White Chicken Chili

About This Recipe

White chicken chili is a comforting, crowd-pleasing alternative to the classic red, swapping tomatoes and beef for tender shredded chicken, creamy white beans, and mild green chiles. The broth is built on sauteed onion, garlic, cumin, and oregano, then made luxuriously creamy with a little cream cheese or sour cream and the natural starch of mashed beans. The result is rich and warming without being heavy, with a gentle Southwestern heat that you can dial up or down. Topped with cilantro, lime, avocado, and crushed tortilla chips, it is a complete bowl of comfort. Mashing some of the beans is the easiest way to thicken the chili naturally without flour.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 2 tbspolive oil
• 1 largeonion(diced)
• 4 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 2 4 oz cansdiced green chiles
• 2 tspground cumin
• 1 tspdried oregano
• 0.5 tspcayenne pepper
• 1.5 lbsboneless chicken thighs
• 3 15 oz canswhite beans(drained)
• 4 cupschicken broth
• 4 ozcream cheese(softened)
• 0.25 cupfresh cilantro(chopped)
• 1lime(juiced)

Instructions

1. 1

   Build the base

   Heat the oil in a pot and cook the onion 5 minutes until soft. Add garlic, green chiles, cumin, oregano, and cayenne and cook 1 minute until fragrant and the spices bloom.

   Toasting the spices briefly deepens their flavor.

2. 2

   Add chicken and broth

   Nestle in the chicken thighs, add two cans of beans and the broth, and bring to a simmer. Cook 20 minutes until the chicken is tender and cooked through.

3. 3

   Shred the chicken

   Remove the chicken, shred it with two forks, and return it to the pot. Shredding rather than dicing gives the chili a hearty, cohesive texture throughout.

4. 4

   Thicken with beans

   Mash the remaining can of beans and stir it in. The mashed beans release starch that naturally thickens the chili into a creamy consistency without any flour.

   A potato masher right in the can works well.

5. 5

   Make it creamy

   Stir in the softened cream cheese until it fully melts into the broth, making the chili silky and rich. Simmer another 10 minutes to let the flavors meld.

6. 6

   Finish and serve

   Stir in the cilantro and lime juice, then taste and adjust salt and heat. Serve topped with avocado, shredded cheese, and crushed tortilla chips.

Variations

• •

  Use rotisserie chicken to make it even faster.

• •

  Add a cup of corn for sweetness and texture.

• •

  Stir in sour cream or heavy cream instead of cream cheese.

• •

  Increase the cayenne and add a diced jalapeno for more heat.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 4 days; the flavor improves overnight. It freezes well for up to 3 months, though dairy-based chilis can separate slightly on thawing, so stir well and reheat gently over low heat.

Frequently Asked Questions