White Chicken Chili
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This chicken chili is the kind of cozy, one-pot meal that works just as well for game day as it does on a weeknight. And the leftovers? Even better the next day.
If you’re looking for a change from traditional chili, white chicken chili is a great option. It’s made with pulled chicken and white beans in a savory, spiced broth instead of the usual ground meat, kidney beans, and tomato base. It’s a bit more soup-like than my classic beef chili recipe, turkey chili, or chili con carne, but it still delivers big flavor.
I’ve tried countless white chicken chili recipes over the years—from slow-cooker shortcuts to more authentic, from-scratch takes, and this one is the clear winner. It strikes the perfect balance between ease and depth of flavor—and it’s my family’s favorite by far. Using a store-bought rotisserie chicken keeps the prep simple without sacrificing taste. Serve it with homemade cornbread for a cozy, comforting dinner in under an hour.
“This was amazing! So easy and pleased the whole family.”
What You’ll Need To Make White Chicken Chili
- Canned White Beans: Add creaminess and a hearty texture to the dish.
- Chicken Broth: The broth base of the chili. Low-sodium keeps the dish from being overly salty when paired with canned beans.
- Onion, garlic, jalapeño pepper & poblano pepper: Sautéed at the start for a flavorful aromatic foundation.
- Spices (Cumin, Coriander, Ancho Chile Powder): This earthy, smoky spice blend adds depth and warmth to the chili.
- Rotisserie chicken, white beans & corn: the add-ins. Shredded rotisserie chicken is a major time-saver, but feel free to use any leftover chicken. White beans like cannellini, Great Northern, or navy add heartiness and thicken to the broth, and corn brings sweetness and texture (fresh corn is ideal but frozen works too).
- Lime Juice & Fresh Cilantro: Added at the end for brightness and fresh flavor. Feel free to omit the cilantro or substitute parsley if you’re not a fan.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1. Purée half the beans. In a food processor, combine half of the white beans with 1 cup of the chicken broth. Process until smooth—you’ll use this mixture to thicken the chili later.
Step 2. Sauté the aromatics. Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the onions and peppers and cook until softened, about 4 minutes.
Step 3. Add garlic and spices. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the spices and cook a few minutes more to toast them and deepen their flavor.
Step 4. Add broth and thicken. Pour in the remaining chicken broth, salt, and the puréed bean mixture. Stir to combine, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Step 5. Stir in the add-ins. Add the shredded chicken, remaining beans, corn, and lime juice. Simmer until everything is heated through, then finish with the fresh cilantro. The chili will be brothy but thickens as it sits; you can add broth or water to loosen it up if needed.
Step 6. Serve. Ladle into bowls and top with sour cream, lime wedges, shredded cheese, and crushed tortilla chips. Leftovers keep for up to 3 days in the fridge. The chili keeps nicely for up to 3 days in the fridge; freeze for longer storage.
Pro Tip: Short on freezer space? Ladle cooled chili into a resealable zip-top bag, press out the air, and seal it flat. Once frozen, it stacks neatly like a file—perfect for squeezing into a packed freezer.
Video Tutorial
More Tex-Mex Recipes to Spice Up Your Dinners
White Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 2 15.5-ounce (439-g) cans white beans, rinsed and drained
- 4 cups (1 L) low-sodium chicken broth, divided
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced (see note)
- 2 medium poblano peppers, seeded and diced (see note)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1½ teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
- Salt
- 1 rotisserie chicken, skin removed and shredded (about 4 cups)
- ¾ cup frozen corn
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, from one lime, plus more to taste
- ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro
Optional For Serving
- Sour cream
- Crushed tortilla chips
- Shredded cheddar or Pepper Jack cheese
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- In a food processor, blend half of the beans (1 can) with 1 cup (240 ml) of the chicken broth. Set aside both the puréed beans and the remaining whole beans.
- Add the oil to a large pot or Dutch oven and heat it over medium-high heat. Add the onion, jalapeño pepper, and poblano peppers and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one minute more. Add the cumin, coriander, and ancho chile powder and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for one minute more to toast the spices. Add the chicken broth, puréed beans, and ½ teaspoon of salt; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
- Stir in the shredded rotisserie chicken, reserved whole beans, corn, and lime juice; bring back to a simmer and cook until everything is heated through, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt and lime juice, if necessary. Stir in the cilantro. (Note that the broth will be somewhat soupy -- that's how it is supposed to be. It thickens the longer it sits; see note below.) Ladle the chili into bowls and serve with sour cream, crushed tortilla chips, and lime wedges.
Notes
- The seeds and ribs in the peppers hold all of the heat. I don't use them to keep the chili mild and family-friendly, but if you like a spicy chili, save them and stir some in at the end. (If you do touch the seeds, be sure to wash your hands well and avoid touching your eyes.)
- The chili thickens as it sits. If you make it ahead of time, you will probably need to add more broth or water to thin it out.
- Nutrition info does not include optional toppings.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Hi Jen,
Which white bean would you recommend for the white chicken chili-Cannellini, Great Northern, or Navy?
Thank you.
Hi Diane, Honestly any of them would be good, but I usually use cannellini beans.
Hi Jenn,
There isn’t any rotisserie chicken at my local store. Would it be possible to use plain chicken thighs/breast as a substitute, and just throw it into the pan raw? Or do I need to season/cook it beforehand? Thank you!
Cheers,
Patrick
Hi Patrick, it’s perfectly fine to use chicken thighs or breasts in place of the rotisserie chicken but wouldn’t recommend putting them into the pot raw. I’d follow the guidance from this recipe. Hope that helps and that you enjoy!
Hi! Can’t find your make-ahead notes that discuss using chicken breasts over rotisserie. Could you explain? Thank you!
Hi Moira, Sorry — I forgot to include that link! Here it is. Hope that helps and that you enjoy the chili!
We’ve used raw chicken breast ( not thighs though ) for crockpot white chicken chili for years. Adding the raw chicken breasts to the other ingredients in the crockpot adds so much more to the flavor of the finished dish. Pretty sure the same can be done on stovetop or in oven when using a nice sturdy soup pot with nary a problem.
Made “as is” and it was great. I used to make the Nealy recipe but your tweak of blending a can of beans with a cup of stock was a game changer. Totally made the texture of the chili so much better! Plus, mashing those beans was so annoying…. I also like the addition of corn kernels. Thank you! 😊
I’ve had this recipe in the back of my brain for a while, waiting for an opportunity to get a rotissiere chicken. I couldn’t wait any longer and I’m glad that I didn’t. This was absolutely delicious. And my picky hubby went back for seconds.
Disclaimer: I still didn’t get a rotissiere chicken but I subbed 4 chicken thighs (and made my own stock since I was cooking the thighs) so it took way more than an hour. lol
Another home run Jenn! Thanks for sharing.
Made this tonight- AMAZING! Even my little picky eater loves it. Husband and I had multiple bowls. Served with tortilla chips, lime wedges, and shredded pepper jack cheese as suggested. Soo yummy, adding this to my regular rotation!
Made it for the third time, everyone here enjoys it and my college son always ask for a take a way bowl for lunch. I followed the recipe to the tee. Great flavor.
Made this for my girlfriend, she hasn’t stopped gushing about it since.
great recipe.. super easy and delicious.
Must try! Even our picky eater loves it. Easy to prep ingredients ahead of time and super easy to out together. Make it meat free by substituting roasted cauliflower for the chicken. Definitely a go-to recipe in our house!
Absolutely delicious! Try it and you won’t be disappointed.
This is one of my favorite recipes, Even my husband loves it and he doesn’t like chili or soup usually. It’s so filling and the flavors are incredible. It’s also very easy to make. I hate to be that person but I always sub two cans of green chiles instead of the peppers listed (mostly because of the convenience). I also love doing this in my slow cooker and will just cook it on “keep warm” since everything is already cooked. Thank you for this amazing recipe!
Great Weeknight Meal. Easy to make and good flavor. I replaced the frozen corn with hominy, as we prefer the texture in this type of Mexican soup/chili. Will definitely make again.