White Chicken Chilli

Ingredients

• 600 g boneless chicken thighs
• 2 tins of cannellini beans, drained
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 green chillies, chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 600 ml chicken stock
• 1 tin of sweetcorn, drained
• 120 g soured cream
• juice of 1 lime
• a handful of coriander

Method

1. Soften the base

   Cook the onion, garlic and green chillies in the oil until soft and sweet but not browned. Colour here would tint the finished chilli and the point of this one is that it stays pale.

   10 min

2. Poach the chicken whole

   Add the thighs whole rather than diced. Cut small they overcook and go stringy; poached whole and shredded later they stay juicy.

3. Spices

   Stir in the cumin and coriander and let them cook in the oil for a minute before any liquid goes in.

   1 min

4. Simmer and mash

   Add the beans and stock and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes. Lift the chicken out, then mash about a quarter of the beans against the side of the pan — that starch is what thickens it without flour or cream.

   20 min

5. Shred and return

   Shred the chicken with two forks, return it with the sweetcorn and simmer five more minutes to bring it together.

   5 min

6. Finish off the heat

   Stir in the soured cream, lime juice and coriander away from the heat, and season. Soured cream added to a boiling pot splits into curds and liquid.