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This White Chicken Chili recipe is hearty, creamy, and has become a new favorite!! Best of all, it’s ready in 30 minutes or less!
Traditional beef chili is always a safe bet for potlucks and chili cook-offs but we love this White Chicken Chili, especially served with cornbread.
All-time favorite!
We love soup season!
And we also love chili cook-offs and potlucks in the fall. One of our go-to’s that gets rave reviews (and awards) is this White Chicken Chili recipe. Everyone loves it.
Here’s why:
- Especially easy and quick. This recipe is prepped in 5 minutes and finished in under 30 minutes.
- Stovetop or Crock Pot. It can be made both ways, which is great if you’re in a rush or want to dump and go in the slow cooker.
- Award Winning! It’s so good that it’s constantly winning Chili cook-offs. With so much flavor and so many ways to customize, it’s sure to be a hit!
Along with some of our favorites like Cheesy Potato Soup and Chicken Tortilla Soup, this White Chicken Chili is one we always have on repeat.
White Chicken Chili Ingredients
- Chicken Broth – We use full-sodium but if using a lower sodium, you may need to add a little more salt.
- Great Northern Beans – Great Northern Beans are a medium sized white bean. They can be substitutes with a smaller navy bean or larger white kidney beans (cannellini beans).
- Shredded Chicken – I like to use my crock pot to make Shredded Chicken, but you can also make Oven Baked Chicken then shred it or even Rotisserie chicken.
- Diced Green Chilies – Mild or hot – whichever you prefer.
- Spices: ground cumin, garlic powder, dried oregano, dash of black pepper. For extra heat, sprinkle in: cayenne pepper, red chili flakes or a white chili powder. You can also add a chopped onion or onion powder for more flavor.
- Cheese. Shredded Monterey Jack or Mexican blend cheese
- Sour Cream. Greek yogurt can be substitutes for sour cream.
- Toppings + Garnish. Top with your favorite cheese such as Monterey Jack Cheese, cheddar cheese, or Mexican cheese Blend, as well as more sour cream, cilantro, sliced avocado, lime wedges (or lime juice) or Tortilla strips.
How to Make White Chicken Chili
- COMBINE. Begin by throwing all the ingredients, except the sour cream and cheese, into a large pot.
- SIMMER. Simmer on low-medium heat for 20-30 minutes or until completely heated through.
- SOUR CREAM + TOPPINGS. Right before serving, stir in the sour cream and cheese until it’s melted.
In the crockpot
To make in the slow cooker, add all the ingredients(minus the sour cream and cheese) into the crockpot and cook on low for 2 hours and you’re set!
recipe tips + SIDES
How to thicken? Here are a couple ways to thicken chilis and soups.
- Cornstarch: Use 2 tablespoons per cup of chili. In a separate bowl mix 2 table spoons cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water until it’s very smooth. Then, gradually stir the mixture into the hot liquid until it’s blended.
- Add softened cream cheese. This will not only add a layer of flavor but thicken up the soup.
- Use heavy whipping cream along with, or in place of, the sour cream to thicken the soup.
What sides go well with chili? So many, but here are some of our favorites:
Recipe FAQ
How to store? Chicken Chili shouldn’t be left out on the counter for more than 2 hours. You can store the chili in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
How to reheat? Reheat in the microwave, stove top, or crock pot until the desired temperature.
How to freeze? If possible, we recommend freezing the chili before you add the sour cream and cheese. To do this, place it in a freezer-safe gallon bag in the freezer for up to 6 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat in a pot and then add the additional ingredients at the end.
For more chili recipes:
White Chicken Chili Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 3-4 (15.5-ounce) cans Great Northern Beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
- 1-2 (4-ounce) cans diced green chiles
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- dash of pepper
- 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack, or Mexican blend cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
Instructions
- In a large pot, combine broth, beans, chicken, green chiles, cumin, garlic powder, oregano and pepper over medium-low heat.
- Simmer for 20–30 minutes, or until soup is heated through.
- Right before serving, add cheese and sour cream and stir until cheese is melted and ingredients are mixed.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This is my favorite soup. My picky sons too. I buy an all white meat rotisserie chicken and pull its meat off then store it in baggies for things like this that need chicken. Not only does it make it faster but the chicken already has a nice flavor. Instead of oregano i add italian seasoning. I didn’t have any oregano the first time so i had to improvise. We liked it that way so i haven’t changed it. Thanks for the wonderful recipe.
It’s a good one for sure! Thank you for making it and for letting me know. Thanks also for sharing your tips 🙂
dumb question — did you cook the chicken prior to putting everything into the pot?
Yes, since it’s shredded…you’ll want to cook up some chicken and shred it or you can always buy a rotisserie chicken. Whatever is easiest for you! Hope that helps!! Hope you like it!
Made this tonight and everything was good except the beans were so hard! I can’t figure out why? I let them cook in the crockpot for hours thinking they’d soften up but they never did.
I’m sorry they were hard! Not sure why either. They wouldn’t be super soft, but shouldn’t be too hard. Hope you’ll give it another try!
I use canned. They have great flavor and theyre never hard 🙂
My husband and I love this soup and have made it several times!!!
Yay! Thank you for letting me know and trying this recipe! We love it too!
I made this for supper tonight and my husband and I absolutely LOVED it! Hubby just ran a bowl over to his Mom. He loved it so much, he wanted her to try it.
Thank you for this easy and delicious recipe. Will definitely cook it again!
Does anyone know how many servings this makes and how big of a serving? Can’t wait to try it!
This looks delicious, can’t wait to make it. Just wondering how many servings makes? Family of 3, just seems like would be alot for us. Could I just half the recipe if needed?
This looks delicious! Making it right now! Do you bring to a boil before simmering?
How did this go?? I hope you figure it out and that it was a hit. 😉
Hello! I am wanting to make this for the in laws who arrive tomorrow night! One poster commented that their sour cream didn’t melt in nicely, have you ever found that or is there a trick in adding it in? Just don’t have to time to test batch this and want to avoid any failures;) Thank you in advance!!
This chicken chili soup is amazing! I found your recipe 2 years ago on Pinterest and it is now a Winter family favorite!
I LOVE to hear that, Alexis!! Reminds me that I should make it this week. It’s one of our favorites too. 🙂 I hope you can find more recipes you enjoy here!!