This Month's Recipe: White Chicken Chili

Our November recipe is a simple White Chicken Chili made with shredded chicken, white beans, salsa verde, and flavorful spices.

It's satisfying, flexible, and a great opportunity for students to explore what goes into a balanced meal.

Chicken and white beans provide protein, while beans also offer fiber and carbohydrates. Students can add toppings, try different flavors, and see how familiar ingredients work together to create a meal.

But what I love most about recipes like this is the opportunity to turn everyday food preparation into learning.

Students can practice reading instructions, identifying ingredients, helping prepare a meal, or suggesting ways to make it their own.

Each of those experiences creates an opportunity to build independence.

White Chicken Chili Recipe

Ingredients

• 6 cups chicken stock

• 3 to 4 cups cooked, shredded chicken

• 2 cans white beans of your choice, rinsed and drained

• 2 cups (16 ounces) salsa verde, store-bought or homemade

• 2 tablespoons ground cumin

Optional toppings: Diced avocado, chopped fresh cilantro, shredded cheese, chopped red or green onions, sour cream, crumbled tortilla chips, or fresh jalapeño slices.

Instructions

1. Stir together the chicken stock, cooked shredded chicken, white beans, salsa verde, and cumin in a large stockpot.

2. Cook on high heat until the soup reaches a simmer.

3. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue simmering for 5 minutes.

4. Serve immediately, garnished with your favorite toppings.

Bring the Learning Into Your Classroom

You don't need a kitchen to help students develop practical nutrition skills.

Try introducing the recipe during an advisory period, wellness lesson, or small-group discussion.

Ask students to look at the ingredients and consider three questions:

1. Fuel: Which ingredients provide protein, carbohydrates, or other nutrients that help our bodies function?

2. Choice: What ingredient or topping would you add to make this recipe your own?

3. Confidence: What's one part of preparing this meal you could learn to do independently?

These questions invite students to think beyond food labels and begin understanding how ingredients, skills, and personal preferences come together.

They also connect to our Rise Girl™ Fab 5 nutrition approach, which introduces students to produce, protein, healthy fats, carbohydrates, and water.