Rotisserie Chicken Chili

I love fall. I love the cooler temps, I love the Holiday Season, I love football games…and I love the excuse to put gravy on e’rything. Seriously, though, one of my favorite things about the end of Summer is the beginning of chili/soup/stew season. I ADORE fall food: pecan pie, pot roast, vegetable stew…but I’ve gotta admit that, for me, not much beats a big ole bowl of chili on a cool night.

Anyone that’s been to my house for dinner between the months of September and March can tell ya that I love me some chili. I enjoy eating it, of course, but I really, genuinely like cooking it, too. It’s actually one of the first recipes I got decent at when I started cooking seriously about 10 years ago. I distinctly remember that my first version included ketchup straight from the bottle. It was edible, I’m sure (I’m not actually sure), but I’m happy to report that my chili recipes have come a long way since.

I make a few different types of chili, including a traditional beef chili with rich tomato sauce and plenty of red beans, but this white chicken chili is my current fave. It’s distinctly southwestern, thanks to green chilies and plenty of cumin and, despite lacking tomatoes and subbing chicken for beef, it’s surprisingly hearty and cozy. Chili isn’t crazy hard to make or anything, but I take short cuts where I can get ’em, so this recipe uses store-bought rotisserie chicken. You could certainly roast your own, but I happen to think the rotisserie stuff is amazing, so that’s what I’ve done here.

The only additional step this chili requires is that you give it a bit of a puree before you finish adding all of the ingredients. I use an emulsifier, which means I can blend without having to take the chili out of the pot, but a blender would work just fine here. In fact, before I bought my emulsifier, I would just dump the chili in a blender, blend it up, then dump it right back in the pot. It takes an extra minute or two, and adds a bit of clean up, but I think the extra effort is worth it for this dish: the pureed beans and corn really lend richness and texture to the chili, and I’m alllll about that.

This recipe makes 8 standard-size bowls of chili (though I’ve been told that my idea of a ‘standard size’ bowl of chili is a little…generous), so plan on enjoying the leftovers the next day – if it’s possible, this stuff may be even better for round two (aaaand it’s only 285 cals/serving). Here’s how I make it.

5 from 2 votes

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Rotisserie Chicken Chili

This chicken chili'll give anyone's fave fall dish a run for it's money. Plus, it's easy to make and cooks up in a single pot.

Course dinner, lunch

Cuisine American, Mexican

Keyword chicken, chicken chili, chili, dinner, fall, football, gameday, lunch, one pot, soup, stew

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings 8 bowls

Calories 285 kcal

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 Yellow or brown onion {chopped}
• 2 carrots {peeled & chopped}
• 1 jalapeno {chopped}
• 2 tbsp Garlic {chopped}
• 3.5 tsp Cumin
• 2 tsp Salt
• 2 tsp Light brown sugar {packed}
• 1.5 tsp Dried Oregano
• 1/2 tsp White pepper
• 1/4 tsp Cayenne {optional}
• 12 ounces Beer {I use amber ale}
• 32 ounces Chicken Stock
• 1 15 oz can Pinto beans {drained}
• 1 15 oz can White beans {drained}
• 1 11 oz can Sweet corn {drained}
• 1 4 oz can Hatch green chilis
• 1 Rotisserie chicken {meat pulled and shredded}
• 2 tsp Corn Starch {mixed with water}

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a large heavy bottomed soup pan over medium heat.

2. Add onion, carrot, jalapeno and garlic and cook until vegetables begin to soften, about 8-10 minutes.

3. Add cumin, oregano, cayenne, brown sugar, salt and white pepper and stir to coat the veggies in the spices. There won't be much liquid, if any, in the pot at this point - that's what ya want (see picture).

   

4. Add the beer and bring to a simmer. Simmer until about half the liquid has burned off, stirring occassionally.

5. Add the chicken stock and half a can each of the pinto beans, white beans and corn. 

6. If you have an emulsifier, use it to lightly puree the ingredients in the pot. You don't want it silky smooth, more like rustically or 'home style' chunky (I've shown how mine looks post-puree in the pic here). If you don't have an emulsifier, you can use a blender or you can skip this step altogether!

   

7. Add the rest of the beans and corn, and add the green chilies (in their juice) and chicken to the pot. 

8. Bring to a boil and add the corn starch mixed with water, stirring constantly for about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and stir occasionally until ready to serve. I like to leave mine simmering for at least 40 minutes before I serve it, to let the flavors really develop and allow the cornstarch to work it's thickening magic. Enjoy!