Creamy White Chicken Chili

I first had this chili at a little church in Burbank, WA.  When we go to eastern WA we like to visit our friends (the Cagles) and go to their church if we can.  The husband, Dan, is the pastor there.  Anyway, last time we picked a good time to visit, as it was their annual chili cook-off!  This was the winning chili, and me and several other people asked the lady who made it for the recipe.

I just made it for the first time, and I was reminded why it won!  It starts as a regular white chicken chili, but then it gets some magical ingredients added at the end- sour cream and heavy cream!  They make it so creamy and good!  It also helps balance out the spiciness from the cayenne pepper.  I reduced the amounts of these two things a little bit, and you can certainly play with the amounts, too (what's written below is the amount I used).  I used light sour cream and heavy cream, but you could also try it with fat free sour cream and maybe even half & half instead.  If I try those sometime, I'll update here!  

[Update- last time I made it I used fat free sour cream and half & half, and it was still delicious and creamy! Good to know!]

Creamy White Chicken Chili
Printable version here

1 1/2 tsp. vegetable oil
1 pound boneless chicken cut into 1/2 inch cubes*
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 (15 oz.) cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups (or 1 can) chicken broth
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (or to taste)
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chilies
3/4 cup sour cream
1/3 cup heavy cream or half & half

(*or you may substitute 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken)

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat; add chicken and onion.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is no longer pink.  Add garlic and cook 1 more minute.

2. Add beans, broth, seasonings, and chilies (and shredded chicken if using).  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.

3. Stir in sour cream and heavy cream and serve.  Serves: 4-6

[I haven't tried this yet, but this chili should freeze just fine, as long as you set aside the portion to freeze before adding the sour cream & cream. Those ingredients don't freeze very well, but you could just add them in after thawing and heating the frozen chili.]

Why I love it? It tastes fantastic- it's a little spicy, creamy, flavorful, and dense! It's chock-full of protein and fiber!  It's also a reasonably quick dinner, as it takes an hour start to finish (and half that time is just simmering).