Sorry this is turning out to be a long post, but I would seriously enjoy
some suggestions on how to make the recipe better as it really had great
chili flavor and great potential.

I got this off the internet... *oh big surprise* anyhow it sounded good, but
it was just missing an underlying flavor and I just couldn't tweek it enough
to get it right. The "chili" flavoring of the recipe was just right really
rich, warm and delicious, but it was almost like it was missing it's base of
flavors. It would hit the tongue and make you think "wow this is really
good", but then leave you hanging thinking "what is it missing." I didn't
follow the recipe exactly and I put my changes in parenthesis. Any ideas?

Abercrombie's Southwestern White Chili

1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cups boneless chicken or turkey meat
(5 chicken thighs)
14.5 ounces chicken broth (1 can)
(8 cups of water)
4 ounces chopped green chilies (1 can)
(2 cans of chopped green chilie)
60 ounces un-drained, small white beans
(1 pound dry navy beans, soaked)
1 small onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
(8 cloves garlic, minced)
2 teaspoons cumin powder
(4 teaspoons cumin powder)
1/2 teaspoon oregano
(1 teaspoon oregano)
1 teaspoon basil
(2 teaspoons basil)
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro leaves or 2 tsp ground coriander
(2 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro leaves)
2 teaspoons ground pasilla pepper
(4 teaspoons ground pasilla pepper)
1 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne or chili powder like Gebharts)
(2 teaspoon ground Gebharts chili powder)
1 tablespoon minced jalapeno pepper, optional
(didn't add this, but had to add 2 tsp of salt)

Cook the chicken or turkey in a pan with the olive oil, jalapeno, onion, and
garlic. I normally use a pressure cooker instead of a fry pan to speed up
the process.

(I put soaked beans, 8 cups of water, and 5 chicken thighs into the crockpot
and cooked until done. About 8 hours. I then shredded chicken and
proceeded with above directions. For the ground pasilla pepper I bought
whole dried pasilla peppers... seeded, deveined and ground them in my magic
bullet :P)

When the meat mixture is done, shred it into smaller pieces, then put it
along with all other ingredients in a pot and simmer for at least an hour. I
usually let it go for a couple. If you want to crockpot it, do it on low for
the day. Add more jalapenos/red pepper/chili powder to kick it up a notch
for your own taste. I use boneless/skinless chicken thighs because I like
the flavor better than breast meat, but any kind of chicken/turkey will do
fine.

That's it for the easiest version. You can use fresh ingredients instead of
the canned and powdered for a special pot of the stuff. Use fresh herbs and
peppers if you can find them. Roast the peppers over some kind of flame (I've
used one of those small propane torches or the fireplace at times) till they
turn black, put 'em in a sealed baggie for 15 minutes or so till the skins
rub/slide off easily, remove seeds and stems, and dice 'em.

Try not to leave anything out the first time you make the dish, each spice
or pepper is important to the final taste. After that, adjust 'em to fit
your own tastes.

Servings: 8