Chicken and Sweet Potato Chili

Thanksgiving 2023 at the land, second year running, and the barn was better equipped than last year—I'd put in better seating, a proper serving setup, improved the fire management. About twenty-five people this time, a few more than last year, including Lily and Ben down from Norman, Caleb with River, my mother from Muskogee, a couple of families from the Cherokee Nation events who'd become friends in the way that food sometimes creates friendships.

River is two and a half now and fully mobile and opinionated about food in the way toddlers are—there are exactly five things he will eat willingly and the list does not always include what's being served. He ate fry bread with fierce enthusiasm and tolerated mashed sweet potato and rejected everything else with polite but absolute finality. Caleb shrugged and said at least the fry bread is on the list.

Kai, who is now eleven, ran the fire rotation with me. He managed the coals on the turkey fire without being asked to switch them, which is a level of attention and responsibility you can't teach directly—it either develops or it doesn't, and in his case it had developed. I noticed it and didn't say anything, which is how Danny handled the things that mattered.

Lily gave a short informal talk to the assembled family about what she was learning at OU—connecting the food on the tables in front of them to the plants and practices she was documenting. Nobody asked her to do this. She just felt moved to, and the room listened the way rooms listen when something is being said that they recognize. The food was all around us while she talked. The talk and the food were the same thing.

River’s short list of approved foods has become something of a running joke, but when mashed sweet potato made the cut alongside the fry bread, I took note. Sweet potato has always been on our table in some form, and after that gathering — twenty-five people, the barn full, Lily’s talk still settling over the room — I wanted a recipe that honored that same ingredient in a way that could carry a crowd through a cold evening. This chicken and sweet potato chili does exactly that: it’s abundant without being fussy, and it keeps the sweet potato at the center where it belongs.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr 5 min | Servings: 8

Ingredients

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs), peeled and cubed
1 large yellow onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 cans (15 oz each) white beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (15 oz) diced fire-roasted tomatoes
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Salt and black pepper to taste
Juice of 1 lime
Optional toppings: sour cream, sliced green onions, shredded cheddar, fresh cilantro

Instructions

Sear the chicken. Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Add in a single layer and cook 4–5 minutes until lightly browned. Remove and set aside; chicken does not need to be fully cooked at this stage.
Build the base. Reduce heat to medium. Add onion and bell pepper to the same pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
Bloom the spices. Stir in chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, and cinnamon. Cook 1–2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the spices are fragrant and lightly toasted.
Add liquids and produce. Pour in the diced tomatoes and chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the sweet potato cubes and return the seared chicken to the pot. Stir to combine.
Simmer until tender. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover partially and simmer 25–30 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are fork-tender and the chicken is cooked through.
Add beans and finish. Stir in the white beans and cook uncovered an additional 10 minutes to thicken slightly. Squeeze in lime juice and taste for seasoning, adjusting salt and chili powder as needed.
Serve. Ladle into bowls and offer toppings at the table. The chili holds well and deepens in flavor the next day.

Nutrition (per serving)

Chicken and Sweet Potato Chili — The Dish That Held the Table Together