If you are too busy for daily cooking yet dislike buying unhealthy take-out foods, why not start your meal-prepping journey today?
Get off to a good start with our ground chicken chili recipe, featuring juicy chicken and crunchy diced vegetables simmered in a tomato-based sauce.
With no complicated skills required, preparing a hearty pot of ground chicken chili to stock up your fridge won’t be a hard nut to crack.
Is Ground Chicken Chili Recipe Healthy?
Our ground chicken chili is delicious and nutritious, featuring protein-dense and fibrous ingredients.
A single serving contains only 457 calories, 4.6 g of saturated fat, and 593 mg of sodium, leaving much space for an extra green salad.
Ingredient-wise, we pair ground chicken thighs—a rich source of high-quality protein—with a rainbow of bite-sized vegetables to form an impressive nutrition profile.
Specifically, each serving will provide you with 33.5 g of lean protein, up to 67% of the recommended daily value.
Main Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chicken: Instead of buying mixed ground chicken from the grocery store, we prefer grinding ours at home. Homemade ground chicken is a healthier option because it contains no harmful additives. You can adjust the fat-to-protein ratio by opting for different chicken cuts—chicken breast and tenderloin are two leaner choices than chicken thighs.
- Vegetables and cheese: We kept our toppings simple with diced carrots, onions, red kidney beans, black beans, and cheddar cheese; however, you can go with whatever rocks your socks.
- Broth: Unsalted chicken broth will add extra flavor to the ground chicken chili while keeping the amount of added sodium on track.
- Tomato paste and tomato sauce: Apart from enhancing the consistency, the combination of tomato paste and homemade tomato sauce offers an eye-catching visual and an umami punch.
- Mustard: The distinct tanginess of traditional Dijon mustard sets it apart from the regular types.
- Seasonings: We flavor ground chicken with some pantry-ready spices such as chili powder, paprika, ground cumin, salt, and black pepper.
How to Thicken Chili Sauce
We all agree that a perfect ground chicken chili dish should have a thick and velvety consistency that helps bind all the toppings together.
Your chili sauce may turn out thin for two reasons: not spending enough cooking time and adding too much liquid.
Our chefs have some tips to help fix your soupy ground chicken chili.
- Remove the lid and cook longer: This is the easiest way to fix your watery chili sauce without affecting its nutritional value. Simmer your ground chicken chili uncovered on low heat for 15-20 minutes to let the excess liquid evaporate. Once the sauce reaches your desired consistency, take it off the heat, and set it aside to cool.
- Mash the beans: Mashed beans will release more starch content into your sauce, thus, helping enhance its texture. We suggest mashing the beans in another container and then adding them to the pot later to prevent clumping.
- Make a cornstarch slurry: Mix a tablespoon of cornstarch and a tablespoon of cold water in a small mixing bowl to form a slurry. Gently pour the mixture into your chili sauce and mix well for 8-10 minutes.
- Add more vegetables: These extra toppings help soak up the leftover liquid while providing more nutrients to the dish. Some great add-ins are diced carrots, sweet potatoes, and corn kernels.
How to Store and Reheat the Leftovers
1. How to Store
According to the 2-hour rule, when left uncovered at room temperature, food is prone to bacterial growth; this is also the main cause of foodborne illness.
If you desire to prolong the shelf life of your leftovers, we recommend refrigerating or freezing them.
- Refrigerator storage: This method is ideal for storing a small portion of leftover ground chicken chili. Place your leftovers in an airtight container and keep them in the fridge for 3-4 days.
- Freezer storage: If you prepare a big batch of ground chicken chili far ahead of time, freezing will help retain its quality for up to a few months. Let your chicken chili cool down completely, portion it into freezer-friendly bags, and freeze it for up to 3 months.
2. How to Reheat
For refrigerated leftovers, transfer them into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave at ‘high’ until warm.
As for frozen ground chicken chili, thaw it overnight in the fridge before reheating it in the microwave or on the stovetop.
What to Serve With
- Loaded Potato Salad recipe
- Twice Baked Potatoes recipe
- Air Fryer Onion Rings recipe
- Cauliflower Nuggets recipe
- Popcorn Chicken recipe
Flavorful Pots of Chicken Soup
Chicken Florentine Soup is a creamy concoction with spinach, orzo, carrots, and celery for filling and texture-rich spoonfuls. Our version is straightforward and made with basic ingredients, but it tastes like a 5-star comfort food.
Swap one-toned dinners for comfort and flavor with this hearty Chicken Enchilada Soup. We combine everyone’s favorite enchilada ingredients to create a spicy, flavorful soup: chicken breasts, beans, corns, and loads of Mexican spices.
Ground Chicken Chili Recipe
Today's ground chicken chili recipe features succulent ground chicken and diced vegetables smothered in a tangy-spicy sauce, offering an instant energy boost. It tastes even better when chilled overnight in the fridge—a fantastic meal-prep option.
- cook TIME 30 mins
- prep TIME 10 mins
- total TIME 40 mins
- COURSE Main Dish
- CUISINE Mexican
- SERVINGS servings
- CALORIES 457 kcal
INGREDIENTS
- 18 oz skinless boneless chicken thigh
- 4 6-inch corn tortillas
- 4 oz carrots (diced)
- 4 oz canned black bean
- 3 oz unsalted dark red kidney beans
- 2 oz onions (diced)
- 1 oz cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 1 cup homemade tomato sauce
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted chicken broth
- 1 tbsp garlic (minced)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp Hunt's tomato paste
- 2 tbsp cilantro (chopped)
- 1 tsp traditional Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
Prep:
Place the chicken thigh skin-side down on a cutting board. Use a sharpened knife to slice under and cut along the back of the bone. Discard the bone. Pull off the skin of the chicken thighs with your hand; discard the skin. Cut the skinless, boneless chicken thighs crosswise into strips, then slice those strips into small chunks. Grind those chunks in a food processor.
Halve the onion and peel away the skin. Trim one end and lay the halved onion face down. Make vertical slices, 1/8 inch apart, such that you cut towards the root; leave about 1/8 inch at the end so the root stays intact. Turn the half 90 degrees and grip the root. Slice the onion horizontally, again leaving 1/8 inch at the end to keep the root intact. Slice the onion into small, even cubes. Discard the root.
Cut each corn tortilla into triangle-shaped pieces.
Finely mince the peeled garlic.
Roughly chop the cilantro.
Cook:
Sauté the aromatics: Place a large pot over medium heat, then add 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp garlic, and 2 oz diced onions. Stir well for 2 minutes.
Add the ground chicken and seasonings: Add 18 oz ground chicken, 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tbsp Hunt's tomato paste, 1 tsp traditional Dijon mustard, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp black pepper to the pot. With a cooking spatula, stir the ground chicken vigorously to cook for 5 minutes.
Add the carrots: In the same pot, add 4 oz diced carrots. Mix well for 2 minutes.
Add the chicken broth and tomato sauce: Pour 1 cup of homemade tomato sauce and 1 1/2 cups of unsalted chicken broth into the pot. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat, and let it simmer for 15 minutes.
Add the beans: Add 3 oz unsalted dark red kidney beans and 4 oz canned black beans to the pot. Gently stir to cook for another 5 minutes.
Add the cheese and cilantro: Remove the pot from the heat, then add 1 oz shredded cheddar cheese and 2 tbsp chopped cilantro.
Bake the corn tortillas: While the ground chicken chili is cooking, cut corn tortillas and bake at 375°F for 6 minutes.
Serve: Transfer your desired portion into a serving bowl. Enjoy the ground chicken chili with corn tortillas.
NUTRITION
Tuyet Pham
Head Chef, Culinary Consultant
Luna Regina
Writer, Author
- Tanya EsselmannThis is a healthier alternative to traditional beef chili. The recipe is easy to make and the chili is packed with protein and flavor. A must-try!