Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili Mac
White chicken chili — rotisserie chicken, white beans, green chiles, cream cheese, and green chili spices — with elbow macaroni stirred in at the end so it absorbs the creamy, spiced broth. Everything in the slow cooker, pasta goes in for the last 20 minutes. Dinner handles itself.
Ingredients
Meat & Protein
- 3 cups rotisserie chicken shredded
Produce
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 3 green onion thinly sliced, for garnish
- 1 lime cut into wedges, for serving
Dairy
- 4 oz cream cheese softened to room temperature, cubed
- ½ cup sour cream for serving
- 1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend for serving
Pantry & Canned Goods
- 2 cans cannellini beans drained and rinsed
- 2 cans diced green chiles 4 oz each, do not drain
- 1 cup corn frozen or canned, drained
- 3 cups chicken broth low sodium
- 1.5 cups elbow macaroni dry, uncooked
Seasonings & Spices
- 1.5 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ¾ tsp kosher salt plus more to taste
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- Add the shredded rotisserie chicken, diced onion, minced garlic, drained cannellini beans, green chiles with their liquid, corn, chicken broth, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes if using to the slow cooker. Stir to combine.
- Place the cubed cream cheese on top of the mixture — do not stir it in yet. It will melt into the chili as it cooks.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours or HIGH for 2 hours. The cream cheese will have fully melted. Stir everything together until the cream cheese is completely incorporated into the broth and the chili is smooth and creamy.
- Add the dry elbow macaroni to the slow cooker and stir to submerge in the chili. Switch to HIGH if not already there. Cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until the pasta is tender and has absorbed some of the broth. Check at 15 minutes — it can go from perfect to overcooked quickly once the pasta is in.
- Taste and adjust salt and seasoning. The pasta absorbs a lot of the liquid — if the chili is thicker than you'd like, stir in a splash of warm chicken broth. Serve topped with shredded Mexican cheese, a spoonful of sour cream, sliced green onion, and a lime wedge for squeezing.
Notes
Rotisserie chicken is the move here — it's already cooked and seasoned and it shreds perfectly into the chili. If using raw chicken, add 1.5 lbs of boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs at step 1 and cook on LOW for 6 to 7 hours before shredding and returning to the pot.
The cream cheese goes in as a solid block on top — not stirred in until after cooking. This prevents it from sticking to the bottom of the slow cooker and allows it to melt evenly into the broth. Softened cream cheese at room temperature incorporates more smoothly than cold cream cheese straight from the fridge.
Watch the pasta timing carefully. Elbow macaroni in a slow cooker can go mushy fast once it's cooked through. Start checking at 15 minutes. Pull it while it still has a little bite — it will continue absorbing liquid as it sits.
This is a great recipe to make alongside the White Chicken Chili — same ingredient list, different format. Make the chili one week and this version the next for variety without additional grocery planning.
Leftovers keep for 3 days. The pasta absorbs more liquid as it sits — add a splash of chicken broth when reheating. Does not freeze well once the pasta has been added.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!