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This white chicken chili is so easy! I love a good one-pot meal. You basically toss everything into a slow cooker and let it be for half the day. It takes minimal effort and it’s definitely a crowd pleaser!
My co-worker, Amaia, shared this recipe with me after bringing it to a potluck. Thanks Amaia; it was well-loved by my husband ;). I hope your takeaway from the video tutorial is how easy this recipe really is!
Ingredients for white chicken chili:
2 chicken breasts (frozen or fresh)
1 (15 oz)can black beans; drained and rinsed (or cook your own beans!)
1 (15 oz) can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 (15 oz) can corn, un-drained
1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chilies, un-drained
1 Tbsp chili powder 1 tsp cumin
1 (o.4 oz) package ranch dressing mix
1/2 bunch of cilantro; chopped
1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth (I used Better than bouillon reduced sodium)
1 (8oz) package cream cheese (regular or reduced fat)
Optional (but highly recommended) garnish:
Mixed Mexican cheese, sour cream and chives
The How To (please watch the video for the visual tutorial):
Place everything into the slow cooker in the order that it’s listed above:
1. Place 2 chicken breasts in the bottom of the crock pot.
2. Drain and rinse (rinse until water runs clear) black and white beans; then add them to the pot. P.S. We’re now cooking our own beans to reduce the amount of BPA in our diet. Click here to learn how to easily make your own beans.
3. Add finely chopped medium onion, un-drained can of corn, un-drained can of diced tomatoes with green chilies
4. Top with 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1 package ranch dressing mix, 1/2 bunch of chopped cilantro, 1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth (I used 1 cup and it does thicken up as it stands; especially after being refrigerated) and finally place your 8 oz package of cream cheese in the center.
5. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. After it’s been cooking 5 hours, break up the cream cheese into the rest of the mix. Cover and continue cooking the last hour (if you forget this step, it won’t hurt anything to mix it at the end).
6. After the 6 hours, remove the chicken breasts into a medium bowl and shred using two forks. The chicken is so tender it just falls apart. Place the chicken back into the slow cooker and stir to combine everything.
Amaia served this over baked potatoes topped with cheese and sour cream. It’s also great with tortilla chips or white rice.
Chicken Cream Cheese Chili (Slow Cooker Recipe)
Ingredients
For the chili, you will need:
- 2 chicken breasts, frozen or fresh
- 15 oz can black beans; drained and rinsed
- 15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 15 oz can of corn, undrained
- 10 oz diced tomatoes with green chilies, un-drained
- 1 Tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 0.4 oz ranch dressing mix packet
- 1/2 bunch of cilantro; chopped
- 1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth, I used Better than bouillon reduced sodium
- 8 oz cream cheese (regular or reduced fat)
Optional (but highly recommended) garnish:
- Mixed Mexican cheese, sour cream and chives
Instructions
Put everything into the slow cooker in the order that it's listed above:
- Place 2 chicken breasts in the bottom of the crock pot.
- Drain and rinse (rinse until water runs clear) black and white beans; then add them to the pot.
- Add finely chopped medium onion, undrained can of corn, undrained can of diced tomatoes with green chilies
- Top with 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1 package ranch dressing mix, 1/2 bunch of chopped cilantro, 1/2-1 cup chicken broth (depending on how thick you want it; I used 1 cup) and finally place your 8 oz package of cream cheese on top.
- Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. After it's been cooking 5 hours, break up the cream cheese into the rest of the mix. Cover and continue cooking the last hour (if you forget this step, it won't hurt anything to mix it at the end).
- After the 6 hours, remove the chicken breasts into a medium bowl and shred with two forks. Chicken should be fall-apart tender. Place the chicken back into the slow cooker and stir to combine.
- Serve over baked potatoes topped with cheese and sour cream. It's also great with tortilla chips or white rice.
Made this in a double-batch (two 6-quart crockpots) for meal prep boxes. Flavor was great. Will use minimal water/broth next time, was too soupy for me. (I made a quick roux to thicken it). Thought the amount of chicken was too little, but turned out to be just right once shredded. Forgot the ranch mix packet at the store, so a quick Google gave me ingredients for “homemade” dry mix.
Phenomenal!!! Made this for dinner and was super easy to prepare and was love at first bite.
I’m so glad you loved it, Andrew! Thank you for sharing.
i made the stove top and it was so good
today i wanted to try the crockpot just for busy schedule
I notice that the chili powder is different amount in the two methods.
stove top as 1 tsp
crock pot as 1 Tbsp
is that correct?? or maybe a typo?? Don’t want to make too spicy in the crock pot
HI Sherrie, that is correct – the longer cooking mellows it out but you can start with 1 tsp if you are concerned. You can always add it to taste.
Hi Sherrie, the 1 tsp and 1 tbsp chili powder on each recipe, respectively, is accurate. One recipe calls for less ranch mix than the other and has other adjustments that impact quantities so the difference was needed to balance the flavors on that recipe. I hope this helps.
This is a family favorite! I also made it last year for my dad’s 75th birthday & it was a hit!
Today I’m making it, but forgot to buy cilantro. I’m not sure if I should add something else, but I don’t have any fresh herbs. Any suggestions?
Hi Liz! That cilantro is a great addition but you can leave it out if you don’t have any. I’m glad your family loves the recipe!
I had everything but the ranch mix when I saw this recipe on my feed. I made it anyway and it came out great. After four hours the chili was missing the depth of flavor the ranch mix would have given it so I added 1/4tsp garlic powder, 1tsp each onion powder, cumin, chili powder and a little bit more salt. It sat on warm until dinner time and it turned out perfect. Looking forward to making it with Ranch mix.
Thank you for sharing! I’m glad that you liked the result.
The recipe as-is is delicious. Loved the combination of flavors. The only problem is, I love spicy food and this had zero kick. A can of Rotels and a tablespoon of chili powder wasn’t nearly enough spice. I’ll definitely be making this again, but with some jalapenos or habaneros thrown in.
Hi Ray! I’m so glad you enjoyed my recipe. Thank you for your feedback! The jalapeños/habaneros should add a great kick! 🙂
Hi Natasha.
I love your recipes!
Can I use cilantro seasoning instead of fresh in this recipe?
Thanks!
Page
Hi Page! That would be fine. Dried cilantro is not as strong in flavor so you may need to increase the amount you use. I would add it to your preferred taste.
It was delicious!
Also, can this be frozen then thawed in the refrigerator to serve later? I know I can’t freeze it with the cream cheese but could I add it when I reheat it? Thanks for your help!
Hi Page, I haven’t tried freezing it so I can’t say for sure but I imagine it would work well to freeze.
What if you don’t have a slow cooker for this recipe? Can you use a Dutch oven in the oven (if so what temp?)? Thanks
Hi K, we have the same recipe in a stovetop version HERE, and an Instant Pot recipe HERE. I hope one of these options works for you!
I think I put too much broth in mine is way too soupy. Any ideas how to fix that??
Hi Jessica, it should not be like a soup, but I also recommend using less broth if you want it to be thicker than what you see in my photos. It does thicken up quite a bit the next day. You can try adding more shredded chicken to it to absorb, or try removing some of the “broth.” I haven’t had that happen to advise on the outcome.
The recipe says 0.4 oz ranch dressing mix packet, but the Hidden Valley packet you have pictured is 4 oz. Do you add the entire 4 oz packet?
Hi Laura, it is actually a 0.4 oz packet. They don’t usually come in a 4 oz packet or at least I haven’t seen one that size.
We used a pot of mixed beans instead of buying separate types and that worked amazing as well! Also ate it with tortilla chips as was recommended below the instant pot recipe (We used both recipes and made it our own thing for making it on the stove top) — amazing addition. 🙂
Have a lovely day and can’t wait to see your next recipe as always!
Yum! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe, Katharina! Thank ou for that great review!
Thanks, Natasha. It is an excellent recipe. Did not have cream cheese and I replaced it with a cup of farmers cottage cheese. My hubby does not like cilantro (I know!),so I replaced it with some parsley. No white beans, pinto beans just did fine. Thanks. It’s a keeper.
Yum! I’m so happy you both enjoyed this recipe, Nataliya!
just saw this Natasha and can’t wait to try it thanks again
You’re welcome, Sara. I hope you’ll love this recipe!
I love all these ingredients but wonder if anyone has tried without cream cheese or can you suggest substitute for it
Hi Brenda, we love it with cream cheese but one of our readers did comment with the following “I make this and everybody loves it!!.. the only difference is instead of cream cheese I add half a cup of heavy whip. Thank you so much for posting recipes that are truly delicious. Blessings to you and your family” I hope that helps.
I made it without cream cheese or any substitution and loved it! Although I did put some sour cream on top of mine but the significant other did not.
GIVE OVEN METHODS PLEASE. I HAVE THREE CROCK POTS (THANK YOU CHILDREN) AND EVERY APP.MADE NEVER USE THEM. I PREFER MY OVEN AND STOVE TOP. I’LL TRY THIS RECIPE TODAY IN THE OVEN . FEEDING JUST TWO THESE DAYS.
Sounds good and thanks for your suggestion. I hope you will enjoy this recipe!
Hi, Natasha! Would you have an instant pot version of this recipe? Thank you so much!!
Hi Anabelle, we do have an instant pot white chicken chili (basically the same recipe, but way faster).
I love your chicken recipe and all your recipes you shared do you have a vegetarian chili recipes thank you for sharing
Theresa
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you’re enjoying our recipes
I tried this recipe exactly as the directions called for and the cream cheese curdled. I had to throw out the whole thing.
Hi Pam, I haven’t seen that happen before. Was your cream cheese bad or did you change anything in the recipe ingredients (any substitutions made?) Also, make sure to keep cooking for that last hour with the cream cheese in there so it has time to incorporate.
I was hesitant in making this because it called for cream cheese but it turned out so yummy! And was so easy! Just throw everything in the crockpot.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Juanita! Thank you for the wonderful review!
I make this ALL the time during the colder months and it gets better every time. It’s so easy to throw together and the flavor is incredible. My family loves this recipe. Thank you Natasha!
I am so happy to hear that! Thanks for your awesome comments and feedback, Karley. We appreciate it!