This White Chicken Chili is hearty, healthy, full of protein and happens to be gluten-free! It’s perfect for serving on a cold night or while watching your favorite football team!
How’s everyones week back at work going? It’s going slow as snails for me. I’m still in my lazy holiday mode and would rather be laying around binge watching Netflix or movies. I think the lack of cookies and chocolate is also getting to me.
Not having that afternoon sugar rush is making me sleepy and a little cranky, that tends to happen when you go cold turkey on it. I’ve been trying to up my water intake in hopes that if keeps me full and makes me forget about all the cookies….yeah that’s going reeeal well.
Somehow water just doesn’t taste the same as a sugar cookie, crazy I know. I will say this, the water or any liquid for that matter does help me stay full longer and is definitely helping with the leftover holiday bloated feeling.
One of my favorite things to eat when I’m trying to cut back on heavy foods is a hearty soup. This White Chicken Chili is exactly that!
This chili is as delicious as it is hearty. It’s full of green chiles, shredded chicken, cannellini beans and lots of Mexican spices. Everything in this chili is lean so you don’t have to worry about ruining any New Year’s resolutions by serving yourself a big bowl of it. Most chili is actually very healthy, it’s the toppings that can really pack on the calories.
Some of the toppings I added to my bowl of chili were fresh squeezed lime juice, cilantro, a little Monterey Jack cheese and a dollop of plain non-fat Greek yogurt.
Greek yogurt is a great substitute for sour cream if you’re watching your calories. It has the same tang as sour cream, plus a good amount of protein. As long as you keep the amount of shredded cheese you sprinkle on top in check, you’ll be a-ok!
Since I’m being good at the moment, I resisted the urge to use tortilla chips to scoop up my chili, my husband however did not. His idea of cutting back for the new year is limiting himself to one pint of ice cream a week instead of two. If only my thighs were that forgiving.
If you’re looking for a healthier alternative to the chips for a scooping method, corn tortillas are a good way to go. Just because we’re eating healthy doesn’t mean we can’t eat hearty filling foods that taste good and this White Chicken Chili tastes REALLY good!
White Chicken Chili
This White Chicken Chili is hearty, healthy, full of protein and happens to be gluten-free! It's perfect for serving on a cold night or while watching your favorite football team!
Ingredients
- 1 pound cooked and shredded boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium sized yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeño, minced
- 8 ounces diced green chiles (canned)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 3/4 teaspoon ground coriander
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 15 ounces (1 can) cannellini beans
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- Limes, shredded Monterey Jack cheese and plain Greek yogurt or sour cream for topping the chili
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium high heat, heat the olive oil.
- When the oil is hot add in the onion, garlic, jalapeño, cumin, corriander, salt and pepper.
- Sautè the vegetables until tender, about 3 minutes, then add in the diced green chiles and sautè another 1-2 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat and scoop out a scant 1/2 cup of the vegetable mixture and add it to a blender with a 1/2 cup of chicken broth and 1/2 cup of the cannellini beans.
- Purèe the mixture until smooth then add it back to the pot.
- Place the pot back on the stove over medium high heat and stir in the remaining chicken broth (3 1/2 cups).
- Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add in the shredded chicken and remaining cannellini beans and simmer for another 5 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped cilantro and season with more salt and pepper if needed.
- Serve the chili topped with shredded Monterey Jack cheese, more cilantro, a squeeze of lime juice and plain Greek yogurt or sour cream if desired.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 435Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 88mgSodium: 748mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 7gSugar: 5gProtein: 45g
More Chili and Soup Recipes
Slow Cooker Cincinnati Turkey Chili
This looks delicious and I love the pictures!
Thanks Sarah!
How beautiful is this white chili? I’m so ready for all the healthy things back into my diet again too, so this gorgeous soup is definitely gonna have to happen. With all the cheese on top of course. ;)
Thanks Sarah! Cheese can only make chili better right?! ;-)
Soups are basically saving my life right now. I’m cold and cranky too (stupid cookies!). This looks amazing. I love your photographs!
I hear ya Liz! All those cookies I was loving last month have currently made me the queen of cranky. Soup is a total must for a while!
We are dealing with arctic temperatures today.. this hearty chili would be a welcome lunch or dinner. :)
I’m dreading the return of our freezing weather, it’s been so nice the last few days. The chili will definitely help though!
Thank you for the gluten free addition. I am going to make it in this weekend and I am sure that it would be a great comfort food for my kids as well. Looking forward for more recipes in future.
This chili is the perfect warm-up for a cold winter’s day. Looks delicious.
Thanks Melissa!
I think I have binged watched too many Netflix series recently to put me into a TV coma! This needs to be on our menu for the big game Monday night!
Netflix can turn into such a bad habit, but I can’t stop! I froze half of our chili so we can have an easy dinner during the next football game!
White chicken chili is a favorite around here! Can’t wait to try your variation!
Thanks Jessica, I hope you like it!
I’ve been eating sooo much chocolate and sweets in England, and I’m not sure what kind of withdrawal symptoms I’ll be experiencing when I get back! I LOVE this chili! Looks so comforting!
Thanks Lisa! If I was in England I’d be indulging in everything too, how often do you get the chance?!
Hi – this recipe is fantastic. I’ve made it 4 times in the last 4 weeks! Can you share the nutritional info? I think the info on Yummly where I saw it posted is incorrect. It says 62 carbs for a serving. That just can’t be right.
Thanks so much!
Hi Megan,
62 carbs is definitely not right, wow! For 4 servings the calories/fat/carbs are 414/16/32. For 6 servings it’s 276/11/21. Glad to hear you like the chili, I love making it this time of year!
Can this be made ahead?
Absolutely!