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How To Make Crack Chicken Chili

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Last Modified: February 2, 2024
Published: February 2, 2024

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Amazing White Chicken Chili On Your Table In Under One Hour

crack chicken chili

I had heard of crack chicken chili, but in a million years, I never dreamed it was so simple and fast to make! This white chicken chili is exploding with incredible flavor thanks to the magic of cream cheese, dry ranch dressing, and Rotel.

With all that going for it, how could it be anything but incredible?

I was really skeptical, so I wanted to see for myself that I could throw everything in one pot, cook it for twenty minutes, and end up with a big pot of white chicken chili, enough to make eight generous servings! It is pretty unbelievable! Really? Yes, really!!

When I told my sister-in-law about it, she said, "Oh yeah! Crack chicken chili," as her eyes lit up! Apparently, it's in their meal rotation regularly, and they love it!

Why You Will Love Crack Chicken Chili

If you have an Instant Pot, a knife, and a can opener, you can make this any old weeknight to the delight of your family! It is as simple as layering the ingredients in the Instant Pot, then shredding the chicken and adding it back to the pot.

I gave the first batch to our daughter's busy family (after sampling a big bowl myself,) and they devoured it! It is not the prettiest soup, and there was a little hesitation until they put a spoonful in their mouth! One family member admitted to having three helpings!

Gussy it up any way you like! I had an avocado in the fridge, and I can never resist a dollop of sour cream on almost anything! If I had had some fresh cilantro, I would have put some on top!

But you can top it to your heart's content with chopped tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese, crisp bacon crumbles, or anything you like! I added some tortilla chips for good measure before I wolfed mine down!

How To Make Crack Chicken Chili Tonight

Start by putting two large or three medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the bottom of the Instant Pot, then add one medium onion, chopped.

Then, add a fifteen-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed, and two cans of white beans in mild chili sauce; I used Bush's brand I love. Next, add a ten-ounce can of whole-kernel corn with the juice, one-half cup of chicken broth, one teaspoon of chili powder and cumin, and a one-ounce packet of dry ranch seasoning mix.

ready to cook crack chicken chili

Finally, cut an eight-ounce block of cream cheese into chunks, put it on top of everything, then stir it together really well so there's plenty of liquid under the chicken. Seal the Instant Pot, and cook everything on high pressure for twenty minutes. Boom!

Let the Instant Pot release the pressure manually for ten minutes, then turn the valve to the Venting setting to release the remaining pressure. Open the lid carefully.

Remove the chicken to a plate or cutting board, and use two forks to shred the meat. I also used a chef's knife to shorten the shreds a little, but that is up to you! You'll need to stir the soup briskly to break up the cream cheese, but it does not have to get stirred in completely.

shredded chicken

Put the shredded chicken back into the pot and give everything a good stir and a little time to reheat, then ladle it into bowls and top with whatever you love!

We love to eat soup in the winter because often a pot of soup can make two or even three meals for us, so cooking once and eating twice or more really saves on clean up, and who doesn't love that?

Yield: 8 hearty servings

Crack Chicken Chili

crack chicken chili

A delicious and unbelievably fast white chicken chili exploding with flavor thanks to ranch dressing mix, cream cheese, and Ro*Tel.

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Additional Time 5 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

  • Two large or three medium chicken breasts
  • One 15-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
  • Two 15-ounce cans of white beans in mild chili gravy
  • One medium onion, chopped
  • One fifteen-ounce can of corn with juice (or two cups of frozen corn)
  • One ten-ounce can or Rotel diced tomatoes with green chilis, do not drain
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth or stock (I used water and better Than Bouillon roasted chicken base)
  • 1 tsp chili powder, or to taste
  • 1 tsp cumin powder, or to taste
  • One one-ounce packet of dry ranch dip mix
  • One 8-ounce package of cream cheese, cut into chunks
  • Garnishes of your choice, optional. Cilantro, sour cream, shredded cheese, chopped tomatoes, crushed tortilla chips, avocado, etc.

Instructions

  1. Place the chicken breast in the Instant pot topped by chopped onion, white beans in chili gravy, black beans drained and rinsed, corn, Ro*Tel, corn, and chicken broth.
  2. Stir well to distribute the liquid under the chicken.
  3. Put the chunks of cream cheese on last.
  4. Add seasonings and cook for 20 minutes on high pressure.
  5. Let the pressure drop naturally for ten minutes, then turn the valve to release the remaining pressure.
  6. Remove the chicken and set aside while you stir the soup to distribute the cream cheese. You do not need to dissolve all the cream cheese completely.
  7. Use two forks to shred the chicken, return it to the soup, stir, and let it return to serving temperature.
  8. Ladle into bowls and top with garnishes of your choice.

    Here are two more of our favorite soup recipes! Easy Split Pea With Ham Soup and Hamburger Vegetable Soup. If you're hungry for more, type soup in the search bar for more yummy recipes!

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    Love, GB (Betty Streff)

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