White Chicken Chili

Course Main Course, Poultry

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword white-chicken-chili

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Servings servings

Calories 493kcal

3 8 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts (each piece cut into 3 pieces)
1 medium onion diced
1 medium poblano seeded and diced
1 medium jalapeno pepper seeded and diced
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic minced
1 32 oz low sodium chicken stock
3 15 oz cans navy beans drained
2 4 oz cans chopped green chiles preferably fire roasted, don't drain
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp lemon pepper
1 tsp Mexican oregano
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 8 ounce container chive and onion cream cheese softened
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro plus additional for garnishing
lime wedges, shredded cheddar cheese, sliced jalapeno, cilantro, sour cream, avocado, tortilla strips for serving

In a large pot or Dutch oven brown the chicken in oil over medium high heat for 1-2 minutes per side, just until it begins to brown. (It doesn't have to be cooked through.) Remove to a platter.
To the pot add onion, poblano, jalapeno and garlic cooking until softened and beginning to brown. Scrape any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
To the pot add broth, beans, green chiles, cumin, garlic salt, lemon pepper, oregano and red pepper flakes. Mix well. Return chicken to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered, for 30 minutes.
Use 2 forks to pull chicken apart. Add ½ of cream cheese and chopped cilantro to the pot. Simmer just until cream cheese is completely melted and chicken is evenly distributed, stir well. Test thickness, adding the remaining cream cheese only if needed, to thicken to your taste.
Serve with lime wedges, sour cream, jalapeno slices, cilantro, shredded cheese and tortilla strips.

Beans - White chicken chili is typically made with white beans. I use navy beans in this recipe but you could also use cannellini beans.
Chicken - You could use chicken thighs in place of chicken breasts.
Oil - You could cook the chicken in butter instead of oil.
Corn - You could add 1 cup corn kernels to the pot in addition to the peppers for a hint of sweetness.
Spice - You could add 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or serve it with hot sauce on the side to add a little heat.
Precooked Chicken - This recipes takes you from the point of prepping the chicken to the finished product. If you're short on time, you could probably adapt using rotisserie chicken from the supermarket deli to expedite the process.
Shredding - The purpose of cooking the chicken in larger chunks and then shredding it later in the process, is to prevent overcooking and drying out the chicken.
Adjust the Thickness to Your Taste - In this recipe cream cheese acts as a thickener for the chicken broth. You can adjust the amount according to how thick you'd like the chili to be by adding only half then adjust the thickness from that point with additional cream cheese, if needed. Likewise, you can thin the chili using additional chicken stock.
Peppers - Using both poblano and jalapeno peppers rounds out the flavor of the chili beautifully. If it's your preference, you could opt to use on or the other or adapt using milder chilis.