Name: Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 6 h
Total time: 6 h 15 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 yellow onion, diced; 2 poblano peppers, diced; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tbsp ground cumin; 2 tsp dried oregano; ½ tsp cayenne; 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts; 2 cans white beans (15 oz each), drained and rinsed; 2 cans diced green chiles (4 oz each); 4 cups chicken stock; 4 oz cream cheese, cubed; To finish sour cream, cilantro, lime wedges

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

A tomato-free chili built on poached shredded chicken, white beans, and green chiles, thickened with cream cheese instead of a can of crushed tomatoes.

Serves

Prep

15 min

Cook

6 hr

Written

August 4, 2026

Method

Warm the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the onion and poblanos until softened, about 6 minutes.

Add the garlic, cumin, oregano, and cayenne and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Transfer to a slow cooker and add the chicken breasts, white beans, green chiles, and stock.

Cover and cook on low until the chicken is tender enough to shred with a fork, 6 to 7 hours.

Lift the chicken out, shred it with two forks, and return it to the pot.

Add the cream cheese and stir until it fully melts into the broth.

Ladle into bowls and top with sour cream, cilantro, and lime.

Notes

There’s no tomato in this pot, which is the whole point of calling it white — the cream cheese and the reduced poaching liquid do the thickening instead, so the chili stays pale and glossy rather than turning red. Cut the cream cheese into cubes before it goes in; it melts in evenly instead of clumping at the bottom of the slow cooker.

Poaching the chicken breasts whole and shredding them after keeps the meat juicier than starting with pre-shredded rotisserie chicken, which tends to dry out over a six-hour cook. Short on time, use rotisserie chicken anyway — just stir it in during the last 20 minutes instead of poaching it from raw.