Chile Chicken and Bean Guisado 

By Kristina Felix

Updated May 26, 2026

  • Rachel Vanni for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Spencer Richards.
Media 1 of 2
Ready In
35 min
Rating
5(618)
Comments
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This brothy stew featuring buttery white beans and ground chicken captures the unmistakable flavors of Mexican chorizo in a tomato pan sauce spiked with vinegar and a hint of cinnamon. Ancho chile powder (made from sun-ripened, dried poblanos) adds fruity, spicy, smoky notes and remarkable depth, though any chile powder works well. Stirring in whatever quick-cooking greens need eating from your fridge transforms the meal into a complete one-pot dinner in just over 30 minutes. But don't worry if you leave them out—this guisado stands up deliciously all on its own. It's also especially satisfying the next day with scrambled eggs in breakfast tacos.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, preferably avocado

  • ½ white onion, diced

  • 1 pound ground chicken

  • Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)

  • 3 garlic cloves, minced

  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar

  • 2 teaspoons ground chile powder, preferably ancho or chipotle

  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Mexican

  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 2 (15-ounce) cans white beans, such as lima (butter) or great Northern, drained and rinsed

  • 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water

  • 2 Roma tomatoes, diced

  • 5 ounces baby spinach or baby arugula, optional

  • Fresh corn or flour tortillas, salsa roja, minced cilantro and onion (optional), for serving

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

56 grams carbs; 101 milligrams cholesterol; 493 calories; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 14 grams fat; 13 grams fiber; 1302 milligrams sodium; 40 grams protein; 8 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high. When the oil is hot, add the diced onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion becomes fragrant and almost translucent, about 3 minutes. 

  2. Step 2

    Add the chicken and 1 teaspoon salt to the pan, breaking the chicken up with a wooden spoon as it sizzles. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes.

  3. Step 3

    Add the garlic, vinegar, chile powder, oregano and cinnamon to the chicken, stir to combine and cook until garlic is fragrant, about 2 minutes. 

  4. Step 4

    Add the beans, broth and tomatoes, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes until the tomatoes begin to fall apart. 

  5. Step 5

    Add greens if using, and cook until just wilted, about 3 minutes. Taste for salt and season as needed. Serve immediately with fresh tortillas, salsa roja, minced cilantro and onion on the side, if desired.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
618 user ratings
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Comments

c

This is incredible. Sooo flavorful and light and hearty. If anyone else is like me and HATES throwing away a bag of tortilla chips because the last 25% of them are crumbs…save them to dump in this. Much yummier and easier to eat that tortillas per the recipe

dimmerswitch

Drarchaeo - Re you question about subbing in cooked from dry beans for canned, I do that all the time. Since this recipe spec's canned, you will want to cook your dry beans all the way through so they are as if fully cooked canned beans, however it is you usually cook dry beans. 2 cans of beans = @ 3C of beans so easy to measure your cooked beans then add at Step 4. For most beans, a pound cooks up to 6C so a half pound would get you to 3C (and maybe a little more.)

APS

Made this with a chicken breast and it also worked well. Added a little guajillo Chile powder too. As with so many Mexican foods, a little squeeze of lime as we ate with the must do corn tortillas was all the more magical.

Peggy

I didn’t have any ground chicken but I did have some ground pork so I tried it. Totally delicious! Needed a whole onion, more garlic, and more chili powder but that’s just a matter of taste. I also added a big dose of Tajín and I love the idea of sprinkling the little tortilla crumbles from the bottom of the bag. Really a great dish.

Steve

So my kitchen is a shell of its former self, quite literally…it’s undergoing a complete renovation and is currently down to the studs. But this recipe looked too good to wait on, and with my options limited, I decided to try it in my pressure cooker. So glad I did. Followed the recipe, using the sauté feature, up through adding the beans/tomatoes/broth. Had no greens but added a diced red bell pepper and diced small zucchini. Then set the pressure cooker to 5 mins on high, no warm. After 5 mins, quick release and sauté to reduce the broth for 5-10 mins. Topped my serving with halved cherry tomatoes and basil from the garden. Wonderful. Greek yogurt as a topping might be good next time.

JDP

Made this dish yesterday and it was outstanding! I substituted fresh New Mexico chili powder for ancho chili powder, and used fresh spinach instead of arugula. Next time I will reduce cinnamon to 1/4 tsp and add a little cayenne pepper to kick it up a notch.

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