Our Favorite Creamy White Chicken Chili

As soon as the weather starts cooling down, white chicken chili goes right back into our dinner rotation.

It’s creamy and cozy without being overly heavy, with chicken, white beans, green chiles, corn, and just enough spice to give it plenty of flavor. Add avocado, cheese, cilantro, tortilla chips, and a squeeze of lime on top and it’s one of those dinners we could make over and over again all fall and winter.

We also love that you can make this easy creamy white chicken chili three different ways: on the stovetop, in the Instant Pot, or in the slow cooker. And if we’re making the stovetop version, we’ll often use precooked chicken to get dinner on the table even faster.

One little trick we’ve found makes a big difference: instead of adding the cream cheese straight to the chili, we melt it together with the half-and-half first. It creates a smooth cream sauce that mixes right in without leaving little chunks of cream cheese behind.

Recipe inspiration: This recipe was originally inspired by a white chicken chili from The Chunky Chef, but over the years we’ve tweaked it into the version our family makes now.

Easy Creamy White Chicken Chili

Serves: Approximately 6–8

Ingredients

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of excess fat (*see note in the stovetop version about using precooked chicken)
1 yellow onion, diced
½ tsp garlic powder
32 oz low-sodium chicken broth
2 (15 oz) cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
2 (4 oz) cans diced green chiles (we often use one hot and one mild but you can mix it up!)
1 (15 oz) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
1 tsp cumin
¾ tsp oregano
½ tsp chili powder
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
Small handful fresh cilantro, chopped
4 oz reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
¼ cup half-and-half

Optional Toppings

This is definitely a toppings kind of dinner. We love shredded cheese, avocado, fresh cilantro, tortilla strips or crushed tortilla chips, sour cream, sliced jalapeños, green onions, and lime wedges.

Stovetop White Chicken Chili

The stovetop version is great when you’re making dinner that evening. We also frequently make it with precooked shredded chicken, which cuts down the cooking time quite a bit. *See note below if using precooked chicken.*

Starting With Raw Chicken:

1. Prep the chicken.
   Cut each chicken breast into about three pieces and set aside.
2. Cook the onion.
   Add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large Dutch oven or soup pot. Heat over medium heat and add the diced onion. Cook for 4–5 minutes, until softened.
3. Add the seasonings.
   Stir in the garlic powder, salt, black pepper, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and cayenne pepper.
4. Add the remaining ingredients.
   Add the chicken, Great Northern beans, green chiles, corn, chicken broth, and cilantro. Stir everything together.
5. Simmer.
   Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the chili to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 30–40 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the chili has thickened to your liking.
6. Shred the chicken.
   Remove the chicken from the pot and shred it with two forks. Return the shredded chicken to the chili.
7. Make the cream sauce.
   While you’re shredding the chicken, combine the softened cream cheese and half-and-half in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in short intervals, stirring between each, until the cream cheese has melted and the mixture is smooth. You can also combine them in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until completely smooth.
8. Finish the chili.
   Pour the cream sauce into the chili and stir well. Let everything simmer together for another few minutes, then serve with your favorite toppings.

*Our Weeknight Shortcut: Use Precooked Chicken

This is probably our favorite way to make the stovetop version when we need dinner on the table quickly.

Instead of starting with raw chicken, use about 2–3 cups cooked, shredded chicken. Rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken both work great.

Sauté the onion as directed above, then stir in the seasonings. Add the beans, green chiles, corn, chicken broth, cilantro, and shredded chicken.

Bring everything to a simmer and cook for about 15–20 minutes to let the flavors come together.

Make the cream cheese and half-and-half sauce separately, stir it into the pot, and let everything simmer for another few minutes before serving.

Same cozy dinner, quite a bit faster.

Instant Pot White Chicken Chili

The Instant Pot version is perfect when you want to put everything in one pot and let it do most of the work.

1. Add the chicken. Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of a 6-quart Instant Pot.
2. Add the remaining ingredients. Add the onion, garlic powder, chicken broth, beans, green chiles, corn, cilantro, salt, black pepper, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and cayenne pepper. Stir gently to combine.
3. Pressure cook. Secure the lid and move the valve to the sealing position. Cook on Manual/High Pressure for 20 minutes.

When the cooking time is finished, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Carefully move the valve to venting to release the remaining pressure before opening the lid.

4. Shred the chicken. Remove the chicken breasts to a plate or bowl and shred them with two forks.
5. Make the cream sauce. Combine the softened cream cheese and half-and-half in a microwave-safe bowl and heat in short intervals, stirring until completely melted and smooth. Or heat them together in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth.
6. Finish the chili. Pour the cream sauce into the Instant Pot and stir well. Return the shredded chicken to the pot and stir everything together until creamy and combined.

Serve with your favorite toppings.

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

This is the version for the days when you want to get dinner going earlier and have it waiting for you later.

1. Add everything to the slow cooker. Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of the slow cooker. Sprinkle with the garlic powder, salt, black pepper, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and cayenne pepper.
2. Top with the diced onion, Great Northern beans, green chiles, corn, chicken broth, and cilantro. Stir gently.
3. Cook. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 3–4 hours, until the chicken is cooked through and easily shreds.
4. Shred the chicken. Remove the chicken to a large bowl, shred it with two forks, and return it to the slow cooker.
5. Make the cream sauce. Combine the softened cream cheese and half-and-half in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in short intervals, stirring between each, until completely smooth. You can also do this in a small saucepan over low heat.
6. Finish the chili. Pour the cream sauce into the slow cooker and stir well.

Cover and cook on HIGH for another 15 minutes, or until everything is hot, creamy, and slightly thickened.

Stir once more and serve with all your favorite toppings.

Which Method Should You Use?

The best part about having all three options is that you can make this work with whatever kind of day you’re having.

Stovetop: Our favorite for a normal weeknight, especially if we already have cooked chicken in the fridge.

Instant Pot: Great when you want to start with raw chicken but don’t want the longer simmer or slow-cooker time.

Slow cooker: Perfect when you want to get dinner started earlier in the day and have most of the work done by dinnertime.

Whichever method you choose, don’t skip making the cream cheese sauce separately. It only takes an extra minute or two and gives the chili a much smoother, creamier texture.

What to Serve With White Chicken Chili

This can easily be dinner all on its own, especially once you load it up with toppings.

If you want something on the side, try it with cornbread, tortilla chips, warm bread, or a simple green salad.

And definitely don’t forget the toppings. A little avocado, shredded cheese, cilantro, crunchy tortilla strips, and fresh lime make a really good bowl of chili even better.

This is exactly the kind of recipe we love having in our back pocket once fall hits. It’s cozy, easy to make, feeds the whole family, and can be adapted to whatever kind of cooking day we’re having.

If you make it, let us know which method you used!

X.o.
The Threads Between Sisters

Check out our favorite Chicken Noodle Soup recipe here!