If you’re trying to win a fall chili cook-off, this is your gold medal. This Creamy Pumpkin Chicken Chili is an absolute must-make as these temperatures start cooling down. It is perfectly creamy, festive, and comes together so easily (one-pot, love to see it). The flavor has a subtle pumpkin flavor, with warming spices like chili, cumin, and cinnamon for the perfect autumn soup.

I could legitimately live off of soup from beginning of September – end of April. It is such a great way to pack in a wide variety of foods, nutrients, and flavors into a bowl. There’s just SOMETHING about sitting on the couch and being able to hold your meal in a little bowl that feels *just right*. If I were to recommend you make ONE fall-inspired soup this month, let it be this creamy pumpkin chicken chili.

Topping ideas!

I topped mine with shredded white cheddar cheese, green onions, and fresh jalapeño. Feel free to choose your adventure here!

Some other great topping ideas would be:

• cilantro
• pumpkin seeds (for a little crunch)
• regular cheddar cheese
• black pepper
• homemade croutons – the options are endless!

Finding your pumpkin or squash for your creamy pumpkin chicken chili

For this recipe, I used canned pumpkin as a part of the base of the chili. For the chunks of pumpkin, I found pre-cubed pumpkin at Fresh Thyme Market. If you cannot find pre-cut pumpkin, feel free to use butternut squash in it’s place – they have very similar flavor profiles and you won’t be able to tell the difference with the base being pumpkin already. Pre-cut squash will be easier to find in grocery stores!

The perfect shredded chicken

There are few ways to get shredded chicken for this soup. Below are some of my recommendations. I chose #3 as my route!

1. Pre-shredded from the grocery store. Sometimes you can find pre-shredded rotisserie chicken in the grocery store. This would be the easiest, quickest, and the most low maintenance way of adding shredded chicken to your chili.
2. Buy a rotisserie chicken – chop & shred it yourself. You can find rotisserie chickens at most grocery stores! This one is probably the messiest of the three options as you’ll be cutting up an entire roasted chicken, but at least it’s already cooked. When you’re done with the rotisserie chicken, make some bone broth with the bones!
3. Make your own! Making shredded chicken at home is quite easy. This is the route I took for this recipe, and it’s really quick and easy. I grabbed 1.5 pounds of chicken breast and put it in a sauce pan with chicken broth and water (submerged), and boiled it for about 20 minutes, flipping half way through. Use a thermometer to check that your chicken is done (should be 165 degrees). Then remove it from the pan and shred it with 2 forks! It is very simple. Let me know in the comments if you have questions on this.

I hope you love this recipe and that it makes for the perfect fall dish for you this season! As always, let me know in the comments if you make this <3

Creamy Pumpkin Chicken Chili

megan sheley

An absolute must make during soup season. This creamy pumpkin chicken chili is great for Sunday football, a fall potluck, or a chili cook-off. It's creamy, seasonal, and filled with warming spices – perfect for those cooling temperatures.

5 from 2 votes

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Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Ingredients

  

• 1.5 pounds chicken breast shredded
• 1.5 cup chopped poblano peppers 2 smaller peppers
• 1.5 cup chopped white onion
• 1.5 cup chopped butternut squash or pumpkin
• 1.5 cup frozen corn I use the fire roasted corn from Trader Joe's
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1.5 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 1 14.5oz can fire roasted tomatoes
• 1 4oz can green chilis
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 can pumpkin purée
• 8 oz block of cream cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded white cheddar for topping
• 1 jalapeno – sliced for topping
• 1/2 cup green onions, chopped for topping

Instructions

 

• Decide how you’re going to get shredded chicken – do it yourself, buy pre-shredded, rotisserie chicken, etc. Read above in the recipe blog for more details on this!
• Dice your onion and poblano pepper into small pieces and set aside. In a large soup pot, set the heat to medium. Drizzle 1 tbsp of olive oil and let heat for a bit. Add in your onion and poblano pepper and let saute for 5-6 minutes.
• While sauteing, get your cubed pumpkin or butternut squash and cut into even smaller pieces. I bought store-bought butternut squash cubes and cut them into small bite sized pieces. Add your pumpkin or butternut squash to your pot, stir and cover for 5-6 minutes.
• While your lid is on, mix up your spices in a small bowl – salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, cayenne, and cinnamon. Add your spices and minced garlic to your veggies in the pot. Stir well to coat your veggies.
• Add your canned pumpkin, canned tomatoes, frozen corn, green chilis, veggie broth, and shredded chickien to your pot and stir well. Cover for 10 minutes and simmer on low.
• After simmering, add in your block of cream cheese – submerge into your soup to melt it. Cover again for 6-8 minutes to fully soften.
• Cut up your green onions and jalapeno and shred your white cheddar if you bought a block. After the 6-8 minutes is up, stir your soup well and remove from heat. Serve and top with green onions, fresh jalapenos, and shredded white cheddar. Enjoy!

Keyword fall recipes, pumpkin, soup