This hearty and super tasty butternut squash chicken chili is fast and easy plus packed with flavor, protein and veggies. It’s a healthy one pot paleo meal you’ll enjoy during the cold months that the whole family will love! It’s Whole30 compliant, dairy free and paleo.
If you’re a fan of my slow cooker white chicken chili with white sweet potatoes, this new butternut squash chicken chili is going to become a new favorite!
It’s fast (as far as chilis go!) and super easy, made in one pot on the stove and that’s it! The butternut squash gives the chili a delicious sweetness and the sweet/savory/spice flavor combination is incredible!
This chili is also very low in carbs, Whole30 compliant, and can be served with lots of different garnishes to suit anyone’s taste. It’s a great recipe to make on a Sunday to have the leftovers all week for lunch!
What You Need to Make Butternut Squash Chicken Chili
This recipe uses cooked and shredded chicken breasts, but you can absolutely use any leftover chicken you have, or purchase an already-cooked rotisserie chicken.
If you’re doing the Whole30 and not cooking the chicken yourself, make sure you check out the ingredients before purchasing.
Here’s what you’ll need to prepare the chili:
- boneless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
- ghee or avocado oil
- medium butternut squash, cut into 3/4” cubes
- Sea salt and black pepper
- yellow onion, diced
- garlic, minced
- red bell pepper, diced
- green bell pepper, diced
- fresh jalapeños
- ground cumin
- dried oregano
- chili powder
- chipotle chili powder
- diced green chiles
- chicken bone broth
- fresh cilantro
- fresh lime juice
- nutritional yeast – optional
- Garnish: “sour cream” coconut cream (see below**) avocado slices, more cilantro
How to Make Butternut Squash Chicken Chili
If your chicken needs to be cooked and shredded, do this first* and set aside (see the recipe notes for my method!) Prepare all ingredients before beginning.
Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat and add the ghee or oil. Add the butternut squash and sprinkle all over with sea salt and pepper. Sauté, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes, until just beginning to brown and soften.
Add in the diced onion and sauté for about a minute until translucent. Then, add in the garlic, peppers, jalapeño and spices, stir and sauté for 3 minutes, until fragrant and softened.
Add in the green chilis, and broth, stir and bring to a boil. Stir in the shredded chicken, nutritional yeast cilantro and lime juice and allow to simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper as desired.
My Favorite Garnishes for Butternut Squash Chicken Chili
I love serving this chili with coconut “sour cream” (see below for how to prepare.) This is the only sour cream I know of that’s Whole30 compliant and it adds wonderful flavor and creaminess to the chili!
You also can’t go wrong with sliced avocado – and you can also make a super simple guacamole for even more flavor!
After the sour cream and avocado, additional cilantro is great and sliced jalapeño is perfect if you want things extra spicy. You can also try serving the chili over sautéed cauliflower rice for extra veggies and flavor.
How to Make Whole30 Compliant Sour Cream
To make Whole30 compliant sour cream with coconut cream, mix 1/2 cup of thick, cold coconut cream with 2 tsp lemon or lime juice and 1/8 tsp fine sea salt.
If you don’t have access to coconut CREAM but you have a can of full fat coconut milk, simply chill the can overnight and just use the thick part of the separated milk.
I like to use the 365 brand (Whole Foods) of coconut cream for this as it’s very thick and creamy and blends well. Feel free to adjust the salt and lemon to taste.
I hope you’re ready for a delicious meal that’s bound to become a go-to during the colder months! Grab your favorite soup pot and start chopping your ingredients – let’s go!
Butternut Squash Chicken Chili {Paleo, Whole30}
Butternut Squash Chicken Chili {Paleo, Whole30}
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts cooked and shredded*
- 2 Tbsp ghee or avocado oil
- 1 medium butternut squash cut into 3/4” cubes (about 4 cups)
- Sea salt and black pepper
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 2 Tbsp fresh jalapeños finely chopped
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp oregano
- 3/4 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 4 oz can diced green chiles
- 3 cups chicken bone broth
- 1 tbsp fresh minced cilantro
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast optional
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
- Garnish: “sour cream” coconut cream see notes** avocado slices, cilantro
Instructions
-
If your chicken needs to be cooked and shredded, do this first* and set aside. Prepare all ingredients before beginning.
-
Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat and add the ghee or oil. Add the butternut squash and sprinkle all over with sea salt and pepper. Sauté, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes, until just beginning to brown and soften.
-
Add in the diced onion and sauté for about a minute until translucent. Then, add in the garlic, peppers, jalapeño and spices, stir and sauté for 3 minutes, until fragrant and softened.
-
Add in the green chilis, and broth , stir and bring to a boil. Stir in the shredded chicken, nutritional yeast cilantro and lime juice and allow to simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper as desired. Serve with coconut “sour cream” (see notes) sliced avocado, additional cilantro and sliced jalapeño if desired. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Notes:
*if you don’t already have cooked chicken, season your chicken breasts with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and smoked paprika. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until cooked through, then shred before using. You can also use a rotisserie chicken, just check ingredients for Whole30 compliance if needed.
** To make Whole30 compliant sour cream with coconut cream, mix 1/2 cup of thick, cold coconut cream with 2 tsp lemon or lime juice and 1/8 tsp fine sea salt. I like to use the 365 brand (Whole Foods) for this as it’s very thick and creamy. Feel free to adjust the salt and lemon to taste.
Nutrition
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Want More Whole30 Soup and Chili Recipes? Try One of These!
Instant Pot Beef and Bacon Chili
Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
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Hi Michelle, Love your recipes! Thank you! Have you tried this in an instant pot? Do you think it would work with the squash? Thanks!
I love the idea of add butternut squash! But my family would likely pick it out. Do you think I could purée it & put it in this? Also, we don’t do anything spicy. Could we leave out the jalepeno?
Hi! Looks very yummy. Any ideas on how we could use an insta pot instead?
Made this today. It is so good! Added kite hill sour cream and avocado.
This was so so good! I never review recipes but thought I had to let you know I appreciated this 🙂
Another hit. The kids liked it! The chili itself was great, but adding the paleo sour cream took it up a notch. Delicious!
So good! I didn’t think I had enough squash so I added some carrots. But then it ended up too thick so I added more broth. Oh well, flavor is really good.
this was fabulous! Thank you so much! I added an exta cup of squash and of broth. I thickened it up with arrowroot. Loved it!
Hi, if this was fabulous, why did you only rate it 2 stars?? I have made this many times and it is definitely a 5 star recipe. Try adding tomatoes to it some time. It’s a nice addition.
This was a yummy, comforting chili! My husband loved it and he usually doesn’t like anything out of the ordinary. I will be making this again. Thank you!
Loved it!! So tasty and hearty. Will definitely make again!!
Is it possible to do this in instant pot if I don’t have a Dutch oven?!
I made this in a InstantPot! Sauteed onions, peppers, spices. Added broth (only 2 cups), raw cubed squash, 1.5 pound of chix tenders, chilis. Cooked on high pressure for 30 min. (My chix was a little bit frozen in places still.) Manually released pressure. Utterly Delicious. 30 min made the chix just fall apart and shred beautifully. The squash kind of disintegrated but I liked that because it gave it a thick, hearty consistency. You could probably make this in 20 min on high pressure. Will definitely make again.
Outstanding! Thanks so much for posting your instant pot instructions!!
The cakes are so fresh, the recipe you made is so great and you have really clever hands, I really like the way you decorate them.
I was surprised at how good this tasted! I did not have jalapeño but did have a Serrano pepper. I was afraid to add the nutritional yeast flakes to be honest but it brought it all together.
Great thank you
This reminded me of a slightly sweeter sopa de pollo from my favorite Mexican restaurant pre-Paleo and I’m soooo happy with it! Thank you for this deliciousness!
One word…AMAZING! Just made this and got up from my seat to review. The BEST chicken based chili or any chili I have e made in a very long time. Absolutely fantastic! Worth the effort. Thank you!!
Can you freeze this and it still be good?.
Yes that should work.
Very delicious! Nice flavor with avacado and sour cream and without. I used a tad bit more cummin and the chili powders. I will be making this again.
This is my second time through this recipe. I the first time I made it just as written and it was okay. This time, I simplified. I did the chicken, but just added a chopped poblano, onion, garlic, sliced jalapeno, spices, sweet potato and about 1/3 cup of salsa verde with the broth. Simmered until potatoes were soft. Served with a squirt of lime and sour cream since dairy is not an issue for me. Much less fussy and even better. Will make again!
This recipe is outstanding! It’s on my weekly rotation! Thank you!
This is delicious!! Everyone loved the incredible flavor. A new favorite!🍁
I knew I would like this but I had no idea how wonderful these flavors would blend together, super impressed. Will be making this very often. Easy to make and quick also.
Hi! This looks amazing. My family has loved every recipe of yours that I have tried, but I haven’t made this one yet. Can I use frozen butternut squash? If so, would you recommend doing anything differently in the cooking process? I’m hoping I can make this today without having to run into town for a fresh squash 😂
Aww look so yummy. I will make this dish for my grandmom. She will love it much.
Could you translate this recipe to a slow cooker version? I love my slow cooker in the colder seasons!
I am just now making a 2nd batch. Everyone LOVED this chili, including me!!!