Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: LIza Jernow.
Total Time
4 to 6 hours
Rating
5(7,701)
Notes
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This tangy, mildly spicy white-bean chili is as warming and comforting as a traditional chili, but in a lighter, brighter form. Plenty of green chiles — fresh and canned — provide kick while creamy white beans mellow it all out. To decrease the heat level, remove and discard the seeds from the jalapeño before you mince it. A large handful of chopped cilantro added at the end brings freshness, but if you don’t care for cilantro, pass it at the table along with the other toppings or omit it entirely. Continuing the spirit of customizing your chili, you can make this in the slow cooker or on the stovetop. Use 3 cups chicken stock in the slow cooker and 4 cups on the stovetop, where liquid is more likely to evaporate.

Learn: How to Make Chili

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings
  • 3tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1large yellow or red onion, finely chopped
  • Kosher salt
  • 10garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1jalapeño, minced
  • 3(4-ounce) cans chopped green chiles, hot, mild or a combination
  • 2teaspoons ground cumin
  • 2teaspoons onion powder
  • 1teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½teaspoon ground cayenne
  • 2pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 3cups chicken stock
  • 2(14-ounce) cans great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
  • cups frozen corn
  • 1cup finely chopped fresh cilantro (about 1 small bunch), optional
  • 1lime, juiced (about 2 tablespoons)
  • Pickled jalapeño slices, sliced scallion, cubed avocado and sour cream, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

372 calories; 11 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 35 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 34 grams protein; 948 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a large Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, season with salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and jalapeño and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the chopped green chiles, cumin, onion powder, oregano and cayenne and stir until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Transfer the mixture into a 5- to 8-quart slow cooker. Generously season the chicken thighs with salt and add them to the pot. Stir in 3 cups chicken stock and the beans. Cover and cook on low until the chicken is tender, 4 to 6 hours.

  3. Step 3

    Shred the chicken using two forks. (You can do this directly in the pot, or remove the chicken to a bowl, shred it, then return it to the pot.) Stir in the frozen corn, cover and cook until warmed through, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cilantro, if using, and lime juice. Season to taste with salt. Serve in bowls and pass the toppings at the table.

Tip
  • You can also cook the chili in a Dutch oven on your stovetop. In step 2, add 4 cups stock instead of 3 cups and bring the mixture come to a simmer over medium-high. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the chicken is tender, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes.

Ratings

5 out of 5
7,701 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

Is there a hack for making this in the instant pot?

Made with Instant Pot. 10 minutes on high pressure (after chicken is introduced) with a 10 minute natural release worked great. Used a but more than half of the garlic, since it wasn't going to lose potency over the slow cook. Otherwise by the book. I found this very simple but tasty and comforting!

Delicious! Made more or less as directed but used Dutch oven instead of slow cooker. Used some fire roasted Hatch chilies I had saved in the freezer from the summer instead of the canned green chilies. Also skipped the jalapeños since the Hatch chilies already had some heat. Did not add the beans at same time as chicken because I was concerned that cooking canned beans that long would break them down too much, so I added the beans after shredding the chicken. Will definitely make again!

Short on time so I made this in my instant pot and it was delicious. Followed recipe exactly and used 3 cups of broth since there is no evaporation in the pressure cooker. Cooked on high for 15 min, then manually released the steam and shredded the chicken, added the corn, and warmed it back up. Delicious and easy.

Curious: Preparing to make this today and don't have onion powder. Why is it needed when there's a whole chopped onion?

This is SO good. Made as written in a crock pot. Debated about adding a corn tortilla to tighten up what appeared to be too much liquid - until I shredded and added back the chicken. Consistency was a lot more chili-like at that point. One word of warning: be judicious in "generously" salting the chicken thighs; my rendition of this recipe turned out just a hair too salty. Go easy - you can always add more salt at the end if necessary. Definitely a keeper!

Delish! Have made this and variations several times in slow cooker. Do not worry about adding the canned white beans at beginning . They hold up fine to the long cooking. Enjoy the convenience.

Made this in an instapot. Used the sauté function, following the recipe’s cooking directions. Added all ingredients except for beans, cilantro, corn, and lime. Cancelled sauté setting and cooked on high pressure for 30 minutes and then released steam. Chicken shredded easily. Added the beans, corn, cilantro, and lime and adjusted seasoning. Huge hit with family. Second time I also added some frozen spinach along with the corn to increase vegetable content and nutrition. Delicious!

Hello- I actually mashed some of the beans to thicken the chili. Worked great. Immersion blender, stick and beans.

I have to wonder about the photo with recipe though... where does the red tint to the broth come from, with no red ingredients (other than a dash of cayenne)? As is customary in these forums, I modified a bit. I threw in a quarter cup of rice. I made it in my Instant Pot - 15 min HP and 10 min NR. Muy bueno!

Great dish. Made it more or less exactly as in the recipe. Used mild green chiles and ancho chile powder instead of cayenne - some of our guests are intolerant of spicy/hot dishes. Had hot sauce on the side for those who wanted more spice. No sour cream for toppings - had some salsa (some wanted tomato), corn chips and shredded cheese instead. Everyone loved it. Wouldn't change a thing next time.

This was really, really good. I used boneless, skinless thighs but might try breast next time instead. I did the stovetop method and was afraid four cups of broth wouldn’t be enough so I doubled it; it ended up being quite brothy (oops) so I boiled it down quite a bit until it was thick and almost had a creamy consistency. Topped with Greek yogurt, crushed tortilla chips, avocado, and Monterey Jack cheese, and definitely went back for a second bowl. Looking forward to the leftovers.

I will agree, this is perfectly delicious for a winter day. Being in New Mexico, we added a couple of tablespoons of Chimayo green chile powder for cooking along with some crumbles of Cotija cheese for serving. ¡Que delicioso! Thanks Sarah!

Very tasty but next time will cut back on oregano, overwhelmed the other spices. Found that two cans of mild chilies was more than enough also.

We made this in the instant pot. We didn’t change anything in the recipe pre-transfer to the slow cooker. We withheld the beans from the IP and cooked for 25 minutes. Added beans and frozen corn afterwards, and ‘saute’d for 10 minutes. PERFECT! Tastes so good.

Can you substitute canned with dried beans and if so any tips?

Made according to directions but deglazed that dutch oven with the last cup of cx stock and a little wine splash in. Served second day as enchilada filling.

Made it on the stove with the packaged rotisserie chicken meat from Costco (added right after the corn) and roasted frozen corn from TJ. Worked out great, super yummy.

So so good and easy to make in the crock pot. I forgot about the corn but the flavor was still amazing with fresh cilantro on top. Glad this older recipe popped up!

Good dish!

This was great. Made in an instapot, 15 mins med pressure, quick release. Used dry beans (rancho gordo mayacoba) and added after the pressure cook bc I’d overcooked them a bit. Omitted cayenne (due to our 5yo) and subbed breasts for thighs. Quickest hack for shredding chicken: hand mixer into the pot. Helps to thicken the broth too. Dumped beans and corn into pot after chicken was shredded. Added a bit of green hot sauce at serving for the adults. Excellent; will make again.

I've made this a few times using the Dutch Oven with excellent results. Most recently using Jidori boneless chicken thighs which are outstanding. I used 4 cans of mild chopped Hatch green chilis, skipped the jalapeno pepper and added some red pepper flakes at the beginning and the spice level was perfect (not too spicy.) I cooked the thighs on low in the Dutch oven for 1.5 hours. for the first time I added chopped scallions, lime ju and avocado cubes and this really added to the overall flavor.

Cooked exactly as the recipe called for and won a 7 chili office cookoff!

Used 7 oz can green chilis and about 2 tbs canned jalapeña chilis. Too spicy for me. Next time use only green chilis.

Made this in the instant pot with great success and just a few modifications! I used skinless bone-in chicken thighs and uncooked pinto beans soaked overnight. Followed the first half of recipe exactly, sautéing in the instant pot. I added the soaked beans and bay leaf at the same time as the chicken. I also added additional broth and water to cover the beans by an inch. High pressure for 25 minutes and natural pressure release. Afterwards, added corn and baby spinach on sauté mode. Yum!

This was really delicious. Followed the recipe. I used 3 cans of beans, 3 lbs of chicken - a bit more spice. Our favorite chicken chili!

What does the "shred with two forks" mean? Would there be a problem shredding with one fork?

This is a keeper! I made it in a Dutch oven, stove top, so I used less chicken broth. I substituted roasted Hatch chiles for the jalapeño, but otherwise followed the recipe. Spicy, but not too, creamy, satisfying on a cold Winter night.

After adding the onion, garlic, chili pepper mix to the crock pot, I added a splash of the chicken stock to the Dutch oven. I deglazed the bottom, scraping up all the little bits and added them to the crock pot.

I cheated for a fast chili with great results: used pulled roast chicken instead of the thighs, and white hominy instead of frozen corn. Delicious and a snap to make!

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