White Bean Turkey Chili Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Are white beans and white navy beans the same thing? ›

Due to their creamy white color, navy beans are sometimes confused with other white beans such as great northern beans, cannellini beans, or white kidney beans. Although their taste is similar, navy beans are smaller and rounder than these other varieties.

Cannellini Beans

You find these beans in many Italian soups, but that doesn't mean they aren't great for chili as well. Whether you're making a white chili or you just want contrast in your traditional chili pot, cannellini beans have a rich, meaty texture and hold up well to heat.

The best beans for chili are pinto, kidney, and black beans, like in this easy and tasty recipe. This 3-bean chili freezes great for meals later in the week. If you prefer thinner chili, add an extra can of tomato sauce. The green chiles are not hot and add a wonderful flavor, so don't be afraid to use them.

Mix in a scoop of cornstarch, all-purpose flour, or oats.

For 1 tablespoon of flour, use 2 tablespoons of water. No slurry is required for the absorbent oats; simply stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons. In all cases, allow the chili to simmer for 5 to 10 minutes more, and you should notice it thicken up.

Cannellini Beans: Cannellini beans are a popular white bean native to Southern Italy. They are large and oval in size with a nutty flavor and a creamy texture. Cannellini beans are also called white kidney beans.

Other types of white beans

Butter beans (baby lima beans) and Cannellini Beans are two more common types of white beans. If your recipe calls for white beans, you can often use Cannellini Bean as an excellent substitute for Navy or Great beans.

The best white bean is the cannellini bean—it's just so incredibly versatile thanks to its sturdy skin, cream texture, and neutral but slightly sweet flavor. And O Organics (an Albertsons brand) makes the best canned cannellini beans. They are meaty. They taste perfectly bean-y.

Kidney beans are, in my opinion, the best for vegetarian chili. Raw beans, however, contain high amounts of phytohemagglutinin, meaning that if you purchase dried kidney beans, you must pre-soak and boil them before consumption. Canned beans, however, are pre-cooked and are perfectly fine to eat.

The easiest beans to digest (therefore less likely to cause gas), according to Country Life Foods, are lentils, black eyed beans, adzuki beans and mung beans. (Click through to learn more about the amazing health benefits of mung beans.) The harder ones to digest are red kidney, soy, black and lima beans.

Sweet onions are great for caramelizing due to their higher sugar content. You can cook them into your chili, serve them raw over top, or even elevate your chili with a sophisticated caramelized onion topping! Some of my favorite sweet onions are Walla, Walla, Maui, and Vidalia Onions.

What cheese is best with chili? ›

What kind of cheese goes well with chili? Any kind of shredded cheese would be good on chili but my favorite is definitely shredded sharp cheddar cheese. White cheddar, mozzarella, smoked gouda, and pepper jack cheese are other great toppings for chili.

Ground beef is an immensely versatile, excellent addition to any chili and happens to be one of the quickest to cook and least expensive options of them all. That means you could cook a large amount of chili to feed your entire family for less.

Chili should be thick and hearty enough to be a meal on its own, but sometimes there's just a bit more liquid than you want in the pot. While you can simply keep simmering the chili, that method risks overcooking softer ingredients like the beans, losing all your nice texture to mushy monotony.

Cornmeal does an excellent job of absorbing extra liquids so adding a tablespoon of it to the chili will thicken the final dish. Mix 2 parts of cold water and 1 part of cornmeal, make it a slurry, and add this to the pot. Allow it to simmer for about 10 minutes after you add the slurry.

White Kidney Beans

They have a creamy texture and mild, nutty flavor that is simply delightful. They are larger than navy beans but are still an acceptable substitute in any recipe calling for them.

What is a White Bean? Some recipes simply call for “white beans.” This is a general term for great northern beans, navy beans, cannellini beans, and other similar beans.