Creamy White Turkey Chili

Get out your soup pots, it's chili season! This White Turkey Chili is filled with ground turkey, white beans, chili spices, sour cream, and cheese, and is one of our family favorites. We love to serve it topped with Fritos or tortilla chips for a bit of crunch!

If you're looking for an award-winning white chili recipe, I happen to have just what you're looking for! Or perhaps you're looking for a go-to Sunday chili for those cold winter months. Or maybe a football watching white chili recipe to cozy up with? Whatever your cause is, this White Turkey Chili is IT.  This turkey chili is topped with Fritos so how could it not be fabulous?!

This white turkey chili recipe can be made on the stovetop and slow cooker and either way is super easy and quick to make.

White Turkey Chili Ingredients

• Ground Turkey - this recipe is made with ground turkey and I recommend using 93/7 turkey for a little bit of fat. Either way, ground turkey is a great lean meat that adds protein and flavor to this recipe.
• Butter
• Garlic - fresh garlic adds delicious garlic flavor to this chili recipe.
• Onion - you can use white onion or yellow onion.
• Diced Green Chiles - mild or medium will both work. Just use whatever spice level you prefer.
• Canned Cannellini Beans - this white chili recipe with turkey uses 3 cans of cannellini beans. You could also use navy beans, great northern beans, or pinto beans, too.
• Chicken Broth - chicken stock will also work.
• Cumin
• Chili Powder
• Dried Basil
• Chili Powder
• Cayenne Pepper - this is optional! I rarely add it anymore because, kids.  But if you like a bit of heat with your chili, add it to your liking!
• Red Pepper Chili Flakes - again, with kids I don't add it but it does add nice heat.
• Sour Cream - sour cream is combined with the soup to make this white turkey chili recipe super creamy and delicious.
• Shredded Colby Jack Cheese - a whole 3 cups of shredded cheese go into this chili to make it creamy and cheesy.
• Fritos - not optional.  It absolutely is necessary for this chili! 🙂 If you prefer, tortilla chips also work!
• Chopped Green Onions - also for topping and I love the flavor they add.

This is the perfect creamy white turkey chili to make on a chilly afternoon when you have a couple of hours to lounge around.  You will love it, I promise.  It has 3 cups of cheese in the soup...what's not to love?  A little warning: the spices as written makes a pretty heated bowl of chili (in my and my kids wussy opinions), so if you're not very tolerant to spiciness, start slow with the cayenne pepper and red pepper flakes and add according to your taste.

How to Make White Turkey Chili

I always make this white chili recipe on the stove, but you can also make this recipe in a slow cooker, too. Either way, this is a very easy chili recipe!

Slow Cooker Version

Brown the turkey in a skillet over medium heat, breaking it up into smaller chunks as it cooks. Add all of the ingredients except for the sour cream and cheese to a slow cooker and cook on low heat for 8 hours or high heat for 4 hours.

When there is 30 minutes remaining, remove 1 cup of the broth and transfer to a medium bowl. Add the sour cream to the broth and whisk together until smooth. Add back to the slow cooker and let it cook another 30 minutes. Stir in the cheese until melted. Serve and enjoy!

Stove Top Version

Brown the turkey and onion. In a large soup pot, add the ground turkey and brown over medium-high heat, breaking it up into smaller chunks as it cooks. Add the butter and onion and cook another 5-7 minutes until the onion is softened.

Add spices and beans. To the ground meat and onion, add the garlic, cannellini beans, broth, green chiles, chili powder, cumin, basil, cayenne pepper, and red pepper flakes, and stir well to combine. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for 25 minutes. This cooking time is flexible and you can simmer it up to one hour on the stovetop if you have the time.

Mix in sour cream with broth. After it has cooked, remove 1 cup of the broth and transfer to a medium bowl. Add the sour cream to the broth and whisk together until smooth. Note: this is a very important step! It ensures the sour cream does not curdle when it is added to the soup.

Add this mixture back to the slow cooker and let it cook another 30 minutes. Stir in the cheese until melted. Serve and enjoy!

Tips for Creamy White Turkey Chili

Use 93/7 ground turkey. You can use 99/1 but I prefer the taste of the 93/7 - the fat adds a richness to the meat and the soup that is important!

Combine the sour cream with a little of the broth before adding to the soup. By adding 1 cup of broth to the sour cream, it will help the sour cream incorporate into the rest of the soup better. I've added the sour cream without doing this and, while it still tastes delicious, the sour cream sort of separates from the broth and it doesn't look quite as creamy.

Shred your own cheese. Buy a block of Colby Jack cheese and shred it on your own. It will melt nicer into the soup, opposed to the pre-shredded kind. Believe me, I really don't like shredding my own cheese but the extra step is worth it!

Load up the toppings. As is the case with most chili recipes, the toppings are almost as important as the actual chili! Frito's and green onions are our favorite toppings but other delicious options are tortilla chips, diced avocado, chopped fresh cilantro, lime juice, and more shredded cheese.

Leftovers. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

White Turkey Chili Recipe Variations

Swap the meat. Swap the ground turkey for ground chicken, ground beef, turkey breast, chicken thighs, chicken breasts, or rotisserie chicken. Even leftover turkey meat from Thanksgiving would be a great option!

Add bell pepper. This white bean chili recipe can get a boost of nutrients if you add some vegetables like bell pepper. Bell peppers are often found in chilis and add a delicious flavor.

Add salsa verde. If you don't want to make an extra trip to the grocery store and don't have green chiles but you do have salsa verde, use that instead! It's a great option that will add a ton of flavor.

Like this recipe? Check these out, too!

White Vegetarian Chili

Instant Pot White Chicken Chili

Slow Cooker Turkey Chili