White Chicken Chili
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Craving a lighter take on classic chili? This white chicken chili swaps out the usual ground meat and tomatoes for pulled chicken and white beans in a savory, flavorful broth—comforting and delicious in every way!
White chicken chili is a flavorful twist on classic chili, made with pulled chicken and white beans in a savory broth instead of the usual ground meat, kidney beans, and tomato base. It has a lighter color and a more soup-like consistency than traditional beef chili, turkey chili, or chili con carne, while still delivering the same rich and comforting flavor.
I have tried countless white chili recipes over the years—from super-easy crockpot versions to more authentic, time-consuming ones with dried chili peppers and hominy. This white chicken chili recipe strikes the perfect balance between ease and depth of flavor—and it’s my family’s favorite by far. Pair this hearty one-pot meal with warm, buttery cornbread, and you’ve got a perfect dinner on the table in under an hour.
Table of Contents
“This was amazing! So easy and pleased the whole family. Simple with complex flavors and comes together in a snap. Great for a cold day or after a busy day at work.”
What You’ll Need To Make White Chicken Chili
- Canned White Beans: Add creaminess and a hearty texture to the dish.
- Chicken Broth: Provides the flavorful liquid base for the chili. Since canned beans are fairly high in sodium, using a low-sodium variety broth helps to keep the flavor of the chili from being overly salty.
- Onion and Garlic: These aromatic ingredients form the flavor base of the chili.
- Jalapeño Pepper and Poblano Peppers: These peppers add heat and a mild smoky flavor to the chili. Jalapeños provide spiciness, while poblanos offer a gentle kick.
- Spices (Cumin, Coriander, Ancho Chile Powder): The spice blend lends earthy, smoky, deep flavors to the chili.
- Rotisserie Chicken: Adds a convenient source of protein. Pro tip: shred the chicken as soon as you get home from the grocery store; it’s easier to do while the chicken is still warm, eliminates a step at dinnertime, and also takes up less room in the fridge.
- Corn: Adds a touch of natural sweetness and a nice textural contrast to the beans and chicken. Frozen corn is convenient and fine to use; if you’d prefer to use fresh, you’ll need one ear of corn.
- Fresh Lime Juice: Brightens the flavors of the chili.
- Fresh Cilantro: Adds a burst of vibrant herbal freshness, enhancing both the flavor and appearance of the dish.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by combining half of the white beans in a food processor with one cup of the chicken broth. Process until you have a smooth purée. This is what will thicken the broth. Set aside.
In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil and add the the onions and peppers.
Cook until soft, about 4 minutes, then add the garlic.
Cook a minute more, then add the spices.
Continue cooking for another minute to toast the spices.
Add the chicken broth, salt and puréed bean mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Stir in the shredded chicken, beans, corn, and lime and simmer until everything is warmed through.
You will notice that the chili is quite soupy. This is intentional. It thickens as it sits — in fact, if you make it ahead of time, you will likely need to add some broth or water to thin it out. Plus, I find that if the broth is too thick, the chili gets gloppy and unappealing. A soupy broth is good!
Serve with sour cream, lime wedges, shredded cheese (Cheddar, Monterey Jack, and Pepper Jack are all great options) and crushed tortilla chips.
Frequently Asked Questions
Poblano peppers are mild chili peppers with a subtle earthy flavor. They resemble green bell peppers but they are a bit darker and thinner with a pointy tip. They’re readily available in the produce section of most supermarkets, but green bell peppers are a suitable substitute.
Sure! You can use any leftover chicken, or my poached chicken makes a great substitute.
Yes, the chili will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Keep in mind that it will thicken up as it sits in the fridge. When you reheat it, you will likely need to add more broth or water to thin it out. The chili can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat it on the stovetop over medium-low heat until hot.
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Video Tutorial
White Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 2 15.5-ounce (439-g) cans white beans, rinsed and drained
- 4 cups (1 L) low-sodium chicken broth, divided
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced (see note)
- 2 medium poblano peppers, seeded and diced (see note)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1½ teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
- Salt
- 1 rotisserie chicken, skin removed and shredded (about 4 cups)
- ¾ cup frozen corn
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, from one lime, plus more to taste
- ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro
Optional For Serving
- Sour cream
- Crushed tortilla chips
- Shredded cheddar or Pepper Jack cheese
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- In a food processor, blend half of the beans (1 can) with 1 cup (240 ml) of the chicken broth. Set aside both the puréed beans and the remaining whole beans.
- Add the oil to a large pot or Dutch oven and heat it over medium-high heat. Add the onion, jalapeño pepper and poblano peppers and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one minute more. Add the cumin, coriander and ancho chili powder and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for one minute more to toast the spices. Add the chicken broth, puréed beans and ½ teaspoon of salt; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
- Stir in the shredded rotisserie chicken, reserved whole beans, corn, and lime juice; bring back to a simmer and cook until everything is heated through, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt and lime juice, if necessary. Stir in the cilantro. (Note that the broth will be somewhat soupy -- that's how it is supposed to be. It thickens the longer it sits; see note below.) Ladle the chili into bowls and serve with sour cream, crushed tortilla chips, and lime wedges.
- Note: The seeds and ribs in the peppers hold all of the heat. I don't use them to keep the chili mild and family-friendly, but if you like a spicy chili, save them and stir some in at the end. (If you do touch the seeds, be sure to wash your hands well and avoid touching your eyes.)
- Note: The chili thickens as it sits. If you make it ahead of time, you will probably need to add more broth or water to thin it out.
- Note: Nutrition info does not include optional toppings.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: Yes, the chili will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Keep in mind that it will thicken up as it sits in the fridge. When you reheat it, you will likely need to add more broth or water to thin it out. The chili can be frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat it on the stovetop over medium-low heat until hot.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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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Great idea to thicken the chile with puréed beans instead of cream cheese or something similar!
This is one of very few recipes from this site that I found really underwhelming. I ended up adding a good bit of salt at the end, then hot pepper, a little extra lime juice and even a pat of butter and my husband was still not impressed. After adding cheese, sour cream and pickled jalapenos he liked it better. I do love the nutritional profile of this dish though so we may try it again and just kick up all the spices a notch. I have a feeling this recipe would do well with a good shlock of hot verde salsa, so I may try that next time.
I loved this recipe, but I made a few modifications due to household and personal preferences that I think sent it over the top for me.
– I pureed more than half the beans, probably about 1.5 cans’ worth, along with about 2 cups of the broth. This gave it a thicker texture while actually still giving plenty of whole beans in the end result. I also did this in my blender, not food processor, and let it run for several seconds beyond the point that it looked smooth.
– As I do in most recipes that call for peppers and onions, I used my mini food processor to chop them VERY finely, almost into a paste. My husband appreciates the flavor peppers and onions give to a dish but has a texture issue with discernible pieces of them, so I tend to do this a lot. In this case, I think it not only didn’t hurt the end result, but actively helped it. Every bite has a lovely background note of the poblanos.
– I also used my mini food processor for the cilantro, mostly because I was feeling lazy and didn’t want to chop it by hand – and I used more than 1/4 cup. This definitely added an excellent layer of flavor, too.
– I added more garlic, a touch more of the ancho chile powder, and more lime. Fresh lime is absolutely essential here, do not use the bottled stuff. I would even go so far as to say that it’d be better to skip the lime entirely rather than use the bottled stuff – the flavor comes through pretty prominently.
I served it for dinner with avocado and cotija cheese as my toppings, but I’ve eaten it for lunch with no extra toppings and it’s equally fabulous that way. Thanks, Jenn!
Anyone try this with vegetable broth and no chicken?
I always make this dish with vegetable broth and leave out of the chicken because it’s delicious with the cannellini beans.
Another delicious dish! Loved the flavours in this great alternative to a heavy beef chili. Thanks Jenn!
We found this quite bland. I followed the recipe To a tee. I ended up adding crushed red pepper flakes, a teaspoon of chili powder, and the juice of two limes. And it never thickened.
I so enjoy your recipes, most of which are fun, easy to follow as well as delicious. I do find all the advertisements so irritating especially the ones that interrupt your nice videos. They seem to be worse than ever. That said they will not keep me from using your website.
Hi Anna, so glad you like the recipes and I’m sorry about the ads! For watching the videos without the ads, while you’re viewing one, about 1/3 of the way through, two little buttons show up on the right side of the video saying “next” or “stay?” Just click on the stay button and you should see the remainder of the video with no ad. Hope that helps!
Amazing! So delicious. I made it exactly as written. Only addition was when I tasted for seasoning at the end, I added a few dashes of adobo to taste. Will definitely make again. Whole family loved it. Thank you!
This recipe is spot on PERFECTION!! I double the recipe and share containers of it with friends. They think I’m a brilliant cook. Little do they know how simple, quick and fool proof the recipe is!! Thank you Jenn, for all of your wonderful recipes!!
This is a wonderful recipe! I didn’t have coriander so I added some Sazon. Other than that I followed it exactly. It is easy and flavorful. I will make this again.