White Chicken Chili -- A Super Supper!

White Chicken Chili (AE's version) This is a stellar meal. It combines legumes with chicken and chicken stock for a nutritionally-rounded AND frugal meal. Beans offer a rich array of B Vitamins and anticancer agents. Chicken adds protein and umph. And chicken stock, imparts a plethora of minerals along with digestive aids.


I am going to share a big recipe for this Super Supper. This will serve 12-16. So if you don't want enough to freeze (or take to a church pot-luck as I did), you will want to cut the recipe in half. One more thing... it's white, which is kind of classy. But please do serve this with a brilliant green salad.


Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. White Beans, such as Navy or Great Northern
• A few Tbsp. EVOO (that's extra virgin olive oil)
• One large onion
• One large green bell pepper (or chilies if you like it hot!)
• 4 minced garlic cloves (large ones!)
• 2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 1/4-1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp. white pepper
• 3 tsp. sea salt
• Meat from one cooked chicken
• 4 cups of chicken stock

I started this recipe with my whole chicken already cooked and its stock reserved. Click here to see how I do that.


Begin by soaking your beans in order to neutralize the phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors that are present. Doing so will prevent any digestive difficulties. The night before you want to make this meal, sort a 2 lb bag of white beans (Navy or Great Northern) for any bad beans or stones. Put in a pot with plenty of water and 4 Tablespoons of plain yogurt.


The next day, rinse the beans well and place back in the pot. Cover with fresh water, bring to a boil, and skim off any foam that comes to the surface. Let simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until soft and beginning to split. Here are my cooked beans.

Set the beans aside. (I left mine in the colander.) And saute one large onion in extra virgin olive oil. (I only had a purple onion, but that added some nice color!). While the onion is sauteing, wash and dice one green bell pepper. (If your family enjoys more spice, use fresh chilies instead.) Add the green bell pepper and four crushed garlic cloves. Let that saute while you measure out your spices. Add the spices and let them cook for 1-2 minutes.

Add your chicken and chicken stock. Add your beans back in and let this entire combination simmer for at least one hour, as long as 2. The flavors will meld together as it simmers.

Serve with a topping of your favorite white cheese... we used Minerva's White Mellow Cheddar... and, of course, a green salad.

Note: You can use 6 cans of white beans instead. However, this will add to the expense and reduce the digestibility of the meal. If you do use canned beans, you will need to cut the amount of salt by at least a half.