How to Make Chicken Chili
Easy creamy chicken chili with pinto beans, roasted tomatoes, and green chilies. It’s thick, chunky, and probably one of the easiest chilies I have made!
Love creamy chili recipes? Try our Chicken Apple Chili.
Featured Comment: “Love this! So quick and easy. I expect I will be making this a lot!” ~Keri
Jump to:
- What Makes This Recipe For Chicken Chili So Easy?
- Red Chicken Chili Recipe Ingredients
- How to Make Creamy Chicken Chili
- Red Chicken Chili Recipe Variations
- Tips For Making This Easy Chicken Chili
- How to Serve Chicken Chili Soup
- Video: How to Make Creamy Chicken Chili
- More Chili Recipes
- Easy Chicken Chili
- You May Also Like…
Every year, I start making chili recipes like turkey bean chili, turkey pumpkin chili, and chicken apple chili as soon as the weather begins to turn cold. My family loves them all. However, our favorite variation is this five-star creamy chicken chili recipe!
In fact, my kids request it by name. I’m never one to argue when they do, either, because it’s one of the easiest chili recipes I’ve ever made! All I have to do is combine the ingredients in a pot and let them simmer. In under an hour, I have a creamy, thick chili packed with warm flavors.
And I’m left with plenty of time to whip up a few sides like a chopped wedge salad and jalapeno cheese biscuits. Adjust the ingredients to suit your preferences, and you’ll be hard-pressed to have any leftovers to enjoy the next day!
What Makes This Recipe For Chicken Chili So Easy?
The true secret to what makes this creamy chili so easy is actually the chicken thighs. Chicken thighs are quick-cooking and hard to overcook. Not to mention the flavor is so much better than chicken breast. Use boneless, skinless thighs for this recipe.
Another secret ingredient in this chili recipe is cream cheese. Cream cheese adds a creamy component to the chili without any added thickeners. Simply cut a block of cream cheese into cubes and stir into hot chili until creamy and blended in.
Red Chicken Chili Recipe Ingredients
- boneless chicken thighs
- yellow onion
- pinto beans
- fire-roasted tomatoes
- diced green chilies
- garlic powder
- ground cumin
- dried oregano
- chicken stock
- cream cheese
How to Make Creamy Chicken Chili
First, heat olive oil in a large dutch-oven over high heat. Add chicken thighs, and cook until no longer pink on the outside. Next, add onions and cook for a few minutes until soft.
After onions, add the beans, tomatoes, chilies, spices, and chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes.
Lastly, add the cream cheese and stir just until creamy.
Red Chicken Chili Recipe Variations
Here are some ways you can adjust this creamy chicken chili recipe to your tastes:
- Chicken: Use boneless skinless chicken breasts in place of the thighs. Or, swap them out for ground chicken, ground turkey, or ground beef instead.
- Vegetarian chili: Swap out the chicken for an extra can of beans, cooked lentils, or your favorite meat substitute. Then, make sure to use vegetable broth in place of chicken broth!
- Beans: Add to or replace the pinto beans with black beans, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, or any beans you like best.
- Spices: Adjust the spices to your heat preferences. If you’re sensitive to spice, use less green chilis. Or, if you’re a fan of heat, add more chilis, chopped jalapeños, or a dash of hot sauce.
- Veggies: Want more veggies? Include chopped mushrooms, bell peppers, spinach, or kale.
Tips For Making This Easy Chicken Chili
- To get the most flavor out of the chicken thighs – use high heat and make sure the oil is hot before adding the chicken to the dutch-oven.
- Yes – you can use chicken breast in place of chicken thighs. Cut them into bite-size pieces and proceed with the recipe as written. But I highly recommend thighs! They are just so much more flavorful and hard to overcook.
- Does it really matter if the tomatoes are fire-roasted? Yes! They add an insane amount of flavor to the chili.
How to Serve Chicken Chili Soup
Piling on toppings is really what makes this creamy chili so fun and delicious! Here are some favorite chili toppings:
- shredded cheddar cheese
- diced avocado
- tortilla chips
- pico de gallo
- sliced green onions
- fresh cilantro leaves
- quacamole
- sour cream
- cornbread
Video: How to Make Creamy Chicken Chili
More Chili Recipes
If you make this recipe, please leave a ⭐️ STAR rating and COMMENT letting us know how you liked the recipe.
Easy Chicken Chili
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 40 min
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: One-Pot
- Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Description
Creamy chicken chili with pinto beans, roasted tomatoes, and green chilies. It’s thick, chunky, and probably one of the easiest chilies I have made!
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless, chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 (15 oz. each) cans pinto beans or Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (14.5 oz.) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 2 (4 oz. each) diced green chilies
- 1 ½ tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 4 oz. cream cheese, cubed
- Kosher salt and fresh black pepper
Instructions
- Heat olive oil over high heat in a dutch-oven. When the oil is hot, add chicken thighs, and cook until lightly brown and no longer pink on the outside, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add onions and continue to cook for few minutes or until the onions are soft.
- Add beans, tomatoes, chilies, spices, and chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes.
- Stir in cream cheese just until creamy and blended in.
Notes
- Chicken breast can be substituted for the thighs. Cut the breast into bite-size pieces and follow the recipe as written.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 378
- Sugar: 5.3 g
- Sodium: 375.9 mg
- Fat: 16 g
- Carbohydrates: 33 g
- Protein: 26.6 g
- Cholesterol: 92.5 mg
Hi! I'm Katya -- a former corporate paralegal turned full-time recipe developer and blogger behind Little Broken. Here you'll find family-friendly and seasonal recipes made from real ingredients.
Love this! So quick and easy. I expect I will be making this a lot!
It’s so delicious!! You just need to let it cool enough to not burn your tongue😭
I made the chili last night. Didn’t have any canned green chilis but had a couple of fresh ones I used. We loved it! We, the hubs and I, agreed the cream cheese adds a lovely texture and yummy flavor to the chili. It will be on the menu at least once a week now that cold weather has come to my city.
Used chicken breast and added corn. Also a touch of chili powder. Really good recipe!
Good recipe. I didn’t have canned chilies so used chili powder. Also added white pepper.
Every fall i look forward to this super comforting and perfectly seasoned chili. a family favorite that i look forward to making (and eating) every time!
This is one of our favorite chili recipes!!! I also add corn to this chili.
I don’t currently own a Dutch oven, how else could you suggest I cook?
Hi Ashley: you can use just about any type of soup pot.
Made this for dinner tonight. Katya, this recipe is killer good! And so easy. I will be making this often. My husband is just returning from Beijing tonight so he missed it, but can’t wait to see his face when he tastes it. What guy doesn’t love chili??? He and I are both on Weight Watchers online and this is Weight Watchers friendly, but no one would guess it. Tastes rich. For anyone following the program, it’s 6 Smart Points as written. 5 Smart Points if you use chicken breasts. But I followed the recipe as written and I think the flavor given by the thighs is worth it. This is my 2nd recipe I’ve tried from your blog and you have won me over completely. The other home run I tried was your Cod in Creamy Red Roasted Pepper Sauce. That one is 7 Smart Points as written. Thanks again, Katya. I’ll be sticking around.
That’s so good to hear! Thank you for the feedback. We absolutely love using chicken thighs in recipes.
Helpful tip about using fire-roasted tomatoes; I’ve never actually tried them before, but now I definitely will! 🙂
I absolutely LOVE creamy soups, and a creamy chili just sounds like pure heaven to me. Digging this meal and definitely making it soon!
Thanks Julia! Me too…chili season is the best!