This white bean chicken chili is loaded with juicy chunks of chicken, sweet corn, and white beans. It’s a quick and easy one-pot recipe that’s made without cream cheese, just a lip smacking broth that has a nice kick of heat to it.
A Quick Chili Recipe for Busy Weeknights
This white bean and chicken chili is easy peasy to prepare in one pot with about 15 minutes of hands-on prep.
The cook time is short and sweet (about 20 minutes once everything’s been added to the pot), but by adding pre-roasted hatch chiles and a good amount of cumin and oregano, we’re able to fool the palate into thinking this has been slow cooking for hours.
There’s no cream cheese, heavy cream, or mountains of cheese in this white chicken chili — just a super savory, slightly spicy broth loaded with chunks of chicken, sweet corn, and those creamy white beans.
You’ll find this simmering on my stove throughout the fall and winter whenever I need a last-minute tailgate dish, or if I just want something fast to warm me up.
Enjoy!
Heidi’s Tips for Recipe Success
Bloom your spices for the best flavor. I like to add the dried oregano and ground cumin to the pot once the chicken has finished browning so they can mingle with the hot oil. This “wakes up” their flavor and makes this deceptively simple chili taste even richer.
Add tortilla chips for texture, body, and flavor. Crushed tortilla chips in a pot of chili might sound strange, but they help to thicken the chili, infuse it with a much-needed dose of salt, plus they add texture galore.
Choose cannellini or great northern beans. Cannellini beans are slightly larger, with a nuttier flavor profile, while great northern beans have a more delicate flavor. Both are supremely creamy and tender and pair nicely with the sweet corn and chicken.
The Main Ingredients
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
- Chicken breasts — Cut your boneless skinless chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces for easier eating. You could also use chicken thighs, or even ground chicken for an even faster cook time.
- White beans — Cannellini or great northern beans are your two best options.
- Spices and aromatics — Half an onion, dried oregano, and ground cumin is all the seasoning you need when the rest of the ingredients boast this much fresh flavor.
- Roasted hatch chiles — They’re easy to roast yourself, but you can replace them with two small cans of fire roasted diced green chiles if needed.
- Corn kernels — Either cut fresh corn kernels off the cob or add frozen corn kernels straight into the pot (no need to thaw first).
- Corn tortilla chips — When crumbled into the white bean and chicken chili, they thicken it up while adding lots of texture.
- Broth — I suggest using chicken broth for a well-rounded chicken flavor.
How to Make White Bean Chicken Chili in One Pot
- Brown the chicken. Heat the oil in a dutch oven so the chicken sears upon contact rather than steams. You’re just looking for the chicken to develop some color at this point, not cook all the way through.
- Add the onion and spices. Let the onion cook alongside the chicken until it’s softened, then add the oregano and cumin to the pot to bloom in the oil.
- Add everything else. You can either crush the tortilla chips in a zip-top bag using a rolling pin or can, or you can crumble them directly into the soup with your hands.
- Simmer, baby, simmer. Let the white bean and chicken chili bubble away for 20 minutes before serving.
- Pile on the toppings. We love garnishing our bowls with sliced or pickled jalapeños, some shredded cheese (Monterrey Jack works great here), fresh cilantro, and a squeeze of lime. Feel free to add some cubed avocado to offset the spicy broth, too!
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below, leave a comment to tell us what you think, and tag me on Instagram @foodiecrush.
White Bean Chicken Chili Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
- ½ medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 32 ounces chicken broth
- 2 15-ounce cans cannellini or white northern beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup yellow corn tortilla chips, crushed
- 1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
- ½ cup roasted Hatch chiles, (or two 4-ounce can of fire-roasted diced green chiles)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Toppings
- ½ cup Monterey jack cheese
- ¼ cup cilantro, chopped
- chopped avocado
- sliced jalapeño
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Cook the chicken. Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1 pound bite-size cubed chicken breasts and cook until browned, stirring frequently. Add ½ chopped onion and cook until softened, 3-5 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon ground cumin and 1 teaspoon dried oregano and cook for 1 minute until fragrant, stirring often.
- Add the remaining ingredients. Add 32 ounces chicken broth, 2 15-ounce cans white beans, 1 cup crushed tortilla chips, 1 cup corn kernels, ½ cup roasted Hatch chiles, ½ teasopon kosher salt and ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook uncovered for 20 minutes or until the chili thickens.
- Add toppings and serve. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with Monterey jack cheese, cilantro, sliced jalapeño with chopped avocado. Serve with tortilla chips and a squeeze of lime on the side.
Nutrition
What to Serve With White Chicken Chili
Storage Tips
Leftover chili can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days. It reheats well in the microwave, making it great for quick lunches or dinners.
To freeze the chili, let it cool completely before transferring to your freezer container(s) of choice. It will last up to 3 months if frozen correctly.
More Easy Chili Recipes
We send good emails. Subscribe to FoodieCrush and have each post plus exclusive content only for our subscribers delivered straight to your e-mail box.
Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for more FoodieCrush inspiration.
As always, thank you for reading and supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. There may be affiliate links in this post of which I receive a small commission. All opinions are always my own.
Rate & Comment