Hatch Green Chile Chicken Stew
This Hatch green chile chicken stew recipe features the flavors of New Mexico – without having to roast chiles. This recipe is designed for those who do not have access to fresh Hatch chiles, but still want that unique Hatch flavor. This stew is not super spicy, but has a “smoky” flavor to it and is ready in about 40-minutes.
If you’ve ever been to New Mexico, then you understand the popularity (and almost snobbery) of The Hatch Chile Pepper. Those folks are big fans of their homegrown peppers, and rightfully so. Indiginous to the Hatch Valley, these green peppers are often hard to find and in-season typically in August.
A few notes about some of the key ingredients
- This recipe is written for those who do not have access to fresh roasted Hatch chiles. If using fresh roasted Hatch chiles, you’ll need 1 ½ cups of finely minced roasted peppers.
- The recommended Hatch chiles used in this recipe are certified authentic Hatch chiles by the Hatch Chile Association.
- I recommend the Santa Fe Ole brand of roasted green chiles. You can buy them online or at The Fresh Market and Whole Foods Markets in just about every state.
- As for the Roasted Salsa Verde (often referred to as tomatillo sauce), I like the Herdez brand. You can find this salsa brand at most retailers like Walmart and Target.
Authentic Hatch chiles are relatively mild on the Scoville Index, but once in awhile, you might get one that’s hotter than the others.
They’re typically in season in August, so if you go to the grocery store and see them, buy ’em and freeze ’em for later!
If you’re interested in more soups with that Southwestern flavor, try Southwestern Navy Bean soup or restaurant-quality Chicken Tortilla soup.
Ingredients
- Chicken breasts and chicken broth
- Santa Fe Ole brand of jarred roasted Hatch chiles
- Salsa verde – roasted green chile salsa
- White beans – Great White Northern, White Kidney or Cannellini
- Paprika – smoky, not sweet
- Ground cumin
- Ground coriander
- Garlic
- Lime juice
- Salt and pepper to taste; optional garnishes – Cotija cheese, cilantro, avocado or sour cream
How to make it
This is an overview; see the recipe card below for exact step-by-step instructions
- Lightly season breasts with dry seasonings; cover with foil and bake at 350ºF until the internal temperature is 165ºF. Once cooled, shred and set aside
- Chop onions; place onions, roasted Hatch chiles and one drained can of beans into food processor; pulse a few times and set aside
- In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, heat oil, add the onion/chile mixture and cook for 5 minutes
- Add chicken broth, garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander, Roasted Salsa Verde, cooked, shredded chicken and bay leaves; cook for 15-20 minutes
- Add remaining drained, canned white beans to the stockpot, remove bay leaf and cook additional 15 minutes; taste for salt and black pepper
- Garnish with chopped cilantro, avocad, green onions or Cotija cheese
How to identify authentic jarred Hatch chiles
Authentic Hatch chiles are trademarked and certified by The Hatch Chile Association. The ivy-league of chiles got tired of “copycats” claiming to be “Hatch” and sought legal trademark protection.
Look for this certification logo printed on the jar or can.
Even the yellow and green “Hatch™ brand” green chiles cannot claim its chiles are “Hatch.” That’s how serious the New Mexican Hatch growers are about their precious chile peppers.
Storage and make ahead
Make this delicious green chile stew up to 3 days in advance. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to reheat. For best results, reheat on the stovetop; stew may thicken upon storage and you might have to add a little water.
Freeze in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
I like to serve Hatch green chile chicken stew on a chilly night, with a side of warm tortillas or crunchy tortilla chips!
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- Red Enchilada Sauce
- Easy Authentic Mexican Rice
- Restaurant-quality Canned Refried Beans
- Slow Cooker Adobo Chicken
- How to Fix Over Salted Foods
If you make this recipe, please scroll down and leave a comment and rating! I love to hear from you! Thank you!
Recipe and post updated 9/2025
Hatch Green Chile Chicken Stew
Equipment
- Food Processor
Ingredients
Seasoning Blend for Chicken
- 1 teaspoon of each: ground cumin, ground coriander, smoky paprika, salt
Soup Ingredients
- 2 lbs. chicken breasts , baked and shredded
- spray oil (for baking pan)
- 1 tablespoon oil , canola or vegetable
- ½ cup chopped sweet yellow onion
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1½ cups Roasted Green Chiles (fresh or jarred) , (I like Santa Fe Ole brand of roasted Hatch chiles)
- 1 cup Roasted Salsa Verde (Herdez brand or other)
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 15 oz. canned white bean, drained , (Great White Northern, White Kidney or Cannellini beans)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin (for broth)
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander (for broth)
- 2 dried bay leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
- garnish Cotija cheese, cilantro, avocado, sour cream (optional)
Instructions
Prepare the Chicken
- Lightly spray oil on baking dish; preheat oven to 350ºF; cut chicken in half lengthwise and place in prepared baking dishspray oil (for baking pan)
- Combine seasoning blend for the chicken in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly over both sides of the breasts1 teaspoon of each: ground cumin, ground coriander, smoky paprika, salt, 2 lbs. chicken breasts
- Cover with foil and bake until it reaches an internal temperature of 165º F; shred and set aside
Prepare the Stew Broth
- Drain one can of white beans and add to the food processor along with chopped onions, garlic and roasted green chiles. Pulse a few times until the onion is broken down and the mixture is relatively smooth½ cup chopped sweet yellow onion, 1½ cups Roasted Green Chiles (fresh or jarred), 1 clove garlic
- Heat large stockpot with oil; add the food processor ingredients to the stockpot mixture and cook on medium high heat for about 2 minutes; stirring constantly1 tablespoon oil
- Reduce heat to medium and add chicken broth, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon ground coriander and roasted salsa verde; combine well and cook for 5 minutes4 cups chicken broth, 1 cup Roasted Salsa Verde, 1 teaspoon ground cumin (for broth), 1 clove garlic, 1 teaspoon ground coriander (for broth)
- Add shredded chicken and bay leaves to broth; reduce heat to low and allow to cook for 15 minutes2 dried bay leaves
- Add remaining two cans of drained white beans; cook additional 5-8 minutes; remove bay leaves; add salt and pepper to tastesalt and pepper to taste
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and Cotija cheesegarnish Cotija cheese, cilantro, avocado, sour cream
Notes
- If you cannot find either of these key ingredients, substitute the roasted chile peppers with diced green chiles and use a regular salsa verde. The stew flavor will not taste as “roasty” but it will still be delicious!
Do you have to use a food processor? Also why do you add food processor ingredients to saute in pot with oil?
No, you do not have to use a food processor. You can mash the beans by hand and finely mince the onion, garlic and roasted green chiles. The food processor makes it go faster and is the pureed bean base for the stew. You add the food processor ingredients to the stockpot (with a little oil) to gently cook the onions, jarred green chiles and garlic. This allows the flavors to fully marry.
Okay that makes sense. Thankyou!
You’re welcome!
I’m making this tonight, and the house smells wonderful. I am enjoying the flavor as the soup simmers. I appreciate the incorporation of the white beans over rice or potatoes. It’s really satisfying. I look forward to dinner in a few minutes.
Excellent stew! I live in Albuquerque and had fresh Hatch Chilis to use in this recipe. The flavors and texture of the stew was excellent and I will be making this again regularly in the fall and winter months. Thank you for posting this and ignore the bad review who did not even try the food!
Yum! I had a green chile chicken stew when I was visiting New Mexico a couple years ago and was craving it. I made some modifications to your recipe – left the onions and green chile chunky (saved having to clean up a food processor), and added some cubed potato. I also cooked the chicken in the instant pot beforehand. It’s a very hearty and satisfying green chile soup!
Thanks, Reed! I like your modifications! Glad you enjoyed the green chile chicken stew!
This was very good! (Even though I forgot the lime.😐). My brother agrees.
I’m a New Mexican native and I made this recipe after just getting my new batch of Hatch Chile. Outstanding recipe. Ignore the rude comment from one reviewer. We’re not food snobs here.
Thank you, Tina!
My wife was half Mexican. I was raised in California. I know nothing of New Mexican cuisine.
Still, this is an excellent recipe. My many Mexican friends and relatives would agree.
Forget that rude bugger!
Your recipe flies red, white, and green.
Texans really need to stay away from pretending they know anything about New Mexican cuisine. Many errors in the background story, and the ingredients are not right for a green chile chicken soup. Looking elsewhere to use my hatch green chile stash. Need to call this recipe, even if it’s a good one, something else and stop pretending that you’re some sort of New Mexican chile expert! Integrity matters.
Manners matter, too. I never claimed to be an “expert” on New Mexican cuisine so why don’t you take your rude self and move on? If you had tried the recipe and had comments, I’d gladly address them here. But considering you didn’t make the recipe and left a hateful message, I’ll assume you weren’t raised on sweet tea. Take your stash of Hatch chiles and move on, Suzanne or Marie or whomever you are.
I used your recipe as my base and had to tweak it quite a bit because I’m an American living in Australia, and it turned out amazing. I was happy to find a green salsa from the USA sold here (Desert Pepper) with roasted New Mexican green chiles as the main ingredient, and tomatillos. To get more roasty flavor I fire roasted fresh whole jalapenos, green bell pepper and tomatoes to add to the stew as well. I also added a bunch of fresh cilantro chopped in the food processor with the tomatoes to add to the stew, simmered the stew for about an hour and I thickened the stew with a cornstarch slurry at the end. Served it with warm tortillas, avocado, sour cream, shredded mozzarella/cheddar mix and chopped cilantro. My husband and brothers had 2 massive bowls each and then topped with eggs the next morning. It was super good and gave me a taste of home. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!!!
Oh wow! That sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing this!
I love to make this on cold days! Fun to make and very satisfyingly tasty!
Loved this soup. Making it for 2nd time 2 Sundays in a row. I added a drained can of corn to it. So tasty. Thank you.
Oh what a great idea! Thank you for sharing!