This creamy white chicken chili looks luscious and delivers delicious Tex-Mex flavor in just 30 minutes on the stovetop. Monterey jack cheese, chicken, and sour cream provide protein and richness while white beans, green chiles, tabasco, and spices combine to create the chili taste you crave.
Perfect with crispy chips—and so pretty with your favorite garnish of spring onions, cilantro, or diced jalapeños.
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Great to make with a rotisserie chicken, this quick and easy white chicken chili recipe is a perfect weeknight meal.
For a different version, try my Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili—it's a dairy-free alternative that takes just 10 minutes prep and simmers in the slow cooker all day for a hearty and easy chicken dinner.
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What you need to make Creamy White Chicken Chili
Butter. For sautéing the onion and making the roux (thickener).
Onion. I use yellow onions almost exclusively for cooking.
Flour. For thickening. Butter and flour combined over heat form a paste called a roux that thickens soups, sauces, and gravies. In this recipe, the flour is added after the onion is sautéed.
Chicken broth. If you plan to use a rotisserie chicken, try making your own stock for this recipe. After removing the meat from the bones, add the carcass and skin to a slow cooker and cover with water. Cook on low overnight, then strain for use in place of store-bought chicken broth.
Milk and cream. Combining a little cream with milk adds richness and gives this chili its rich creamy base.
Cumin. In my opinion, the most essential of all spices for Tex-Mex flavor.
Chili powder. Adds depth to the seasonings.
Hot sauce. This can be omitted if preferred, or you can adjust the amount to taste.
Black pepper.
Great Northern beans. You can substitute cannellini beans, which are very similar in taste to Great Northern.
Green Chiles. Fire-roasted diced green chiles are essential to the flavor of this white chicken chili.
Chicken. Use whatever cooked chicken you have handy—chopped or shredded chicken if fine. I use rotisserie chicken or cooked chicken breast from my freezer, which is one of my secrets for getting dinner on the table with little fuss.
Monterey Jack cheese. Pepper Jack or a combination of Jack cheese with cheddar cheese is fine. You can buy shredded cheese, but I like to shred my own because it melts better.
Sour cream. Just a little sour cream at the end of cooking adds a richness and tang that completes the flavor profile of this creamy white chicken chili.
See recipe card for quantities.
Variations
Spicy or mild - It's easy to adjust the spiciness of this recipe to your preference. Adjust the amount of green chiles added (for a mild version, look for fire-roasted green chiles labeled "mild" in the store) and adjust or omit the hot sauce. Most chili powder is more for flavor than heat, but if you find it too spicy, it can be reduced.
Vegetarian - Swapping extra beans (either the same kind or a variety like black or kidney beans) for the chicken and substituting vegetable broth for the chicken broth make this recipe vegetarian.
How to make Creamy White Chicken Chili
Chop the onion(1). In a large pot, sauté onion in 2 tablespoons of butter until softened (2). Add the remaining 6 tablespoons of butter and melt over moderately low heat (3). Stir in the flour (4).
Cook the roux and onion, stirring frequently, for two minutes (5). Gradually add the broth, milk and whipping cream, stirring as you add the liquids. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened (6).
Stir in hot sauce, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper (7).
Drain beans and chiles and add to the pot with the chicken and cheese (8).
Cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes (9). During cook time, add additional chicken broth as preferred to reach the desired thickness (10).
Mix in sour cream immediately before serving (11).
How to serve Creamy White Chicken Chili
Serve chili garnished with your choice of tortilla chips, shredded cheese, sliced jalapeños, cilantro, sliced green onion, sliced avocado, and sour cream.
FAQ
What makes white chicken chili thicker?
Making a roux of butter and flour thickens the creamy base in white chicken chili.
What makes white chicken chili creamy?
The milk and cream make the white soup base for this recipe, and shredded cheese and sour cream are the secret to its creaminess.
Do you put cream in white chicken chili?
Although most of the soup base in this white chicken chili recipe is milk and broth, the addition of a small amount of cream as well as sour cream gives it a richer flavor and creamy texture.
Storage and freezing
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Because this recipe is so quick and easy, I don't recommend prepping it ahead for the freezer. Instead, cut your prep time by keeping cooked chicken and sautéed onions in the freezer. Having these handy at all times is my secret to low stress dinner prep.
Recipe
Creamy White Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 1 large onion
- ½ cup butter, divided
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1½ cups milk
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- Tabasco sauce or other hot sauce, to taste
- ½ teaspoon chili powder, or more if you prefer
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 15 ounces Great Northern beans
- 7 ounces diced green chiles
- 2 cups cooked chicken
- 1½ cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- ¼ cup sour cream
Instructions
- Chop 1 large onion.
- Chop or shred 2 cups cooked chicken.
- Sauté onion in 2 tablespoons butter in a soup pot or Dutch oven until softened.
- Add the remaining butter to the pot and heat over moderately low heat until melted.
- Stir in ¼ cup all-purpose flour. Cook the onions in the roux, stirring frequently, for two minutes.
- Gradually add ¾ cup chicken broth, 1½ cups milk, and ½ cup heavy whipping cream, stirring gently. Bring mixture to a boil; simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened.
- Stir in Tabasco sauce or other hot sauce to taste, ½ teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, and ½ teaspoon pepper.
- Drain 15 ounces Great Northern beans and 7 ounces diced green chiles.
- Add beans, green chiles, chicken, and 1½ cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.
- Add remaining broth as needed until desired consistency is reached.
- Mix in ¼ cup sour cream immediately before serving.
- Serve with your choice of tortilla chips, cilantro, shredded cheese, jalapeños, tomatoes, and/or green onions as garnishes.
Chelsea
Sounds rich! Making this during the week sometime!