White Chicken Chili
on Oct 30, 2024
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Shredded chicken, green chilis, white beans, and cream cheese are the key ingredients to this creamy dish! White chicken chili is full of flavor, cozy, and absolutely delicious.
White chicken chili is one of my favorite meals to make during the cold months! It is everything you could want in a dish: full of nutritious ingredients, warm and cozy, flavorful, and easy to make. I love that you can combine most of the ingredients and then leave the slow cooker for the meal to cook itself!
Once the chicken is fully cooked, all you have to do is shred it, add the cream cheese, and it is ready to serve! The whole recipe is budget friendly and can feed a lot of people, so it is perfect for gatherings or potlucks. White chicken chili is a dish that will have everyone rushing to the table for dinner!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It is a budget friendly dish that is packed with nutritious veggies, beans, and chicken.
- The chili is creamy, warm, and comforting for a cold night.
- It is super easy to make with the slow cooker, you can prepare it and then let it cook.
Recipe Ingredients
- Chicken—You can use chicken breasts or thighs, whatever you prefer!
- Chicken Broth—For a savory flavor and to bring all the ingredients together.
- Cream Cheese—This will thicken the chili and add a nice tang.
- Onion—Diced. To add a rich flavor to the chili.
- Butter Beans—Drained and rinsed. These big beans are creamy and delicious.
- Northern Beans—Drained and rinsed. For a variety of beans and a soft, nutty texture.
- Corn—Frozen or canned will both work great!
- Diced Green Chilis—As they cook, these will give your chili a mild kick.
- Spices—A blend of garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper for a savory taste!
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make White Chicken Chili
Step #1. In the slow cooker, place the chicken, diced onion, beans, corn, green chilis, seasonings, and chicken broth. Cook on high until the chicken is tender.
Step #2. When the chicken is cooked all the way through, remove it and shred. Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker.
Step #3. Cut the cream cheese into small cubes and add them to the slow cooker. Stir until the cream cheese melts.
Step #4. Adjust the seasonings to taste. Serve warm and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, if you have leftover chicken that you want to use for this recipe that works just as well. Sometimes we use rotisserie chicken, shred it up, and add it in. Although, you will not need to put it in right at the beginning since it is already cooked. You still want the chicken to soak up the flavor of the chili, so I would suggest adding it about halfway through your cooking time.
There are a few differences between red and white chili, but both are delicious! Red chili will usually have a tomato base and tends to use a darker meat such as ground beef or turkey. Pinto or black beans are common when making red chili. White chili has a base of chilis and broth, and uses a light meat such as chicken. It also includes white bigger beans, like northern or butter beans. They both contain the same components but have a different flavor profile!
Yes, you can make this in an instant pot instead of the slow cooker! Follow the same instructions as you would in the slow cooker, only let it cook on high for 20 minutes. Let it naturally release for 10 minutes. Then you can shred the chicken and add it back in with the cream cheese. Adjust the seasonings and add salt and pepper as needed. Once the cream cheese has melted you are ready to serve!
How to Serve and Store White Chicken Chili
White chicken chili is the best dinner for a chilly fall or winter night! You can keep the meal simple and serve with a garnish of cilantro or diced jalapeno for some extra flavor. If you want an easy side dish, roast some vegetables such as cauliflower, brussel sprouts, or squash. We also love to add some tortilla chips to dip into the chili and add a tasty crunch. You can also serve this chili with cornbread muffins or sweet potato biscuits!
This chili tastes even better the next day or two and will be the leftovers that people look forward to having! Allow the chili to cool completely before transferring it to an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat the leftovers, place a serving size in a microwave safe bowl, cover it, and heat for 30-45 second intervals until warm, stirring in between.
Expert Tips
- If you love a spicy chili, you can add red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper along with the seasonings at the end to give it an extra kick!
- We love to use both beans to get a variety, but if you can’t find butter beans just add another can of northern beans.
- You should be able to easily shred the chicken with two forks on a plate, or you can use a hand mixer in a big bowl.
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Creamy Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken (breast or thighs work great)
- 1 large onion, diced
- 1 can butter beans, 14 ounce, drained and rinsed
- 2 cans great Northern beans, 14 ounce, drained and rinsed
- 1 can corn, or 2 cups frozen, drained and rinsed
- 2 cans diced green chilis
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 32 ounces chicken broth
- 1 package cream cheese, 8 ounces, at room temperature
- additional salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large slow cooker, place the chicken, diced onion, beans, corn, green chilis, seasonings, and chicken broth. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 6-7 hours or until the chicken is tender and shreds easily with a fork.
- When the chicken is cooked through and tender, remove it from the slow cooker and shred with two forks. Return shredded chicken to the slow cooker and stir to combine.
- Cut the cream cheese into 1 inch cubes and add them to the slow cooker. Stir to combine until the cream cheese melts.
- Adjust the seasonings to taste, adding more salt, pepper, and cumin as needed.
- Serve warm right away and store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Notes
- You can add a half cup of chopped cilantro when you add the cream cheese if you’d like – it’s great in it.
- We LOVE butter beans (they are super big and creamy), but if you can’t find them, just add another can of great northern beans.
I made this during this crazy quarrantine because I don’t have anything else to do but cook. It is awesome and easy to prepare. The crock pot does the hard work. I will definitely be making this again.
Yay! Long like the slow cooker doing all the work!
Just made this yesterday and it is phenomenal! Best of all…our 16 month old gobbled it up with us!
Yay! So glad that you loved it like we do! And thanks for coming back to leave a comment and a star rating, it’s so helpful.
We just made this, it was so yummy and best of all.. our 16 month old gobbled it up with us!
My family and I LOVED this recipe! Delicious? We didn’t have butter beans, so used some hominy. Will definitely make again.
Hominy is such a great idea, I’m trying that next time, thank you for sharing!
Would I be able to sub out the green chiles for kale? And if so, when do I add the kale? I am looking for this exact kind of recipe lol
Sure, that would work fine. I’d just stir in chopped kale maybe 10 minutes before serving so that it doesn’t get too slimy or cooked down too much.
Can you freeze leftovers?
Yep, it’ll freeze great!
Are you using frozen chicken breasts? If not can you?
Frozen will work fine, just add additional time so that the chicken has time to cook through and be cooked long enough to shred easily. If it’s cooked through but doesn’t shred well, you can just chop it up with a knife too.
Which crock pot is your go to? In the market for a new one
I currently have two! https://amzn.to/2PiQOEC I’ve had this one for a few years and love it. I LOVE that the lid clamps on. I take my slow cooker to church with soup or chili in it for activities, to my friends for dinners, and to my mother in law’s all of the time for family stuff. I lost a whole slow cooker of meatballs in the back of our car once and bought this the next day. I love it because I can travel with it and that’s something that I do pretty often.
#2. https://amzn.to/2Q6yZxI America’s Test Kitchen sent me this one when they sent a copy of their slow cooker cookbook. It’s their #1 rated slow cooker. I love it! The shape of the insert is very oblong and it can fit a lot in it. I trust ATK’s opinion on everything and it’s a great slow cooker. If you aren’t taking yours anywhere, you could also get this one. It has a few more bells and whistles than the other one.
I think they are both great and I have liked owning two, but buy one based on if you want that clamp on lid or not!
Do you drain/ and or rinse any of the canned ingrefients?
Yes, the beans and the corn. Thank you for asking that, I’ve updated the recipe to reflect that so that it’s more clear for you! I always appreciate the help.
What yummy-looking comfort food! I always wondered what made white chili white – I guess cream cheese plays a huge role in its creamy deliciousness. 🙂