Southwest Chicken and White Bean Chili

The idea for this recipe actually started with a batch of carnitas. I made tacos bowls last week and cooked the pork using the sous vide method. Slow cooking the meat and seasonings in a vacuum sealed bag renders a rich and delicious pork stock with slight hints of cinnamon and orange from the seasonings. When I removed the carnitas from the water bath, the first thing I did was cut off a corner of the bag and pour all the liquid into a quart size jar. The stock is so rich with gelatin that it solidifies when refrigerated with the fat separating and firming on top.

A favorite use of this liquid gold pork stock is for making beans. The flavor of the stock and the luxurious creamy texture from the gelatin yields some excellent beans. Using sous vide equipment is an easy, foolproof way to cook beans too. Simply add the dry beans, the reserved stock and fat, and enough water so the liquid to bean ratio is 1.5:1 by weight. Cook the beans at 190 degrees for at least 8 hours, overnight is easiest. The resulting beans are perfectly cooked with only a small amount of pot liquor (bean liquid). Most of the delicious pork stock has been absorbed by the beans.

I decided to stick with a Mexican inspired theme adding roasted poblano peppers, ancho chili powder, garlic, and cumin. The chicken breast is seasoned with salt and cooked sous vide at 155 degrees for 1.5 to 3 hours. The poblanos are roasted in an air fryer at 400 degrees for 18 minutes. The peppers are sealed in a Ziploc bag for 10 minutes after roasting and then the skin is easy to remove. Cube the chicken, chop the poblanos, and mix everything together. Serve with diced white onion, cilantro, and a lime and as always Eat With Love!

Servings 6 | 360 grams per serving | $12.34 per recipe | $2.06 per serving

Ingredients