Tuesday, May 12, 2009

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.

9 comments:

One Mom said...

We love chicken chili aka white chili! Not all of our family like cilantro but we add a dollop of sour cream and fresh cilantro to our bowls! I also like that you aren't using canned beans..it may take a little extra effort but it's worth it!

Noel said...

I have all this stuff in my fridge - I may fix it for tonight! Thanks for the recipe.

Jonesey said...

Yum...I'll keep this one in mind!

Anonymous said...

Pretty humorous that you share this recipe because I made it for dinner last night but it was the quick 15 minute version and I pondered to myself about making an even more healthier version. So thank you for that! <3

Lisa@BlessedwithGrace said...

This recipe looks wonderful!! My 2 year old daughter LOVES beans of all kinds. She would eat, and eat, and eat, and eat this soup. I am so excited to make it. Thank you for sharing the recipe and linking up to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday this week.

Brenda said...

I love that you started with dried beans and used an whole chicken making your own broth. Frugal and healthy!

Jen - Balancing Beauty and Bedlam said...

This is such a great way to use legumes. They are so healthy and we love them at our home. :)

jo@blog-diggidy said...

mmmm, i love "white chili"!! its one of my favorite things to make!! thnx for a great recipe!!

Nicole Feliciano said...

Yum. I'd make extras and freeze this. If you want, I have just posted a recipe link on Momtrends. You can post a favorite here:

http://momtrends.blogspot.com/2009/05/friday-feasts.html