Southwest White Chicken Chili
Zesty Southwest White Chicken Chili featuring tender chicken, white beans, green chiles, and salsa verde, thickened with masa harina for authentic Tex-Mex flavor. This quick one-pot recipe is ready in under 45 minutes.
Servings 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 medium)
- 1/2 cup diced red bell pepper (about 1 small pepper)
- 1 tablespoon masa harina
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder (mild, medium, or hot, your choice)
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 4 ounces canned green chiles (mild or hot, your choice), drained
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 cans white beans (about 28 ounces; great northern, cannellini, etc.)
- 3 cups cooked chicken , shredded or cubed (rotisserie chicken is perfect)
- 12 ounces frozen corn (or 2 ears of fresh corn, shucked and cut from cob)
- 1/2 cup tomato salsa or salsa verde (mild, medium, or hot, your choice)
- 3/4 cup half and half or whole milk
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 1 tablespoon minced cilantro leaves
- 1 fresh lime
- Salt and pepper
Suggested toppings:
- More minced cilantro
- Shredded cheese
- Sliced green onions
- Sliced chile peppers (such as jalapenos)
- Sour cream
- Salsa
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a 4 to 5 quart soup pot or Dutch oven over medium until the surface shimmers.
- Add the onions and red bell peppers to pot and saute until softened (about 5 minutes).
- Stir in the masa harina, spices, garlic, green chiles, and a big pinch of salt and cook until the garlic is fragrant (just about a minute or so).
- Pour in the chicken broth and raise the heat to medium-high to bring the soup to an active simmer.
- If you didn't do this ahead of time, measure out 1/2 cup of the white beans and run them through a food processor or blender with a splash of water or broth. Puree until smooth.
- Stir the puree into the soup, and add the remaining beans.
- Let the soup simmer for 10 minutes.
- Pro tip: If you’re using fresh corn, add the bare cobs to the soup while it’s simmering. It will add so much corn flavor! Remove the cobs at the 10-minute mark, before continuing with the recipe.
- Reduce the heat to low, and add the chicken, corn, and salsa. Stir well and let warm through in the residual heat of the soup.
- Stir in the half-and-half, followed by the shredded cheese and cilantro. Squeeze the juice from half of the lime into the pot. Taste, and add salt and more lime juice until the flavor is bright and savory. Serve with your favorite toppings.