’s potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound, curcumin, shows promise in fighting certain cancers, including breast, pancreatic, colorectal, lung and prostate. (See Tip to learn more about turmeric’s health benefits.) Don’t toss the cooking liquid: some of it goes into the salad dressing and you can use what remains to cook grains or as a soup base. Make sure to use whole milk and don’t go beyond a bare simmer, otherwise it may curdle.

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18

Doro Alicha (Chicken with Onions & Spiced Butter Sauce)

This milder version of the classic Ethiopian chicken stew, doro wot, trades hot berbere spice for a mild turmeric sauce heady with ginger and garlic. Serve with injera for mopping up the sides of the bowl.

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19

Baingan Bharta (Punjabi Spicy Roasted Eggplant)

This spicy eggplant dish, popular in India and Pakistan, can be eaten hot or at room temperature. Serve with brown basmati rice and naan. If you have any leftovers, save them; the dish tastes better on day two when all the flavors have had a chance to meld.

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20

Moroccan Lentil Soup

Like most soups, this healthy Moroccan lentil soup recipe gets better with time, so make it a day ahead if you can–or try our easy slow cooker/crock pot recipe variation.

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21

Jakarta-Style Savory Rice Porridge (Bubur Ayam Betawi)

We cut down the cooking time for this healthy chicken stew by fortifying store-bought broth with chicken and aromatics and then using the flavorful liquid to both simmer the rice and make the gravy. Try subbing 5 fresh curry leaves if you can’t find the Indonesian bay leaves.

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22

Mango-Ginger BBQ Chicken

Here, we blend classic barbecue sauce ingredients–ketchup and vinegar–with mango, ginger, Chinese five-spice and turmeric, for a sweet and fragrant glaze for grilled BBQ chicken.

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23

Chickpeas with Peppers & Eggs

This easy vegetarian recipe incorporates a vibrant array of spices, including cumin seeds, turmeric, and smoked paprika. If you can’t find an Anaheim chile, substitute a half to a whole jalapeño pepper, depending on your spice tolerance.

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24

Butternut Squash Soup with Apple Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Layering apple slices into grilled cheese sandwiches adds a little crunch to a favorite soup dipper. And creamy butternut squash soup with ginger, cumin and turmeric is a nice change of pace from grilled cheese’s usual tomato soup partner. Serve the duo for a comforting and easy weeknight dinner for the family. The soup keeps well in the fridge, so save leftovers for lunch or dinner later in the week.

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Jenny

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Jenny has always been passionate about cooking, and she uses her platform to share her joy of food with others. Her recipes are easy to follow, and she loves giving tips and tricks to help others create their own unique culinary creations.

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