White Chicken Chili

Yes, I made chili in July! My husband really wanted some, even though it is like 105 degrees outside. Instead of a beef chili, I decided to try White Chicken Chili, which I have never made before.  We really liked this dish and I can imagine that we will eat it more in the winter months.

While I try to use spices and herbs to season soups/stews/chili, I decided for the first time making this dish I would try the pre-packaged seasoning packet. The recipe on the seasoning packet sounded good, but I added a couple of things to make it heartier and give it some flare. Since chili is usually quite filling, I only served some chili in a bowl and some fresh, diced watermelon chunks on the side. This dish was very easy to prepare and didn't take hardly any time at all, which is always nice when you get home from a long day of work.

White Chicken Chili
Serves 4 - 1 cup servings

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon canola oil or olive oil
Pepper to season the chicken breasts chunks
1 packet McCormick's White Chicken Chili seasoning packet
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts - diced in small squares
1 cup of water
1 15oz can white beans (undrained) - I used Bush's Great Northern Beans
1 4oz can fire roasted diced green chiles (undrained)
1 15oz can Del Monte Diced tomatoes with green peppers and onions (drained)
3/4 cup frozen corn kernels - canned would work also, but make sure you drain it to remove a lot of the sodium.

Suggested Toppings: reduced fat or fat free sour cream, fresh avocado slices, diced jalapenos, low fat shredded cheese, salsa, lettuce, or onions

Directions:
-In a large saucepan or skillet, add oil and heat on medium high heat.
-Add seasoned boneless chicken chunks and cook until done (took about 8 minutes to cook them)
-Add seasoning packet, water, white beans, green chiles, diced tomatoes, and corn to the saucepan and stir well.
-Bring to a boil and then cover and simmer for 15 minutes on low
-Pour approx 1 cup in a bowl and top with whatever toppings you desire. (I topped mine with a small dallop of fat free sour cream and some salsa, while Bryan topped his with shredded fat free cheese)

*Suggestions
-Next time we make this, we are going to experiment and use a can of black beans instead of white beans. I'll have to let you know how it goes.

Happy Eating! :)