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Chicken Chilli

Chicken Chilli is a 'white' chilli with white beans, corn & chunks of chicken. Finished with a little cream, coriander leaf & lime juice, it's a lighter, fresher alternative to traditional tomato based chillies.

Also works with leftover turkey.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican inspired, Tex-Mex inspired
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 2 - 4
Author Moorlands Eater

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp chicken fat, olive oil or butter
  • 2 medium onions roughly chopped
  • 4-6 cloves garlic finely chopped
  • 1-2 chillies, red or green finely chopped
  • 3 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp New Mexico Red chilli powder or any mild chilli powder
  • 1 tsp Chipotle chilli flakes or 1 extra tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp dried sage
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 235 g cooked cannellini beans approx drained weight of a 400g tin
  • 160 g cooked sweetcorn approx drained weight of a small tin
  • 1 medium bunch fresh coriander divided into stalks (finely chopped) and leaf (roughly chopped)
  • 1 tsp sugar optional
  • 500-700 ml chicken stock
  • 400 g cooked, skinless and boneless chicken 2 large chicken breasts will give this amount
  • 60 ml double cream or crème fraiche
  • 1 lime juice only
  • grated cheese to serve

Instructions

  1. In a large saucepan, melt the fat or heat the olive oil.

  2. Add the onion and cook gently until starting to soften and brown (10-15 min).

    Stir in the garlic and chillies and cook for a further 3-4 min.

  3. Add all the spices and herbs, a little salt and some pepper. Stir and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the beans, sweetcorn, the chopped coriander STALKS (not the leaf) and stir so they're coated in the aromatics, spices and herbs.

    Add the sugar if using.

  4. Stir in the chicken stock: 500ml to make a thick chilli or 700ml for a thinner, more soup-like chilli.

    Make sure you scrape up any vegetables or spices that have stuck to the bottom of the pan.

  5. Bring to the boil and simmer for around 25 minutes or until any harshness from the spices has been cooked out. Leave a lid off to evaporate some of the liquid if there seems to be too much.

  6. OPTIONAL: use a stick blender to whizz up approximately one third to a half of the chilli and thicken it.

  7. Add the chicken, double cream or crème fraiche and the coriander leaf (keep back some of the coriander for serving if you like). Cook very gently until the chicken is heated through.

  8. Stir in the juice of half the lime just before serving.

    Cut the other half of the lime into wedges to squeeze over the chilli at the table.

    Sprinkle the bowls with any reserved coriander plus grated cheese.

Recipe Notes

 

Getting the most from a roast chicken

I recommend roasting a whole chicken and using the breasts in this recipe. To use up the rest of the chicken:

  • After roasting, pour the fat and juices into a jar, store in the fridge and use in cooking dishes like this, for roast potatoes etc.
  • Remove the rest of the meat from the legs and carcass, freeze for another dish such as Chicken Croquettes.
  • Simmer the carcass and trimmings with veg to make chicken stock & use to make the Chicken Chilli.