Every summer growing up, my family would take a trip up north to stay with family friends at their lake house. It was a long drive and we would arrive hungry for a home cooked meal, slightly stir-crazy from the trip, and just in time to watch the sun dip down into the lake. One year after arriving, we sat on the back deck and watched the sun set while eating bowls of white chicken chili. I'm not sure if it was the setting, the company, or the soup itself, but ever since that summer night, I have craved this soup on a regular basis. Over the years, I've tried probably dozens of different recipes in an attempt to recreate that vacation chicken chili, but never got it quite right until I found this recipe from Sarah Carey (love her!). It seemed like it would be the chicken chili I had fantasized about for years, so I decided to try it for a Sunday Soup Night last winter.
The recipe was so quick and easy to make and it smelled amazing simmering away on the stove. I was sure that I had succeeded in making my vacation white chicken chili until taking my obligatory post-cooking first bite which is when I realized that the poblano peppers I had put in the soup must have been the all-time spiciest in the world. My eyes watered, my face turned red, I wouldn't be surprised if there had been steam coming out of my ears. It was inedibly spicy. Unwilling to waste so much soup (and of course, needing my fix of white chicken chili), I threw in a lot of rice and a lot of cream, hoping to lessen the spiciness.
This resulted in - dare I say it - my favorite white chicken chili ever! It's filling from the rice and beans, has all the flavors of a classic white chicken chili, is rich, creamy, and just spicy enough. My very favorite thing though? The toppings! I love soup toppings and this chili is the perfect base for so many - red onion, green onion, tomato, cilantro, sour cream, monterrey cheese, tortilla chips, avocado, lime, jalapeño. This makes it customizable and great for company.
Now to find a lake house to eat it at while watching a sunset...
David Schardt says
It would also be a good idea to know the types of peppers that you are looking for before you start shopping. There are many types of chilies out there, and they all have different flavors, depending on where they were grown and what season they are, so it is a good idea to do your research before you start cooking.