This healthy white bean chicken chili is loaded with cannellini beans, corn and green chiles. It’s packed with protein, has a ton of flavor and cooks up in just 30 minutes.
You asked, I listened! A few weeks ago I asked what recipes you wanted to see from me and I had a ton of requests for soup! Ask and ye shall receive. 😉
Prior to this recipe, I had never made a white bean or a chicken chili before, so I decided that this would be a fun one to test! I gravitate towards soups that somehow feel relatively light and refreshing while also being comforting. This soup is just that. It’s packed with vegetables and flavor while also being dairy and gluten-free.
Make a Thicker Broth With Mashed White Beans
This chili is broth-based and doesn’t feel as thick or heavy as chili usually does. That said, if you like a thicker broth you can always use a fork or potato masher to mash one can of the cannellini beans before adding them into the pot. This is a great trick for thickening up any broth-based soup!
ALSO, fair warning: my version of this soup turned out quite spicy because the jalapeños I purchased were extra strong. I love spice and it gave the chili a great flavor, but if you don’t love spicy or have kids who will be eating this too, I recommend using less jalapeño.
Here’s What You Need:
vegetables – garlic, yellow onion, jalapeño
green chiles – I used mild canned diced green chiles – they’re not too spicy but add a nice, complex flavor
boneless skinless chicken breasts
low-sodium chicken broth – I prefer using low-sodium so I can control the amount of salt in the recipe!
cannellini beans or another white bean like navy beans or great northern beans
corn – I like using frozen corn and there’s no need to thaw before adding to the chili
spices and seasonings – dried oregano, ground cumin, chili powder, sea salt and pepper
optional toppings – chopped cilantro, green onion, avocado and additional jalapeño slices
How to Freeze (and Thaw!)
This chili is freezer friendly… aka perfect for weekly meal prep or meal prepping before a baby. To freeze, allow the chili to cool completely. Place in a freezer-safe storage container and freeze. Soup will be good for up to three months.
When you’re ready to enjoy, place the frozen chili in the refrigerator the night before to partially thaw. The next day, add to a saucepan and heat until warm, stirring occasionally. If the soup is too thick for your liking at this point, feel free to add a little broth or water to thin.
What to Serve With Chicken Chili
This chicken chili is a full meal on it’s own – especially if you add all the toppings! That said, I love serving this chili with a little something extra like tortilla chips. If you want something more filling, it’s also delicious with cornbread. My pumpkin cornbread would be perfect!
Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add garlic, onion and jalapeño and cook until soft and fragrant, about 5-6 minutes. Add oregano, cumin, chili powder and cook about 1 minute more. Add green chiles, chicken, and broth and season with salt and pepper.
Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered for about 10 to 15 minutes, until chicken is tender and cooked through.
Use a fork or tongs to remove chicken from the soup, place on a plate and shred with two forks.
Place shredded chicken back in the pot and add beans and corn. Bring soup to a simmer and let cook another 10 minutes. Taste soup at this point and season with additional sea salt and pepper if needed.
Portion chili into bowls and garnish with chopped cilantro, green onion, extra jalapeño and/or avocado.
This chili is great served with tortilla chips or cornbread.
Notes
Feel free to use a full jalapeño. I used 1/2 of a deseeded jalapeño and the chili had a nice kick.
To make the chili thicker, you can mash 1 can of the drained and rinsed beans before adding them to the pot.
To freeze: cool chili, place in a freezer-safe storage container and freeze. To use, partially thaw chili in the refrigerator overnight. Add to a saucepan and heat until warm, stirring occasionally. If soup is too thick you can add a little broth or water to thin.
Nutrition
Serving: 1/6 of recipe without toppingsCalories: 285kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 28gFat: 5gSodium: 1160mgFiber: 9gSugar: 4g
Oh my gosh, made this tonight for dinner and it was amazing!!! One of the best soup recipe I’ve come across in a while 👏👏👏 I had to skip the green chili peppers for the little one and was a little worried a little flavor was going to be missing, but it was DELICIOUS!
I’m have to track my calories, protein, etc- after WLS surgery. I’m trying ti determine this info for a 1 cup serving. I’m having trouble figuring out exactly how much is in 1/6 of the recipe. I eat very small portions and feel sure I’m not eating 1/6 of the recipe. Can you help?
The recipe is DELICIOUS and I want to keep making it AND sharing it.
Hi, Allison! Unfortunately, I don’t know how much this recipe makes in volume. I think your best bet would be to make the soup, measure how much you get total, and then see what 6 servings would be (for instance, if it makes 6 cups total, 1 cup would be one serving). I apologize I don’t have a better answer for you.
I absolutely LOVE this recipe. I’ve made it many times this year.
I haven’t been able to find cans of the mild diced green chiles. Do you know how many green chiles (the small hot ones) can replace those 2 cans in the recipe? Thanks a lot!
Hi, Jacqueline, I’m so glad to hear you love this recipe! I did a quick google search and found that 1 4-oz can of diced chiles requires about 4-5 peppers. I hope that helps!
Leave a Comment
So good!!
Excellent! I am excited to hear that you are loving this recipe, Cara. Thank you for your review + star rating, I really appreciate it.
Delicious
Oh my gosh, made this tonight for dinner and it was amazing!!! One of the best soup recipe I’ve come across in a while 👏👏👏 I had to skip the green chili peppers for the little one and was a little worried a little flavor was going to be missing, but it was DELICIOUS!
Woo! So happy to hear this, Jaimee! Thank you for making this recipe and coming back to leave a review, I really appreciate it.
I’m have to track my calories, protein, etc- after WLS surgery. I’m trying ti determine this info for a 1 cup serving. I’m having trouble figuring out exactly how much is in 1/6 of the recipe. I eat very small portions and feel sure I’m not eating 1/6 of the recipe. Can you help?
The recipe is DELICIOUS and I want to keep making it AND sharing it.
Hi, Allison! Unfortunately, I don’t know how much this recipe makes in volume. I think your best bet would be to make the soup, measure how much you get total, and then see what 6 servings would be (for instance, if it makes 6 cups total, 1 cup would be one serving). I apologize I don’t have a better answer for you.
I absolutely LOVE this recipe. I’ve made it many times this year.
I haven’t been able to find cans of the mild diced green chiles. Do you know how many green chiles (the small hot ones) can replace those 2 cans in the recipe? Thanks a lot!
Hi, Jacqueline, I’m so glad to hear you love this recipe! I did a quick google search and found that 1 4-oz can of diced chiles requires about 4-5 peppers. I hope that helps!