What Goes In
- 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken breast halves, trimmed
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 medium jalapeño chiles
- 4 medium poblano chiles, stemmed, seeded, cut into large pieces
- 2 medium Anaheim chile peppers, stemmed, seeded, cut into large pieces
- 2 medium onions, cut into large pieces (~2 cups)
- 6 cloves garlic, minced (~2 tbsp)
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 (14.5-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 4 tbsp fresh lime juice (from 3-4 limes)
- 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
- 4 scallions, white and light green parts, sliced thin
Brown the Chicken
Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat Dutch oven over medium-high with oil until it shimmers and barely smokes.
Lay chicken skin-side down. Don’t touch for ~4 minutes – let that skin get crispy and golden.
Flip and brown other side ~2 minutes. Remove to a plate and peel off skin. Toss it.
Make Chile Base
Mince 1 jalapeño, removing ribs and seeds. Set aside for later.
Pulse half the poblanos, Anaheims, and onions in food processor ~10 times until roughly chopped. Transfer to bowl.
Repeat with remaining peppers and onions. Mix together.
Cook the Vegetables
Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot. Add more oil if dry. Reduce to medium.
Add minced jalapeño, chile-onion mix, garlic, cumin, coriander, and 1/4 teaspoon salt.
Cover and cook ~10 minutes, stirring every few minutes until vegetables soften. Remove from heat.
Blend and Build
Blend 1 cup cooked vegetables with 1 cup beans and 1 cup broth until smooth.
Return purée to pot with remaining 3 cups broth, rest of beans, and chicken pieces.
Bring to a bubble over medium-high, then reduce to medium-low. Cover and simmer ~15-20 minutes until chicken hits 160F internal (40 minutes for thighs).
Shred and Finish
Remove chicken with tongs. Add remaining beans and simmer uncovered ~10 minutes to reduce and thicken.
When cool enough, shred chicken into bite-sized pieces. Discard bones and return meat to pot.
Stir in lime juice, cilantro, scallions, and those jalapeño ribs/seeds if you want heat.
Taste and adjust seasoning. Simmer another minute or two.
Serve
Set out sour cream, tortilla chips, and lime wedges.
Control heat by keeping jalapeño ribs and seeds. No Anaheims? Use another poblano and jalapeño. The skin crisping then removal gives flavor without grease.
White Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 2 pounds bone-in skin-on chicken breast halves, trimmed
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 medium jalapeño chiles
- 4 medium poblano chiles stemmed, seeded, cut into large pieces
- 2 medium Anaheim chile peppers stemmed, seeded, cut into large pieces
- 2 medium onions cut into large pieces (~2 cups)
- 6 cloves garlic minced (~2 tbsp)
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 14.5-ounce cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 4 tbsp fresh lime juice from 3-4 limes
- 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
- 4 scallions white and light green parts, sliced thin
Instructions
- Pat chicken dry, season with salt and pepper.
- Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high, brown chicken skin-side down 4 minutes until crispy, flip and cook 2 minutes more.
- Remove chicken, discard skin.
- Mince 1 jalapeño without seeds, set aside.
- Pulse poblanos, Anaheims, and onions in food processor until roughly chopped.
- Pour off all but 1 tbsp fat from pot, reduce heat to medium.
- Add minced jalapeño, chile-onion mix, garlic, cumin, coriander, and salt. Cover and cook 10 minutes until soft.
- Blend 1 cup cooked vegetables with 1 cup beans and 1 cup broth until smooth.
- Return purée to pot with remaining broth, beans, and chicken.
- Simmer covered 15-20 minutes until chicken reaches 160F.
- Remove chicken, simmer uncovered 10 minutes to thicken.
- Shred chicken, discard bones, return meat to pot.
- Stir in lime juice, cilantro, and scallions.
- Adjust seasoning and simmer 1-2 minutes more.
- Serve with sour cream, tortilla chips, and lime wedges.
