Creamy White Chicken Chili – A great alternative to the tomato-based soup! We love how easy this chili is and can easily feed a crowd! A staple for the chilly weather! I even share how you can make it in your slow cooker!
Just a few short weeks ago we came back from a fabulous vacation from California and let me tell you guys something. The weather before we left home was still hot and humid – high 90s, and in California, we had perfect weather – not too hard or cold, and we came back to chilly temperatures with a week long period of rain, so depressing, right? It was! Now the sun is shining and you can start to tell fall is here, so I am craving soups, chili, and stews.
I love a traditional bowl of chili, traditional meaning the “red” type made with tomatoes and kidney beans, but this creamy white chicken chili is something special. It’s filling, comforting, and tastes completely different than red chili. It’s a great staple to have on hand for your dinner rotation. We love making it a few times a month because it’s that good and inexpensive to make!
Most of the time to get the costs down, I like to purchase dried beans, soak, and simmer them myself. However, it does take a little planning ahead of time, and I didn’t have much time, so I opted for the canned beans instead. Use whichever kind your budget and times allow.
As with all chili, the base starts with sautéeing diced onions in a little bit of oil – canola, vegetable, or olive oil is fine. Where this gets a bit different from the red chili is using great northern beans instead of red kidney beans, adding lime juice, and adding sour cream to enhance the creamy factor.
If you love chili, you may even enjoy these chili recipes I have on the blog – 5-Ingredient Slow Cooker Chili Cheese Dip and Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chipotle Chili. Both are delicious and perfect for the chilly weather!
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 32 ounces reduced-sodium chicken stock
- 2½ cups shredded chicken
- 2-15 ounce cans Great Northern Beans, drained
- 4 ounce can green chilis
- 1 jalapeno, finely diced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- salt and pepper, to taste
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup sour cream
- fresh parsley, to garnish
- Preheat a dutch oven or large soup pot until hot. Place the oil and onions in the pot and saute until the onions are translucent.
- Place the garlic, chicken stock, shredded chicken, great northern beans, green chilis, jalapeno, oregano, cumin, and lime juice into the pot and mix until combined. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
- Bring the chili to a boil, cover and reduce the heat and simmer over medium heat for 20-30 minutes.
- Remove the lid and stir in the heavy cream and sour cream. Simmer on low for another 10 minutes.
- Serve with fresh parsley.
Does the chicken need to be cooked first before I put it in the pot?
Hi Angie! I used rotisserie shredded chicken. I would recommend cooking the chicken before adding it to the chili.
Amazing recipe, and so quick to prepare! I’m a big user of rotisserie chicken. We absolutely loved this! Thank you!
So happy to hear that, Joanie! We love rotisserie chicken, too, it makes dinner a breeze!
I use the canned chicken breasts from the warehouse store. You can also buy cans of white chili beans, a little more flavor. Pepper Hack Cheese is great on top.