White chicken chili in a bowl with blue corn tortillas

White Chicken Chili

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 40 minutes Servings: 6-8

This white chicken chili is creamy with all the cozy chili spices, and is a great dinner recipe for the cooler weather.  Easily made in the Instant Pot with almost no prep work, this white chicken chili comes together in just 40 minutes. Use dairy free cream cheese to easily make this chili dairy free!


Fall and winter are the perfect seasons for a nice warm bowl of cozy chili.  Chili is a great dinner to make that you can prep in the morning and let cook all day in a slow cooker.  The aromas wafting through the air, getting you excited and in the mood for a warm bowl of chili sprinkled with tortilla strips or cheddar cheese.


But this chili has a few spins.  For one, it has a cream base which can easily be made with dairy free cream cheese, or regular.  This works out great for those who have a hard time with spicy foods, or get heartburn from chili.  The creaminess minimizes and balances the spices in this white chicken chili, plus you can always adjust the amount of chili powder in the chili to fit your needs.


The second spin on this chili is how we cook it.  Instead of using a slow cooker, which you can still use for this recipe, we use an Instant Pot.  It’s quicker and the chicken comes out so tender and juicy. This recipe is a dump and go Instant Pot recipe meaning we dump all the ingredients in, give a quick stir, and then we cook!  The only other steps are to dice the onion beforehand, and shred the chicken after it’s finished cooking. Too easy for the amount of flavor and deliciousness in this recipe!

Want more quick and easy Instant Pot recipes?

Try this Instant Pot Buttery Tomato Pasta or this Instant Pot Potato and Corn Chowder with Bacon. Both are delicious and easy and quick enough to make for a weeknight dinner!

Ingredients:

Chicken Breast- Fresh or frozen. I buy a big pack of chicken breasts and then divide and freeze the rest.

Yellow Onion

Black Beans

White Beans- I used cannellini, but great northern would also work well.

Sweet corn, cream style- adds to the flavor and creaminess of the chili.

Rotel- can sub a can of diced tomatoes with green chiles.

Chicken Broth- provides flavor and the liquid to cook the chicken.

Spices- in this recipe we use dried parsley, garlic powder, minced onion, onion powder, dried dill, dried chives, salt, black pepper, chilli powder and cumin.

Cream Cheese- I used my favorite dairy free cream cheese, but if you’re not dairy free then feel free to use regular cream cheese.  This provides another depth of flavor and is the cream base of this White Chicken Chili without using another liquid.

Tools to make this White Chicken Chili:

  • Instant Pot– this is the one I use and I love all the features of it! For this recipe, you only need to use the pressure cook button.
  • Knife- for dicing the onion
  • Cutting board- used for dicing the onion and shredding the chicken
  • 2 forks or these meat claws made for shredding meat like chicken and pulled pork!

How to make:

Place everything in the Instant Pot

Add the chicken to the Instant Pot and then add the beans, corn, Rotel, chicken broth, and spices.  Give a good stir, making sure to get liquid underneath the chicken breasts so that you do not get a burn notice. Slice the cream cheese into 6 equal pieces and place on top in the Instant Pot.

Plug in and close the lid

Plug the Instant Pot in and close the lid correctly. Make sure the valve is turned towards sealing and not venting.

Pressure cook

Press the pressure cook button and set the timer for 10-12 minutes and let be. The pressure will build for about 20 minutes, then cook, and then depressurize and release.

Releasing the pressure and steam

Once the timer goes off, let it naturally release for 5 minutes and then manually release the rest of the pressure by quickly and carefully (the steam is very hot) turning the valve to venting.

Remove the chicken and shred

Once the steam has stopped venting, open the lid and remove just the chicken breasts and place on a cutting board or plate. Shred the chicken and place back into the pot. Stir well until the cream cheese has thoroughly melted and incorporated throughout the entire chili.

Toppings

Top with desired toppings such as tortilla strips, cheddar cheese, black olives or guacamole. 

Best Toppings for this White Chicken Chili:

  • Tortilla Strips/ Corn chips- My personal favorite.  I love adding a salty crunch to this creamy chili.
  • Cheese- I’d recommend cheddar cheese.  My favorite vegan cheddar cheese that actually tastes like cheddar cheese is GOOD PLANeT’s shredded cheddar cheese.
  • Black olives
  • Pickled Jalapenos- great if you love spicy foods!
  • Guacamole- store bought or homemade

Craving other delicious recipes? Take a look!

White Chicken Chili

Recipe by MaryCourse: Meals, Dinner
Servings

6-8

servings
Prep time

10

minutes
Cooking time

30

minutes
Total time

40

minutes

This white chicken chili is creamy with all the cozy chili spices, and is a great dinner recipe for the cooler weather.  Easily made in the Instant Pot with almost no prep work, this white chicken chili comes together in just 40 minutes. Use dairy free cream cheese to easily make this chili dairy free!

Ingredients

  • 2 chicken breasts

  • 1 medium onion, diced

  • 1 15.5 oz can of black beans

  • 1 15.5 oz can of white beans

  • 1 14.75 oz can of sweet corn, cream style

  • 1 10 oz can of Rotel, or tomatoes with green chiles

  • 1 cup chicken broth

  • 1/2 Tablespoon dried parsley

  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

  • 1 teaspoon minced onion

  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried dill

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried chives

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

  • 1-1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin

  • 8 oz cream cheese*

Directions

  • Add the chicken to the Instant Pot.  Then add the beans, corn, Rotel, chicken broth, and spices.  Give a good stir, making sure to get liquid underneath the chicken breasts so that you do not get a burn notice.
  • Slice the cream cheese into 6 equal pieces and place on top in the Instant Pot.
  • Plug the Instant Pot in and close the lid making sure the jingle plays so you know its on correctly. Make sure the valve is turned towards sealing and not venting.
  • Press the pressure cook button and set the timer for 10-12 minutes and let be. The pressure will build for about 20 minutes, then cook, and then depressurize and release.
  • Once the timer goes off, manually release the pressure by quickly and carefully (the steam is very hot) turning the valve to venting. (Sometimes I do this with a wooden spoon or knife so my hand isn’t near the steam.)
  • Once the steam has stopped venting, open the lid and remove just the chicken breasts and place on a cutting board or plate. Shred the chicken with 2 forks or these meat claws and place back into the pot. Stir well until the cream cheese has thoroughly melted and incorporated throughout the entire chili.
  • Best served warm.  Top with desired toppings such as tortilla strips, cheddar cheese, black olives or guacamole. Enjoy!

Notes

  • * I’ve used both Tofutti and Kitehill successfully as dairy free cream cheese in this recipe. Tofutti melts very easily, but Kitehill needs to be stirred in more to achieve an overall creaminess result.

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