White chicken chilli
Many parts of the States cook versions of chilli, which is spelled with one ‘l’ but our autocorrect can’t cope and we’ve let it have its way. Sometimes, ya can’t fight the machine. Chilli con carne is the classic chilli dish you might know the best. Although many chilli dishes are deep red from tomato, chipotle, kidney beans and whatnot, apparently in Texas tomato and beans have no place in chilli; hard core Texan chilli is basically chilli-marinated beef chuck cooked in added spices, with cornbread served to the side. Indiana has Hoosier chilli, which is served with pasta; Cincinnati-style chilli is another hybrid that’s eaten on spaghetti or over hotdogs and it contains Middle Eastern spices as it was created by Macedonians in the 1920’s; Detroit-style chilli is also served in or over hot dogs and was also popularised by Macedonian – and Greek – immigrants in the early 20th century. In New Mexico they make chile verde, a stew featuring pork and a green sauce of tomatillos and jalapeños that’s sometimes thickened with potato. White chilli is thought to have originated in the 1980s in a fancy L.A. restaurant called Trump's (no relation to the famous American felon), where the chef used duck in his Mexican-ised take on French cassoulet. Anyway, long story short; white chilli is now a pretty popular dish in America and there are a tonne of permutations.
Ours is part-soup, part-stew, and you can take this recipe and run wherever with it. Add a few stalks of chopped celery and a cup or so of frozen corn kernels with the onion, for example. Make it thicker (more beans would do this; so would a finely chopped large potato added at the beginning. Instead of using canned beans, you could soak and cook yours from scratch). You can add grated cheddar and chopped tomatoes along with all the other toppings too. Also, you could dollop on some guac instead of using the chopped avo, if that rocked your world. (When doesn’t guacamole rock anyone’s world?) Make your chilli as spicy or as un-spicy as you want; some people even make theirs richer by stirring in cream right at the end. We think cheesy cornbread would be a great side for this too but we didn’t make any. We feel a recipe coming on.
SERVES 4
60ml (¼ cup) avocado oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 green capsicum, seeded and chopped
3 tsp ground cumin
1½ tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground chilli
2 tsp dried oregano
1.5kg chicken pieces (about 6 mixed thighs and legs)
1.125 litres (4½ cups) chicken stock
3 tbsp pickled jalapeños, with brine, or to taste
2 x 400g cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
To serve
1 large ripe avocado, chopped
sliced fresh jalapeños, (optional)
handful coriander sprigs
sour cream
tortilla strips
1-2 limes, cut into wedges
Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and capsicum then cook, stirring often, for 6-7 minutes or until the vegetables have softened. Add the spices and oregano, then stir for another 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the chicken, stock, pickled jalapeños and brine, and bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 40-45 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Remove the chicken from the pan and cool a little. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat and coarsely shred, discarding the skin and bones.
Meanwhile, skim any excess fat from the surface of the cooking liquid, then add the drained beans. Using an immersion blender, briefly blend the mixture until about half the beans and vegetables are blended; this gives the chilli a little body. Add the chicken and, then bring the chilli to a simmer to heat the chicken and beans through. Taste, then season with salt and pepper.
To serve, divide the white chicken chilli among warmed bowls, then serve with avocado, jalapeños, coriander, sour cream and tortilla strips to add to taste, with lime wedges for squeezing over.
