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The Best White Chili With Chicken

The Best White Chili With Chicken

Enjoy the best white chili with chicken, made with tender beans, flavorful chilies, and shredded pepper Jack cheese.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 50 minutes
Soaking Time 8 hours
Total Time 10 hours
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 7 servings
Calories 450 kcal

Equipment

  • Dutch oven
  • immersion blender
  • Countertop Blender
  • digital thermometer

Ingredients
  

Beans

  • 1 pound dried small white (Navy) beans or Great Northern beans, or cannellini beans

Chiles

  • 2 fresh poblano chiles
  • 4 fresh Anaheim or Hatch chiles
  • 2 fresh jalapeño chiles
  • 1 whole pickled jalapeño pepper
  • 2 tablespoons pickling liquid from the can

Vegetables

  • 1 medium onion peeled, trimmed, and split in half
  • 8 medium cloves garlic
  • 4 to 6 scallions white and light green parts only, thinly sliced

Liquids

  • 1 quart low-sodium chicken stock homemade or store-bought
  • 2 tablespoons fresh juice from limes plus 1 lime cut into wedges for serving

Spices

  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds

Protein

  • 4 (8-ounce) boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Cheese

  • 1 pound shredded pepper Jack cheese divided

Herbs

  • 1 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves divided

Instructions
 

Preparation

  • Cover beans with 1 gallon (4 quarts) water. Add ¼ cup salt and stir until dissolved. Cover and let rest at room temperature at least 8 hours and up to 24. Drain and rinse beans.
  • Adjust broiler rack to 8 inches below broiler element and preheat broiler to high. Place poblanos, Anaheims, jalapeños, onion, and garlic on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Toss with 1 tablespoon oil using your hands to coat. Season with salt. Place under broiler and broil, turning peppers and rearranging vegetables occasionally, until peppers are blackened on all sides and skins are wrinkled all over, 15 to 20 minutes total. Gather up foil and form a sealed pouch. Let chiles rest for 5 minutes.
  • Place chiles and chicken stock in a large bowl. Peel chiles under the chicken stock, leaving skins and seeds behind. Transfer chile flesh to the cup of a hand blender or a standing blender. Add broiled onion, broiled garlic, and the canned jalapeño (do not add jalapeño pickling liquid). Blend until a smooth purée is formed. Set aside.

Cooking

  • Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add cumin and coriander and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add chile purée and cook, stirring, until incorporated. Strain chicken stock into pot, pressing on skins and seeds to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard skins and seeds.
  • Add soaked beans and chicken breasts to pot, adding water as necessary until beans and chicken are fully submerged. Bring to a boil, reduce to a bare simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken breasts register 150°F (66°C) on an instant-read thermometer, about 15 minutes.
  • Transfer chicken breasts to a bowl and let rest. Continue simmering broth and beans until beans are fully tender, about 1 hour total. Remove 1 ½ cups of beans and their liquid and transfer to a standing blender or the work cup of an immersion blender. Blend until completely smooth. Stir back into pot.
  • Shred chicken into bite-size pieces and stir back into stew. Stir in half of cheese until melted. Stir in jalapeño pickling liquid, lime juice, and half of cilantro. Season to taste with salt.
  • Serve immediately with extra shredded cheese, lime wedges, cilantro, and scallions.

Notes

This recipe can be made with canned beans in place of soaked. Use four (15-ounce) cans of drained, rinsed cannellini beans. Start from step 2 and reduce simmering time in step 4 to 30 minutes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1bowlCalories: 450kcalCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 30gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 90mgSodium: 800mgPotassium: 800mgFiber: 10gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 500IUVitamin C: 30mgCalcium: 300mgIron: 3mg
Keyword Beans, chicken chili, chili recipe, Comfort Food, White Chili
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