This white chicken chili recipe is slow-cooked with chiles, onions, beans, spices, and shredded chicken for a delicious, comforting soup.
Servings: 10
Prep Time: 30 minutesminutes
Cook Time: 2 hourshours30 minutesminutes
Ingredients
1-pounddry navy, cannellini, or great northern beans
3tablespoonsolive oil
3peeled and medium-diced yellow onions
1whole roasting chicken
2seeded and mediumce diced green bell peppers
2seeded and medium diced poblano peppers
2seeded and medium diced jalapeños
2medium diced ribs of celery
10finely minced cloves of garlic
3tablespoonsground cumin
1tablespoonground coriander
2tablespoonsdry oregano
1cupheavy whipping cream
sea salt and pepper to taste
Shredded Monterey jack or pepper jack cheese for garnish
Sliced green onions for garnish
Instructions
Start by soaking covering the beans in a container and soaking them for 12 to 24 hours.
Next, add the oil to a large rondeau pot (8 quarts) over low heat and add the onions to caramelize. This can take up to 1 hour. Stir them occasionally.
In the meantime, rinse your whole chicken well inside and out with cold water to remove any excess water it was packaged in. Transfer the chicken to a large pot (8 quarts) with 1 gallon of water and cook over medium heat for 60 to 75 minutes or until the chicken is cooked throughout.
Once you add the chicken in there, you can add any fresh or frozen vegetable scraps into the pot to help enhance the flavor of the stock. With about 20 minutes left in the chicken-cutting process, seed and medium-dice the peppers.
Add the peppers, garlic, and celery to the pan with onions and cook over low heat for about 15 minutes to get a light roast. Be sure not to char as the overly cooked skin can cause the soup to be bitter. See Notes.
Stir in the dry spices and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
Remove the chicken from the stock and set it aside to cool. Strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer or chinois.
Deglaze the pan with onions and peppers with 1 cup of chicken stock and cook for 1 minute, scraping the bottom of the pan.
Transfer the roasted onions, peppers, and onions to a blender and puree until smooth. Add the pureed mixture back to the rondeau pot along with the stock, drained soaked beans, and bring it to a boil.
Next, cook the beans for about 45 to 60 minutes over low to medium heat or until the beans are tender.
Remove the meat from the chicken and roughly chop it. Discard the skin and leftover carcass. Add the chopped chicken to the soup and mix to combine.
Finish with cream, salt, and pepper. Adjust any seasonings with cumin, coriander, or oregano.
Garnish with shredded cheese and sliced green onions.
Notes
Make-Ahead: You can make this recipe up to 2 days ahead.How to Store: You can store this chili in a container covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. This will freeze very well and be covered for up to 6 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating and serving.How to Reheat: Add the desired amount of chili to a medium-sized pot and cook over low heat until hot. Add chicken stock, salt, and pepper to add flavor and moisture.Cayenne pepper can be added if you prefer more spice.Additional spicy peppers like serrano or habanero peppers can be used.Onion and garlic granules can also be added to this recipe.If you’re nervous about the peppers causing a bitter flavor to the soup, you can roast them separately and then peel, seed, and roughly chop them before adding them to the onions.When using canned beans, be sure they are strained and add them to the pot along with the pureed peppers and onions. Start with half the chicken stock and add more to thin it out. You will only need to heat the beans since they are already cooked. Continue directly to procedure 13.If the soup is not thick after the beans are cooked, remove about 2 cups and add them to a blender with ½ cup of stock and puree until smooth. Add the pureed beans back to the pot. This will help give some body and thickness to the soup.