Creamy White Chicken Chili {Stovetop or Slow Cooker}
Easy and so delicious, this best-ever white chicken chili has been a family favorite for years (with no signs of stopping!). With directions for stovetop or slow cooker, it’s versatile, simple, and tasty!
Let’s talk about chili.
Creamy white chicken chili to be exact.
I like classic red chili. Here are a few of my favorite red chilis:
My Mom’s Classic Red Chili
Slow Cooker Red Chili
Hearty Turkey and Bean Chili
Sweet Heat Louisiana Chili
But if I’m being honest, I LOVE (double heart, love, love, love) white chili.
And I hate to throw out exclamations like this: but this creamy white chicken chili is the best of the best of the best.
I mean, just read through the comments and you’ll see why so many people rave about this white chicken chili.
Not only is it a cinch to throw together, but the flavor is amazing.
Over the years, I’ve kept the basic recipe the same, but you can see below that I’ve added some notes to make this recipe even more delicious.
It also works beautifully in the slow cooker.
And since I know people will ask (can’t blame you), I actually have tried this in the Instant Pot as well.
But it definitely falls into the category of: it’s just as fast to make it on the stovetop. By the time the IP comes up to pressure, cooks the chicken, and the pressure releases, this white chicken chili can be ready to go via a saucepan on the stove.
However, I’m not one to talk you out of using that Instant Pot every single day of your life. So, feel free to give it a go.
I didn’t include directions for the IP below because I don’t make it that way, but you can try tossing everything but the dairy ingredients in the IP (use whole chicken breasts) and cook for 8 minutes on high pressure (probably 3 minutes for cubed chicken, but the other ingredients, like the onion, may not soften fully).
Let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes, quick release the rest of the way, stir in the sour cream and cream/milk, select Saute and heat through.
See How To Make It Here:
And also, if you are interested, here are a few of my other beloved white chili recipes:
White Bean Chicken Chili (with a little extra flair that makes it different than today’s recipe)
Roasted Garlic and White Bean Chili
Slow Cooker White Bean Chicken Chili (not creamy, more brothy)
Slow Cooker Jalapeño Popper White Bean Chili
What To Serve With This:
Chili toppings, like shredded cheese, tortilla chips, etc.
My Favorite Cornbread
FAQs for Creamy White Chicken Chili
No, cooking time stays the same.
Yes!
Yes I freeze it all once it is made- the texture can be a little grainy, but we don’t mind.
Creamy White Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (leave whole for slow cooker method)
- 1 medium chopped onion, (about 1/2 cup)
- 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder or 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced
- 2 cans (15.5-ounces each) Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 (14.5) ounce can chicken broth, (about 1 3/4 cups)
- 2 cans (4-ounces each) chopped green chiles (see note)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 cup sour cream
- ½ cup whipping cream (see note)
- Fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)
- Shredded cheese, tortilla chips, other toppings (optional)
Instructions
- Stovetop Directions: In a 4- or 5-quart pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chicken, onion, and garlic powder (or fresh garlic, if using). Cook, stirring occasionally, for 1-2 minutes, until the onion starts to soften (it’s ok if the chicken isn’t cooked all the way; it will cook more in the next step).
- Add the beans, broth, chiles, salt, cumin, oregano, pepper and cayenne.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 15 to 30 minutes.
- Remove from the heat; stir in the sour cream and cream.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro, if desired. Serve immediately with other toppings of choice, if desired.
- Slow Cooker Directions: In a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker, place 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts whole (without cutting into pieces).
- Add the chopped onion, garlic powder, beans, green chiles and all of the spices. Do not add the sour cream or whipping cream yet!
- Reduce the chicken broth to 12 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) and pour in over the other ingredients. Stir the mixture around a bit to incorporate the dry spices. Cook on low for 5-7 hours.
- Remove the chicken to a cutting board and shred in bite-size pieces (or use a couple forks and shred right in the slow cooker). Add the shredded chicken back into the slow cooker.
- In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the sour cream and whipping cream until smooth. Whisk the cream mixture into the crockpot with the other ingredients. Let the chili cook warm through on low temperature. Serve.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe originally posted September 2008; updated with new pictures, recipe notes, commentary.
The video in this post was made in partnership with Inspo
Umm..all I can say is AMAZING. I even think this may be my favorite recipe of yours so far…although I’m curious about your other white chili recipe; I need to try that one too and see how it compares. But this one gets 5 stars from me…and I’m so glad it used up the rest of my turkey leftovers! Now I don’t have to feel guilty about throwing any food out. 🙂
Kimiko – so glad you liked this recipe and great idea to use your turkey leftovers with it!
I love your website so much!!! I rant and rav to everyone!! I made this chili this morning for our ward chili cook off tonight and It won 1st place.. everyone LOVED it soo much they all want the recipe I was sooo happy!!! thanks for all of your amazing recipes!
Brooke – congratulations on the first place prize! I’m so happy you won and that you have loved the recipes you’ve tried. Thanks for letting me know!
Mel Mel Bo Bel, Banana Fanana Fo Fel, Me My Mo Mel…MEL!
Loved it! Super creamy, flavorful, and delish! I’m just mad I didn’t double it because now I have no leftovers for lunch today. I won’t make that mistake again….
Thanks, Reyna (and thanks for getting that ditty stuck in my head…)
YUM! I made this tonight with your cornbread recipe. I am so impressed with both! I did roast and use poblanos instead of green chiles. YUM! My family LOVED them. My husband said that the cornbread and soup was the best he ever had! Thanks so much for sharing your collection of wonderful recipes. Your blog is the best!!
This recipe is amazing! We loved it! I’m already looking forward to making it again. I couldn’t find the chopped green chilies so I doubled the cayenne pepper and thought that worked great. Thank you so much Mel! You should put together a cookbook! I would buy one plus more to giveaway as gifts!
Thanks, Kensi! I’ll let you know if the cookbook thing ever comes to fruition!
Hi there! I have a work chili cook off coming up, and I’m thinking this might be my winning recipe. Question – can you make this in a crock pot? If so, how long should it cook? I’m just worried because I have to bring the chili in at 8am for an 11am cookoff, and have no other way to keep it warm other than the trusty crock pot – but also don’t want to overcook the chicken. Thanks!
Rachel – I hope this IS the winning recipe. Yes, you can definitely make this work in a crockpot. I’ve done it before by making the soup like the recipe states and then just keeping it warm in the crockpot until I need to serve it. You could even make it the night before, let it cool and then refrigerate it overnight. Pop it in your slow cooker the next day and let it warm up through the morning. Good luck!
Hi Mel,
I found your recipe last fall and have made it at least twice a month since. My fiance asks for it on a weekly basis. I always make a double batch but it never lasts more than 48 hours. I can’t wait to try your One-Minute Salsa!
Thanks so much for what you do!
Julie 🙂
Julie – I’m thrilled this recipe has been such a hit for you and your fiance! Thanks for letting me know.
Melanie, I loved this recipe. I really, really loved this recipe. I was surprised at how good and savory it was. My husband made it, who never cooks, and it was so easy. My kids loved it, and the leftovers were even better. Hats off to this recipe!
Amy G – thank you! I really, really love this recipe, too, so I’m glad it was such a hit at your house.
Mmmmm this is one of my(and my household of men’s:) favorite recipes of yours. I just wanted to let you know how much your recipes mean to us. You are my go-to gal and you have a huge part in bringing my family closer together with every meal. I hope you continue this blog for as long as possible and my boys will grow up loving them as much as I do! Keep it up! <33333
Lacy – you are so nice! Thank you! As you probably know, I have a household of men, too, so hopefully these recipes will help both you AND me! Thanks again for your comment…it made my day.
I am a recent convert to your blog. My friend had made this recipe a couple of times and I loved it. I finally tried to make it myself for the first time last night. I had to use a couple of substitutions because when I went to the store to get the ingredients I lacked, it was closed! So I used canned chicken instead of chopped up chicken breasts. I also substituted paprika for the cayenne pepper and green pepper (tabasco) sauce for the chopped green chilies. It was still delicious. It didn’t have as much kick as the original, but I still enjoyed it, and there were no left overs. I want to make it the “right” way as soon as I can get the right ingredients, but it’s nice to know that if I’m short on time, the canned chicken is still very tasty in this recipe! The whole family devoured it.
Hi Alicia – I love your adaptations for this chili and am thrilled it turned out so well! Way to go…not everyone can just zip around their kitchen throwing this and that in to make a meal work. I’m impressed!
Barbi – that’s funny that you had them read all these comments. I’m glad it made them think a little more fondly on the chili! And thank heavens they liked it! Thanks for letting me know.
Hi Melanie~ I told my boys we were having this White Chili for dinner, and of course they fussed about it, so I had them read all the comments on your blog and how so many people thought it was delicious/ yummy / LOVED it.
Thankfully – this worked, they actually gave it a try, and guess what!? Yep, they thought it was delicious!!!! My 8 year old, though it was a bit too spicy for him, but he gave it a good shot. I will lay off the cayenne pepper the next time we make it, and yes there will definatlely be a next time, so he has nothing to complain about. 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
Laura – thanks for your comment! I’m thrilled that your husband overcame his fears of a new recipe and ended up loving it. Love your changes – thanks for letting me know!
Melanie,
Both my husband and I loved this recipe. He was a bit hesitant as I have a white chicken chili recipe that he loves. He wasn’t quite sure why I was trying a new one but after dinner he said it tasted great. Anyhow, thanks.
One thing I incorporated from my other recipe is I added the juice of one lemon, 1 tsp of lemon pepper and did not use regular pepper.
This was a winner! Loved using cilantro. That made it taste so much better! Thanks.
Gina – thank you for detailing your changes…I think that helps as others read through the comments. I’m glad you liked this recipe and your added garnishes sound absolutely delicious (especially the avocado and lime!).
I made this white chili on Monday night, and it was truly wonderful! I used both cans of chiles, and I think I goofed and doubled the cayenne (1/2 t.), so it was a little on the spicy side, but that’s okay by me. The sauce seemed a little thin to me, and as the Great Northern beans cook down, it seemed like the soup was all chicken. So before I heated up the leftovers the next day, I added one can of white kidney beans (cannellini beans), and that bulked up the soup and took the heat down a notch. Plus, I just like some bigger beans in the mix. I will definitely do that again when I make it the next time.
Also, we added some fun garnishes on top–crushed-up tortilla chips, shredded Mexi-blend cheese, and chunks of avocado tossed with lime juice. YUM!
Thanks for the great recipe!
–Gina
Danielle – I bet crushed red pepper would be fantastic in this…glad you liked it!
I whipped this up in less than an hour and simply put, it was delicious. The chicken was tender and the flavors were great. The only thing I added was a little crushed red pepper to make it spicy.
Annie D – glad this was a hit with your kids – thanks for letting me know!
I made this for dinner tonight and WOW was it great! Followed the recipe exactly and it was awesome. My 3 children (twins 17 & 12 yr old) raved– 5 stars! I am always looking for something quick and flavorful for weeknight dinners and this is it!
Kaitlyn – thanks for commenting! I'm so glad this soup was a hit with your family and that you have been getting requests to make it again and again. Thanks for letting me know (and good luck cooking while managing a University schedule)!
Honestly, this is the first time I've ever used 'real' spices. I know! But I'm slaving away in University and my mom usually cooks. Anyway, my entire family has been begging me to make this over and over again – a real first around here because everyone is so picky and peculiar about their food.I'm Canadian, and maybe white chili is common in the USA but I'd never heard of it here. I'm glad I tried it anyways! Thanks so much! I've been browsing your site ever since I tried your peppermint cookies and everything I've tried is spectacular!
Anna – well that's a good review from your husband! I'm glad…thanks for letting me know!
This was so yummy! We had it for dinner last night and a few bites in my husband said, "We should definitely have this again!" I had the leftovers tonight and I think it was even better the second day. Loved it!
Reagan Law – I hope the white chili worked out for you! I don’t mind at all if you repost the recipes…thanks for linking back to my site!
going to try this tonight!!! I’ve been making lots of your recipes and have found some keepers!!! thank you!! I have been putting the links on my blog, hope I’m doing it right :)!!
Shanna – glad that despite the complaining, the kiddos still ate up!
This was as tasty as promised! I used both cans of chilies and the kids DID complain of the spicy heat BUT ate it all anyway 😉
Erin b – thanks for your comment! I hope you like this soup (and I’m glad your friend loved the pretzels!).
Was already planning to make this type of chili for dinner tonight and then a friend sent me your post about pretzels (btw, she made them and is RAVING about them). I am so making this tonight. Yum!
Hi smodi – welcome and thanks for your vote of confidence on this soup. So simple and delicious!
Hey Melanie! Just found your site!! YUM YUM!! My mom have been making this recipe since I was a little girl some 40ish years ago and I absolutely love it. It is my feel good food! I am so glad to see so many people are enjoying it! I think I will make it tonight! LOL
Jason and Lesley – I just made this chili again today, too. Glad you liked it!
I loved this chili! Thanks so much for sharing!!
azlabrat – thanks for detailing your changes – it sounds delicious and I’m glad it turned out well for you.
I don’t keep heavy cream in the house, so I used extra sour cream and just skipped the cream, I cooked the beans from dry and just used one pound of dry northern beans cooked in chicken broth, we also had an 8oz block of hot pepper processed cheese stuff (I’m not sure how it got here, but it was still good so I used it) I chunked that up and added it in at the end and let it melt through. It was good. I would have needed extra heat if I hadn’t added the peppered cheese, but I like my food spicy so that is personal taste.
Thanks so much – my husband and I are enjoying this right now! I somehow had no cumin available so I put about a half packet of taco seasonings instead (left out the cayenne too because that’s in the packet), and used some chipotle peppers instead of chillies (not a fan). Turned out awesome! Thanks!! 🙂
mysie – how funny! We both made this the same night. I’m so glad you liked it, especially with your adaptations! Way to go!
Instead of cooking it on my stovetop, I opted to try and cook it in my Presto Kitchen Kettle. I have it simmering right now!! It smells delicious and I can’t wait til its done!!
bebemamakalei – well, I’ve never heard of a Presto Kitchen Kettle but I’ll be curious to know if you liked the end result!
Melanie–I’m planning on making this for 4 adults and 2 kids. would you suggest I double it? do you think it would fit in a 6 quart pot doubled?? Thanks! I LOVE your site!!
Amy – if everyone of those 4 adults and 2 kids eat pretty average sized portions, you are probably fine making a normal batch of this but you probably won’t have much leftover. If you don’t mind leftovers and want the peace of mind knowing that everyone can eat as much as they like, I would suggest at least one-and-a-halving the recipe or doubling. Hope it works out!
Julia – thanks for your comment! I’m so glad you like this soup and all the other recipes you have tried. And now, SEND ME YOUR RECIPE! Seriously, I’d love to have it, it sounds delicious.
LOVE this soup and so so many of your recipes. I’ve known about your blog for a couple months now and have made so many of your recipes, including this one a few times. It is fabulous! I crave it all the time. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes, I have a fabulous cookie one I should pass on, white chocolate cheesecake cookies, they’re a big hit at all the events I’ve taken them to and fun for a change. Thanks again!!
Shantai – great news. Thanks for sharing!
I posted this recipe in our weekly Relief Society announcement and the next week everyone was raving about it!! THANKS!
Pam – yay! That is great news…thanks for letting me know. I’m glad it was such a hit.
I made this for my husbands Chili contest at work and guess what..it won first place! It is delicious.
Meagan – Glad you and your family liked this! Thanks so much for letting me know.
I made this for my family last weekend, it was a big hit. I loved that it had a kick but not too much and not too little. For my kids, I just added to dollup of Sour Cream, just to take the edge off. Very good!! Thank you. – Meagan, ATL