Chicken Chili with White Beans
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This chicken chili is a hearty, healthy dish you can feel good about eating.
If you’re looking for a lighter alternative to my classic chili recipe, this chicken chili is just the ticket. It’s made from scratch, loaded with veggies, and packed with protein-rich chicken and beans. But don’t worry—it’s still hearty and satisfying, even for the biggest football fanatics in your life. The ingredient list might look a bit long at first glance, but don’t let that scare you off. It’s mostly spices, and the active cooking time is only about 30 minutes, though it simmers on the stove for nearly two hours to develop that deep, rich flavor. And here’s a tip: be sure to use regular ground chicken, not the lean variety, for the best texture and taste. For a tasty variation, check out my favorite turkey chili recipe too!
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Chicken Chili With White Beans
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step-by-Step Instructions
To begin, heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or nonreactive soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions and red bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring to prevent garlic from burning, about two minutes more.
Increase the heat to medium-high. Add the ground chicken, chili powder, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, oregano, cayenne pepper, and salt.
As the chicken cooks, use a wooden spoon to break the meat into very small clumps; cook until no longer pink, about 5 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, chicken broth, and sugar.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, partially covered with lid ajar, for about one hour, stirring occasionally. Stir in the white beans and simmer, uncovered for about 50 minutes more, or until the meat is tender and the flavors are well combined.
For a soupier chili, you can add additional water. For a thicker chili, simmer uncovered until the desired consistency is reached. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Note that this chili is moderately spicy; feel free to adjust to your liking by increasing or decreasing the cayenne and red pepper flakes.
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Chicken Chili with White Beans
This chicken chili is a hearty, healthy dish you can feel good about eating.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 cups chopped yellow onions, from 2 medium onions
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 6 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 2 pounds ground chicken (preferably not labeled "lean")
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (omit for milder chili)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 (26 oz.) cartons Pomi chopped tomatoes or two (28 oz.) cans chopped or diced tomatoes
- 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 (15 oz.) can Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large nonreactive pot over medium heat. Add the onions and red bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring to prevent garlic from burning, about two minutes more.
- Increase the heat to medium-high. Add the ground chicken, chili powder, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, oregano, cayenne pepper, and salt. As the chicken cooks, use a wooden spoon to break the meat into very small clumps; cook until no longer pink, about 5 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, chicken broth, and sugar. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, partially covered with lid ajar, for about one hour, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the white beans and simmer, uncovered for about 50 minutes more, or until the meat is tender and the flavors are well combined. For a soupier chili, you can add additional water. For a thicker chili, simmer uncovered until desired consistency is reached. Taste and add more salt if necessary.
- Note: Pomi boxed tomatoes are available at some regular grocers, Whole Foods and gourmet food shops.
- Note: A nonreactive pot is made of a material that will not react negatively with acidic ingredients. Stainless steel, enamel, glass and nonstick (as long as there are no scratches in the nonstick coating) are all safe to use. Do not use cast iron or aluminum.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The chili can be frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat it on the stovetop over medium-low heat until hot. (The chili will thicken up some when frozen, so you’ll likely need to add some broth when reheating.)
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (1 3/4 - 2 cups servings)
- Calories: 374
- Fat: 17 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 29 g
- Sugar: 9 g
- Fiber: 9 g
- Protein: 31 g
- Sodium: 1110 mg
- Cholesterol: 111 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Can a crockpot be used to make this chili?
Hi TB, I honestly don’t think it’s worth the trouble to make in a slow cooker because you’d need to follow the same process, and as is it cooks very quickly on the stovetop.
I couldn’t begin to count the number of times I’ve been served chili over the years. Most were fine. Some were great and a couple were even amazing. But this Chicken Chili with White Beans is, without a doubt, the best chili I have ever tasted……and I made it myself.
You Jenn Segal are a master!
Hi Jenn!
I made this recipe for football Sunday and my family loved it.
I am hosting a get together and was hoping to do as much prep work as possible before the day .
What are your thoughts if I made this a day before the get together and heat it up for the party? Can you offer any suggestions if I tried to make this is a crockpot?
Thank you!
Hi Lily, It’s perfectly fine to make this ahead of time; just keep in mind that it will thicken up quite a bit in the fridge and you’ll probably need to thin it with a little broth or water. I don’t recommend making it in a crockpot but it’s fine to reheat and serve in one. Hope that helps!
Every time I want to describe one of Jenns recipes I want to say “my favorite recipe” ! However, all the recipes I’ve tried on here are all my favorite recipes and let’s just say I’ve tried most of them already…
With that in mind, this chili is so delicious and hearty and scrumptious it’s hard not to share it with others.
I was recently invited to a special event in which the theme was “Southern Charm and cowboys/cowgirls” and I immediately offered to bring this chili for everyone to try. Let it be known that the first thing to disappear amongst the delicious bakes hams, country fried chicken and biscuits was this delightful chili.
Everyone loved it.
The main reason why I adore this chili is that you don’t feel heavy after eating it. The fact that it’s chicken makes it so much leaner and a heart healthy choice. It’s a delicious HEALTHY chili that makes you feel good, not guilty, after eating it.
We’ve eaten this at home in a bowl with a side of delicious corn bread and that has been the perfect eating scenario for us. We also added it to some hotdogs and made chili dogs, that of course was awesome but this was meant to be enjoyed in a bowl, in my opinion.
Another great thing about this chili is that it stores well. If you want to freeze leftovers or refrigerate them for lunch the next day or two, it keeps well. In fact, chili on day two tastes better than freshly made since all those delicious flavors have melted into each other.
Another 5 star recipe that has made it into my personal recipe book.
I can’t get over how good ground chicken is in chili – thanks Jenn for this wonderful recipe. I made a half batch more or less – used the same amount of veggies, mixed the seasoning and used half, and then halved the rest – my 91 year old mother especially loves this chili!
If I were able to make a ground beef chili with this recipe and I didn’t have any beef stock would I be able to use chicken stock instead?
Sure, that would be fine.
This was delicious my family devoured it! I was just wondering would it be possible for me to substitute some things like ground beef instead of the ground chicken and kidney and black beans instead of white beans, for a beef chili recipe?
Hi Jerrika, glad your family enjoyed the chili! Yes, chili is pretty flexible so you can play around with the ingredients a bit; ground beef and kidney and black beans would be fine here. I’d love to know how it turns out with those tweaks!
Hi Jen,
I’m curious as to why there is over 1100mg of sodium per serving. Just sounds like so much because you’re using low soduim broth. Thanks!
Hi Donna, there are actually several ingredients in the chili that contribute to the sodium– the canned tomatoes and beans are fairly high in sodium and the 2 teaspoons of added salt play a part as well. If you’re watching your sodium intake, you can buy reduced-sodium beans and cut back on the added salt. Hope that helps!
I am going to try this tonight. I was wondering about the coriander. I don’t have any and I’ve never tried it. I hate wasting money on a spice that I’ll never use again. Is it a make or break if I don’t use this spice?
No Nicole, the lack of coriander won’t make or break the recipe. You could always add a bit more cumin to the chili as it’s got a similar warm quality. Hope you enjoy!
Hi Jenn,
I am really enjoying your website, You are helping me be a better cook! I really appreciate the helpful advice you always include. I do have a question about the nonreactive pots. I have cast iron that has a ceramic coating (I think its ceramic!), is this ok to use? Thank you!
Yes Doreen, that should work just fine! Hope you enjoy the chili.