The Best Office White Chicken Chili
Makes 10 to 12 servings
3 chicken pounds breast boneless halves skinless
3 (divided) tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoonsteaspoons plus chili 2 powder (divided) (see note)
3 tablespoons ground cumin (divided)
1 teaspoon salt (divided) plus more to taste
1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
3 cups chopped onion (2 medium)
3 tablespoons minced garlic (4 to 5 large cloves) or more if you love garlic
3 cans (15 ounces each) white beans, drained 2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chiles (hot or mild, depending on your preference)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
4 to 6 cups low-salt chicken broth
3 to 6 cups shredded cheese (half Monterey jack, half cheddar)
1 to 2 cups sour cream Garnish: Chopped green onions Chopped cilantro leaves Your favorite hot sauce Sour cream
Shredded cheddar or Monterey jack cheese
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spread chicken out in a roasting pan. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with 2 teaspoons chili powder, 1 tablespoon cumin, 1⁄2 teaspoon salt and a pinch or two of cayenne. Roast in preheated oven 30 minutes. Shred or cut into bite-size pieces.
In a large pot, heat remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sauté onion and garlic over medium heat 5 minutes or so, until tender.
Add beans, shredded chicken, chiles, oregano, remaining 2 tablespoons chili powder, remaining 2 tablespoons cumin, remaining 1⁄2 teaspoon salt and 1⁄4 teaspoon cayenne (or more, to taste).
Add 4 cups chicken broth, reserving the rest for thinning the chili to your desired consistency. Stir to combine and simmer gently over low heat 20 minutes. (To keep the chicken tender, do not let the pot boil.)
Remove pot from heat and let it cool 5 minutes or so before proceeding. With pot still off heat, stir 3 cups cheese into the pot, 1 cup at a time. Then stir in 1 cup sour cream.
(Or for a richer, creamier version, add all 6 cups of cheese to the pot and 2 cups of sour cream.) Bring pot back to a gentle simmer over low heat (to keep the dairy products from separating, don’t boil).
Simmer chili 15 to 20 minutes, adjusting with additional chicken broth, if you like. If desired, use a potato masher in the pot to mash half the chicken and beans. Then stir to combine with the rest.
Serve chili in bowls with garnishes on top or on the side.
Notes: One of my secrets to great chili is to use two or three different chile powders for a great depth of flavor. For this chili, I used New Mexican and Chipotle chile powders.
This chili can be adjusted to your preferred consistency depending on how much broth, cheese and sour cream you add. For a thicker chili, use the minimal amounts of chicken broth (4 cups), cheese (3 cups) and sour cream (1 cup).
For a thinner, soupy chili, add additional broth, cheese and sour cream before returning pot to simmer. This is not Mitch Gawin's contest-winning Watchman's Chili, but another chili variation that he also likes to make, with three different meats.