Recipes » Soups

Easy White Chicken Chili

Yumna Jawad

Updated Nov 23, 2024

5 from 14 reviews

This white chicken chili is full of warm spices and ultra creamy! It's one of my favorite cold-weather recipes.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Servings 6 servings

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When the temperature dips, I have one recipe I must make immediately: White Chicken Chili. It’s creamy and spiced with jalapeno, diced green chiles, oregano, cumin, and chili powder. I like to set up a toppings bar, so my family can add whatever they like to this creamy white chicken chili, like grated cheese, chopped cilantro, and diced avocado!

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When the weather gets colder, I get into soup and chili mode. While I have plenty of soup recipes I love, this white chicken chili is one I legitimately dream about. It’s a) super easy, b) super healthy, and c) super yummy.

I like that it has so much flavor but relies on smart canned and frozen ingredients to cut down on prep time. Plus (and I really can’t say this enough), it’s so creamy and tangy. The trick is blending the beans and using sour cream. I like to stir in a whole container of sour cream, but you can substitute a portion of it for Greek yogurt!

Recipe At a Glance

Cuisine Inspiration: American and Mexican
Primary Cooking Method: Stovetop
Dietary Info: Gluten-free
Key Flavor: Chicken, chiles, sour cream, and beans
Skill Level: Easy

Why This Is So Good

• Fast: This white bean chicken chili is ready in less than an hour, but takes just 15 minutes of prep! Otherwise, it’s mostly just simmering the rest of the time.
• Make-ahead: I think a lot of soups and stews taste better the next day, once the flavors have a chance to blend and really develop!
• Hearty and filling: With chicken and beans, this chili is a one-bowl, high-protein meal.

Ingredients to Make White Chicken Chili

• Onions, garlic, and jalapeno: These are your aromatics. They’ll add flavor to every bite.
• Oil: You need just a little to cook the aromatics.
• Chicken thighs: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs cook quickly and are easy to shred into bite-size pieces.
• White beans: Use either Great Northern beans or Cannellini beans, and make sure to drain and rinse them well to remove the salty, canned liquid!
• Frozen corn: Don’t bother thawing the corn first (it’ll defrost when added to the chili).
• Diced green chilis: These are often mild, smoky, and sweet-tasting.
• Water: Because of all the flavors from the other ingredients, water works great.
• Sour cream: This is what will make the white chicken chili so creamy. Use full-fat sour cream for the best flavor.
• Spices: You’ll need chili powder, ground cumin, and dried oregano! I call for Mexican oregano, which tastes floral-like and citrusy, but you can use any kind.

Popular Substitutions & Additions

• Add Greek yogurt. You can substitute up to half of the sour cream for Greek yogurt.
• Use more veggies. Try adding a chopped bell pepper with the rest of the aromatics. You can also stir in frozen or fresh chopped spinach at the end.
• Try stock instead of water. This isn’t necessary, but if you have chicken stock or vegetable stock, you can absolutely use it instead. It’ll only add more flavor.
• Use chicken breasts instead of thighs. They just might need a little longer to cook.

How to Make White Chicken Chili

This white chicken chili with corn is easy to make and relies heavily on pantry ingredients to make it super flavorful. If you have an immersion (or stick) blender, you’ll want to use it.

Tips for Making the Best White Bean Chicken Chili

• Let it thicken into a chili consistency. You’ll notice when the chili is done that it still seems liquidy. This is intentional! The chili will continue to thicken as it sits. However, if you want to thicken it fast, you can use cornstarch. Mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water, and then slowly mix into the hot chili.
• Use rotisserie chicken to make it faster. If you want to make this white chicken chili even faster and easier, use leftover shredded rotisserie chicken.
• Make sure to de-seed the jalapeno. The seeds of the jalapeno are where the chile’s heat is. To de-seed it, I like to cut the pepper in half lengthwise, slice it into quarters, then use a paring knife to cut out the seeds.

What to Serve With Creamy White Chicken Chili

• Vegan Cornbread
• Skillet Dinner Rolls
• Corn Tomato Avocado Salad
• Mexican Street Corn Salad

Frequently Asked Questions

This white chicken chili is a family favorite, especially in the winter. I love making a big batch of it and having it for dinner and lunch the next day. It has protein from the white beans and chicken and flavor from the diced green chili and spices, and it comes together so quickly!

More Hearty Soup and Chili Recipes:

• Sweet Potato Chili
• Vegetarian Black Bean Chili
• Vegan Lentil Chili
• Vegetarian Tortilla Soup
• Lebanese Crushed Lentil Soup
• Vegan Corn Chowder

If you try this feel good White Chicken Chili recipe or any other recipe on Feel Good Foodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below! It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe. We would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots, share it on Instagram so we can repost it.

This recipe was originally published December 15, 2018, and has been recently updated with new photography, step-by-step process images and instructions.

Easy White Chicken Chili

Author: Yumna Jawad

5 from 14 reviews

This white chicken chili is full of warm spices and ultra creamy! It's one of my favorite cold-weather recipes that tastes so good and fills you up.

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Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Total Time55 minutes mins

Servings6 servings

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Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1 large onion chopped
• ▢ 1 jalapeno seeded and chopped
• ▢ 2 garlic cloves sliced
• ▢ 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ 4 cups water
• ▢ 3 (15-ounce) cans white beans rinsed and drained, divided
• ▢ 1 (8-ounce) container sour cream
• ▢ 2 (4-ounce) can diced green chilis
• ▢ 1 ½ cups frozen corn
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cumin
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
• ▢ ½ teaspoon chili powder
• ▢ Shredded Monterey Jack cheese for topping
• ▢ Avocados diced, for topping
• ▢ Cilantro chopped, for topping

Instructions

• Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, jalapenos, and garlic, and cook until translucent and soft, about 5 minutes.
• Add chicken, salt, pepper and water to the pot and cook over medium heat until tender, about 20 minutes. Remove the chicken from the water and shred.
• Add half the white beans and sour cream to the pot. Use an immersion blender to blend the beans with the onions, garlic and water mixture. This will create the creamy texture for the soup.
• Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Add the remaining white beans, green chilis, corn, cumin, oregano, and chili powder, and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. The soup will continue to thicken as it sits.
• Ladle the soup into 4-6 bowls and top it with cheese, avocados, and cilantro, if desired.

Equipment

• Garlic Press
• Non-Stick Dutch Oven Pot
• Immersion Blender

Notes

Storage: Store any leftovers in an airtight container. They will last about 2-3 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer. 

Substitutes: For best results, follow the recipe as is. However, you can change up the spices as you see fit. You can also use cooked rotisserie chicken instead of cooking chicken as part of the recipe.

Equipment: I love using my Cuisinart Smart Stick hand blender for blending soups and chili. It’s quick and easy and gets me the perfect creamy consistency for the chili, without having to add flour or cream cheese.

* Please note the nutrition label does not include any of the toppings.

 

Original recipe:;

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion diced
1 garlic clove minced
2 medium skinless boneless chicken thighs about 1 pound
6 cups chicken broth
2 15-ounce can white beans, rinsed/drained
2 4-ounce can diced green chilis
½ cup frozen corn kernels
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon Mexican oregano
½ teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Toppings: sour cream avocado, jalapenos, cilantro
Instructions
In a large heavy bottomed Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add the onions and garlic, and cook until translucent and soft, about 5 minutes.
Add chicken and chicken broth (or water) to the pot and cook over medium heat until tender, about 20 minutes. Remove the chicken from the broth and shred.
Add one can of white beans to to the pot. Use an immersion blender to blend the beans with with onions, garlic and chicken broth mixture. This will create the creamy texture for the soup.
Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Add the remaining white beans, corn, green chilis, spices, salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and serve with immediately with toppings of choice.

Nutrition

Serving: 2cups, Calories: 537kcal, Carbohydrates: 62g, Protein: 40g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 5g, Trans Fat: 0.02g, Cholesterol: 130mg, Sodium: 869mg, Potassium: 1519mg, Fiber: 13g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 399IU, Vitamin C: 21mg, Calcium: 242mg, Iron: 9mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.

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