This easy and flavorful White Chicken Chili is full of hearty beans, tender chicken, corn, creamy broth, and lots of fresh toppings! A delicious and warm bowl of chili that is perfect for enjoying on all those chilly winter nights.
Easy White Chicken Chili
This simple recipe for the best white chicken chili is a MUST during these cold months! It is a great way to change things up from the traditional beef chili recipes. Whether you make this soup recipe on the stovetop in your favorite dutch oven or let it slow cook in your crockpot, the whole family is going to love adding all of their favorite toppings! It definitely needs a place on your next weekly menu, plus it is a great option for feeding a crowd!
Looking for a fun twist on your chicken chili? We have the most amazing Mexican Street Corn White Chicken Chili!
What You Will Need
- butter – option to use a plant-based butter or olive oil if you are going to make this dairy-free.
- sweet yellow onion, anaheim pepper, & garlic – a perfect combination of aromatics to get all the great flavors going.
- flour – the perfect thickener for this soup to get a more creamy base.
- chicken stock – either grab your favorite from your local grocery store or make a homemade batch!
- boneless skinless chicken breasts – you could also use about 6 bone-in chicken thighs (bonus – it will add even more flavor) or you can keep it super easy and use a rotisserie chicken from the store.
- cream – we used Nutpods unsweetened dairy-free cream but you could also use half-and-half or a heavy cream if you aren’t concerned about making a dairy-free chili.
- green chiles – a traditional ingredient for any white chicken chili.
- worcestershire sauce, chili powder, cumin, dried oregano leaves, kosher salt, & ground black pepper – an amazing combination of seasonings and flavors that bring this chili to the next level.
- lemon juice – a splash of acidity to amplify all the flavors!
- canned corn – we tossed in a can of corn but feel free to use frozen corn too.
- cannellini beans – another traditional component of any white chicken chili – any white canned beans will work great!
- cream cheese – a perfect way to get a nice creamy base! Option to use a dairy-free cream cheese if you need it.
- toppings: we love enjoying ours with sour cream, avocado, tortilla strips, fresh cilantro, shredded cheese, and lime wedges!
How To Cook Chicken For White Chicken Chili
In this recipe card, we cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts right in the broth in the stockpot but that isn’t the only option. You could also use chicken thighs! Simply add your bone-in chicken thighs to the broth and cook the same way we are cooking the chicken breasts. Another option would be to buy a rotisserie chicken from your grocery store, shred, and then add it to the pot in step 3. We also have a whole post on 3 easy ways to make shredded chicken – any of those would also work!
How To Make White Chicken Chili
This easy chili recipe can be made by placing a large pot on medium heat, add the butter to melt, and then add the onion, anaheim pepper, and garlic to sauté for 3-5 minutes. Then add the flour and toss to coat.
Now slowly add the chicken broth while continuously whisking to create a thicker base.
Next, add your chicken to the pot and simmer for about 15 minutes or until their internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (use a meat thermometer). Remove the fully cooked chicken, shred, and return it to the pot.
For a thicker chili, place one can of white beans in a glass mixing cup (or similar container) and use an immersion blender to blend until smooth. You could also use a food processor. Then add this to the pot along with the other can of whole beans.
Now add in your cream of choice, seasonings, green chiles, and the canned corn. Mix to fully combine.
Next, cut your cream cheese into large chunks, and then to the pot, and simmer very softly for it to melt. Continue mixing to help the melting process.
Lighten it up: feel free to lighten this chili up a bit by cutting the amount of cream cheese you use in half!
Continue mixing as the cream cheese melts to speed up the process and fully combine all ingredients.
Best Ways To Serve White Chicken Chili
There are so many amazing options to go with this traditional white bean chicken chili! We love topping ours with fresh cilantro leaves, shredded cheese, tortilla chips, dollop of sour cream, avocado chunks, and, of course, that fresh lime juice! We also like having a nice piece of cornbread or saltine crackers on the side.
Can I Make White Chicken Chili In A Crockpot
Absolutely!! This process is super simple. You can begin this process by sautéing the onion, anaheim pepper, and garlic in a skillet (just like the recipe card states), then mix in the flour, and place this in the slow cooker. Whisk in the chicken broth into the crock pot, add the chicken breasts, seasonings, beans (using the same process as the recipe card), corn, and green chiles. Give it a mix and turn on the low setting for 6-8 hours or high setting for 3-4 hours. Shred the chicken and return to the pot. Finally, add the cream and cream cheese and cook on high for about 15 minutes before serving.
Recipe FAQ
- gluten-free: this is a great option for a gluten-free dinner! Simply use gluten-free flour and that’s it!
- leftovers: any leftovers can be cooled a bit, placed in an airtight container, and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days!
- freezing white chicken chili: after your chili has cooled you can place it in a freezer-safe container (leave room for expansion) and place it in the freezer for 4-6 months!
Made this recipe and loved it?! We would love it if you would take a minute and leave a star rating and review – it is also helpful if you made any substitutions or changes to the recipe to share that as well. THANK YOU!
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Other Traditional Chili Recipes You Might Like
White Chicken Chili Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 16–18 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner/Entree
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
White Chicken Chili – a delicious, creamy white chicken chili recipe that the whole family will love! Easy and packed with flavor!
Ingredients
- 3–4 tablespoons butter (regular or dairy-free)
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 large anaheim pepper, chopped
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 4 tablespoons flour (all-purpose or gluten-free)
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast*
- 1/3 cup Nutpods unsweetened dairy-free cream (or half and half)
- 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
- (2) 4oz cans diced green chiles
- 1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 15oz can corn, drained
- (2) 15oz cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 4–8 oz cream cheese,** softened
- Toppings: sour cream, cheese, cilantro, tortilla strips, avocado
Instructions
- Add butter to a large Dutch Oven (5.5qt) and bring to medium-high heat. Add yellow onion, anaheim pepper and garlic. Sauté 3-5 minutes or until onion has softened.
- Add flour and stir to combine (this should coat the veggies and make a bit of a paste). Grab a whisk and start slowly adding chicken broth about 1/2 cup at a time, whisking continuously. Continue until all the broth has been added.
- Bring to a simmer and add the chicken breasts. Let simmer until fully cooked; about 15 minutes. Shred and return to the pot along with cream, worcestershire sauce, green chiles, chili powder, pepper, cumin, oregano, salt, lemon juice and corn. Stir to combine.
- Take one can of beans and place in a tall glass measuring cup (or similar container) and blend with immersion blender*** until creamy – add the pot along with the other can of beans (left whole). Stir to combine.
- Cut cream cheese into large chunks and add to the pot. Cover and simmer very softly (stirring occasionally) to allow the cream cheese to melt.
- Once the cream cheese has melted, stir to fully combine everything and then taste and add any additional salt or pepper, as desired.
- Serve in bowls with lots of freshly squeezed lime juice, a dollop of sour cream, freshly chopped cilantro, avocado chunks and a few tortilla strips!
Notes
- *Chicken – if you want even more flavor feel free to use bone-in chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts – about 6 should do the trick.
- **Cream Cheese: if you want this soup a little lighter you can easily omit the cream cheese or just use half of it!
- ***Blending Beans: the blending is totally optional, but I love how it helps thicken the chili and make it even more creamy and delicious, but if you would prefer to leave both cans whole that definitely works too!
- Dairy-Free: make this dairy-free by using dairy-free butter, the Nutpods unsweetened/unflavored creamer, dairy-free cream cheese, and dairy-free sour cream/cheese for toppings.
- Gluten-Free: to make this gluten-free use gluten-free flour.
- Slow Cooker: Sauté the onion, anaheim pepper, and garlic in a skillet (just like the recipe card states), then mix in the flour, and place this in the slow cooker. Whisk in the chicken broth into the crock pot, add the chicken breasts, seasonings, beans (using the same process as the recipe card), corn, and green chiles. Give it a mix and turn on the low setting for 6-8 hours or high setting for 3-4 hours. Shred the chicken and return to the pot. Finally, add the cream and cream cheese and cook on high for about 15 minutes before serving.
- Storage: in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days!
- Freezer: let it cool, place in a freezer-safe container, and store for 4-6 months.
- Looking for a Whole30/Dairy-Free option? We also have a Whole30 White Chicken Chili that is equally as delicious!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6oz
- Calories: 167
- Sugar: 2.1 g
- Sodium: 593.2 mg
- Fat: 8.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 12.8 g
- Protein: 10.9 g
- Cholesterol: 42.3 mg
Tori says
So good! Have tried several other white chicken chili recipes that were kind of brothy and bland, this one was way better. Used about 6oz of cream cheese, otherwise everything else as stated. Will switch up and between 4 and 8oz on my next versions to see what I like best. This is my second recipe from Wooden Skillet that’s been a huge hit. Found the corn/ avocado/ feta/ romaine/ herb salad last summer on IG and have made that a ton of times. Some IG recipes are total flops but so far I’m having good luck with yours Wooden Skillet!
Erin Jensen says
Aw thank you so much, Tori, for the kind and thoughtful comment! Can’t tell you how much it means to me 🙂 Excited for you to try some more recipes!!
Gigi says
This recipe was delicious! It came out more like a corn chowder than chili, but that was fine because the taste was spot on! I used 1/2 the cream cheese (4 oz) and kept everything the same. I made it in an instant pot…had everything in there, until the end when I switched it to saute to melt the cream cheese and then added the 1/2 and 1/2. Don’t forget to top with the sour cream and cilantro for serving… it makes the dish! We also served it with crackers instead of tortilla chips. Enjoy!
Erin says
Glad you enjoyed it, Gigi!