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This chili is perfect for every occasion and comes together easily on the stove-top.
Healthy No Bean Chili with Ground Chicken
No matter if you serve it for a crowd during football season or an easy weeknight dinner, this recipe will be a hit.
It has the perfect blend of smoky flavor and hearty texture without any beans! The ground chicken and diced vegetables give it all the volume it needs.
Ingredients
This recipe is similar to my original paleo chili recipe, but we’re making chili with ground chicken instead of beef. Ground chicken is lower in fat and makes a lighter option that doesn’t lack in flavor or texture. Here’s everything you need to make this healthy chicken chili:
- Ground chicken: you can also make this a ground turkey chili by swapping out the ground chicken for turkey instead!
- Garlic: for flavor and aroma.
- Olive oil: for cooking.
- Aromatics: onion, celery, and carrots. Save time chopping them ahead or using fresh or frozen store-bought mirepoix.
- Spices: chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, and cayenne pepper.
- Zucchini: green zucchini or any other variety frozen or in season.
- Tomato pureé: or tomato sauce if that’s what you have on hand.
- Diced tomatoes: adds flavor and texture to this amazing chili.
You’ll find the measurements in the recipe card below.
Can You Add Beans?
You can certainly add any variety of beans such as pinto, red kidney, white, or black beans to make this chili more hearty and amp up the amount of protein and fiber. However, since the recipe is already thick, you may want to add 1 cup of chicken broth per can of beans to keep it the right consistency.
How to Make Ground Chicken Chili
There’s something about a large pot of chili simmering on the stove-top that puts everyone in a good mood. Here’s how to make it:
- Brown the ground chicken
In a large pot, brown the chicken with the garlic. Remove from the pot and set aside. - Cook the veggies
Add the onions, celery, carrots, and seasonings to the pot and cook until the veggies are translucent. Add the zucchini and cook until tender. - Simmer
Add the chicken, tomato puree, and diced tomatoes. Stir and bring to a boil before reducing the heat and simmering for 20 minutes. - Serve
Once the chili is thickened, remove it from the heat, and serve up with all your favorite toppings.
Watch how this easy chicken chili comes together in this quick recipe video.
Can You Make Ground Chicken Chili in the Slow Cooker?
You can make this chili in the slow cooker once you brown the meat. I have a slow cooker no bean chili recipe that shows you how; follow the recipe but swap the same amount of ground beef for ground chicken.
How to Freeze Ground Chicken Chili
I like to freeze leftover chili in 1 ½ cup servings for quick lunches. Of course, you can fill leftovers in a gallon zip bag and freeze them for another dinner.
You can watch how to do this in the video below:
Toppings for Ground Chicken Chili
Just like tacos, chili tastes even better when you load it up with all your favorite toppings. Here are some of my favorite ingredients and ways to serve it:
- Sour cream
- Shredded cheese
- Corn chips
- Diced avocado
- Over a baked sweet potato
- With cornbread
- Oven-baked french fries
- In a chili taco– trust me, it’s amazing!
Ground Chicken Chili with No Beans
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds ground chicken
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 ½ cups onion, diced, about 1 large onion
- ½ cup celery, chopped, about 1 stalk
- 1 ½ cups carrots, peeled and diced, about 4 medium carrots
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- 4 cups zucchinis, diced, about 2-3 medium zucchinis
- 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 15 ounce can diced tomatoes
Instructions
- In your seasoned skillet or 5-6 quart large cast iron pot, brown ground chicken and garlic. Cook over medium heat until chicken is thoroughly cooked and browned. Drain off excess fat, set aside.
- Add oil, onions, celery, carrots, and seasonings to the skillet and cook until translucent over medium-high heat, about 5-7 minutes. Once onions are golden and veggies are midway cooked, add zucchini and cook for 2 minutes, making sure you stir everything well.
- Add cooked ground chicken, tomato puree/sauce, and tomatoes into the pot and stir well. Bring everything to a boil, stirring frequently, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Check on the amazing mixture every so often and stir. Serve immediately.
Sarah says
The seasoning of this ground chicken chili was spot on. It made up for chicken being naturally bland.
Jill says
This is a great chili recipe. I used turkey instead of chicken but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. Delicious!