Quick Fix: White Chicken Chili

I can't believe I didn't post this recipe years ago, it's one of our absolute favorite, go-to soups.  I've made it twice this week alone.  It's ideal for a quick dinner one a week night and it's equally great for casual entertaining.

This White Chicken Chili has a slight kick to it and is full of the flavors I love - I include plenty of smokey cumin, coriander, chili powder and lime - just to name a few.

The thing about soups that make them perfect for week night meals is that you can make almost any type of soup in about 30 minutes (French Onion soup and Baked Potato soup are the two exceptions that spring to mind at the moment).  You just throw your base ingredients into the pot and you slice, dice or chop them up, saute them and add stock.  You can easily scale a recipe up or down - have a couple extra guest for dinner? Just add a couple more cups of stock.  Dinner for 2 tonight, use only 4 cups stock.  Voila - what could be easier?  Or more satisfying?




I made a video of this recipe too, here it is:

...and here's the recipe.

White Chicken Chili

1 lb chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 onion, chopped (or 1 tbls minced onion)
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1 can green chiles, drained
1 can white beans, drained and rinsed
6-8 Cups chicken stock
Juice of 1 lime (add the zest too, if you like)
1 tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp cumin, ground
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder (or one small clove garlic, minced)
1/4 tsp coriander, ground
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
Salt & Pepper to taste

Preheat olive oil in a large soup pot or 3 qt dutch oven.  Add chicken and top chicken with the spices. Stir to coat chicken, then let chicken cook until lightly browned on one side.  Add onions (if you decide to use fresh garlic, add it now too), stir and cook until chicken is lightly browned on 2nd side and onions are translucent.  Add peppers and green chiles, stir in and cook for a couple more minutes. Stir in beans and stock.  Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Top soup with tortilla chips, cheese, sour cream and green onions and enjoy.

Ciao!

Sausage-n-Cheddar Potato Soup

I work at a resort in the mountains...  This means winter driving conditions and winter working conditions are part and parcel of my position.  Our guests are the outdoorsy types, hikers, mountain bikers, skiers, snowboarders - if it can be done outdoors, they're into it, so even if I'm not partial to driving in the snow, it's job security.  Unfortunately, like offices the world over, it's drafty in the cold months, hot in the warm months and the doors are constantly being opened as guests, housekeepers and sightseers come in and out.  What does this have to do with potato soup you say?  Well, I find my enthusiasm and appreciation for soup increases directly in proportion to the weather conditions at the resort!

Today, for instance, I pulled in to the resort parking lot and it was raining.  Within minutes, however, it began to snow and proceeded to do so all day long.  By the time I left, my truck had accumulated 3 inches of the fluffy, wet, white stuff.  As I drove home, the lower the elevation got, the wetter it got.  Yep, it was pouring everywhere else!  On nights like this, soup is a moral imperative.  Don't you agree? 

So, tonight I made the potato soup I had been thinking about since last week when I made a tasty pork roast and ended up with cooking liquid that looked good enough to use as stock...and it was so tasty, I just had to share! 

I used red potatoes and sweet, yellow onion.  I chopped up the onion and threw it in the soup pot with some olive oil.  Then I added some mild, bulk Italian sausage.

I chopped up the potatoes into bite-sized pieces and threw them in too.  I let it all cook together a bit, then added some flour...

I stirred the flour in and let it cook for a couple of minutes.

Next, I added the stock and some cream.  Yep, I added cream - and can I just say - YUM!  At this point, I added some salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder and dried cilantro.  Then I grated some cheddar cheese...

...and threw that into the pot too!  I stirred it in and let it simmer for about 30 minutes.  We had it with some refrigerator crescent rolls - which didn't do it justice, but I was going for quick, easy, hot & hearty - once in awhile, it's ok to cut corners. 

Surprisingly, potato soup is one soup I make that the kids beg me to make.  They absolutely love it.  In fact, we only had one serving left tonight after dinner (and I'm lookin' forward to having that for my lunch tomorrow)!  It always surprises me that they like it so much - but I'm so glad they do since it's one of the heartiest soups I make. It's still stormy & rainy outside and I'm still warm and toasty, hours after dinner.. 

I didn't measure anything when I made this soup tonight (and I usually don't), and sometimes I bake the potatoes first and include bacon (and chives or shallots), and sometimes I don't include meat at all but here's a rough recipe for you.

Potato Soup

1 small or 1/2 large onion

1 lb. mild Italian Sausage, or sausage of your choice

5 or 6 medium to large potatoes

2 - 4 cups stock

1 pint whipping cream, half-n-half or milk to taste

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

salt & pepper to taste

1/4 tsp garlic powder

dash of paprika

1 tsp dried cilantro

Enjoy!