Are you craving for some Mexican food? Learn how to make chicken tortilla soup today! This soup is the perfect comfort food to make on rainy or chilly days. Serve it with homemade tortilla strips, chopped avocado, and cilantro. It's delicious and filling.
In this article, I am going to share a good recipe for tortilla soup with chicken. This chicken tortilla soup is also known as chicken taco soup.
Chicken tortilla soup (sopa de tortilla) is one of the most popular traditional Mexican soups made of fried tortilla pieces. It is surprisingly very easy to make.
Also, check out this popular Albondigas Soup (Mexican Meatballs Soup) recipe.
A Tasty Mexican Soup
In San Diego we have tons of Mexican restaurants so I've been fortunate to test out a lot of variations of chicken tortilla soup.
One thing I love about making it at home is being able to control how salty it is (many restaurants really overdue the salt and there's no turning back!).
Easy Recipe for Tortilla Soup with Chicken
The chicken tortilla soup recipe is loaded with aromatic spices and herbs, vegetables, beans, corn, and chicken. The broth has the right amount of heat, which you can easily adjust according to your taste.
You can make this tortilla soup with chicken on the stove, slow cooker, or in an Instant Pot and it will come up perfect every time.
The Perfect Freezer Meal
This homemade version of tortilla soup can feed a whole family at a fraction of the cost of what you'll pay in restaurants.
In addition, this soup makes a perfect freezer meal! But I doubt that you will have too much leftovers to keep for the next day.
The Ingredients and Variations:
This chicken tortilla soup is made of chicken breast, black beans, corn, onion, garlic, chicken broth, diced tomatoes, cumin, chili powder, roasted chipotle pepper, jalapeño, Mexican oregano, and chicken broth.
Jalapeño: You only need one jalapeño with or without seeds depending on your taste. Alternatively, you can use chopped green bell pepper or skip.
Chipotle pepper in Adobo sauce: This canned chipotle pepper is the secret of ingredient of a good tortilla soup. It adds some extra spice and smoky flavor to the broth. Please do not skip.
Mexican oregano: It has lemon, citrus and earthy flavor. It is much more suited to the flavors of Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisines. If you can't find any Mexican oregano, feel free to substitute it with regular oregano.
The Preparation:
Here are some simple preparation for this soup
- Dice the onion.
- Chop the garlic and jalapeño.
- Separate the diced tomatoes from the juice and put them in different bowls.
- Rinse the corn and beans and drain well.
How to Cook Tortilla Soup with Chicken:
1. Prepare the Soup Base
Heat about 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pot. Add onion and jalapeño into the pot. Add a small pinch of salt and cook over medium heat for about 4 minutes or until soft.
Add garlic, cumin, and chili powder into the pot. Cook for 1 minute.
2. Caramelize the Tomatoes
This is an important step to concentrate the the natural sugars. It takes a few minutes of cooking time but is worth it.
Add chipotle pepper and diced tomatoes (without juices) to the pot. Cook for about 4-6 minutes until the diced tomatoes start to caramelize.
Don't forget to gently scrape the bottom of the pot with a spatula to remove any brown bits and to prevent burning.
Add tomato juice, Mexican oregano, and 1½ tablespoons of chipotle pepper juice into the pot and cook for 1 minute.
Add chicken broth and stir to combine.
3. Add the Remaining Ingredients and Simmer
Add chicken breast, black bean, and corn into the pot. Bring the soup to a boil then lower the heat, simmer for about 25 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked.
4. Shred the Chicken
Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with salt and black pepper if needed.
Remove the fully cooked chicken breast from the pot and shred into thin pieces. Put the shredded chicken back into the pot and stir to combine.
5. Serve the Soup
Serve the tortilla soup with tortilla strips, a squeeze of lime juice, chopped avocado, and cilantro. Here's a great recipe for low-calorie Air Fryer Tortilla Strips.
FAQ and Cooking Tips
Follow steps #1 and #2 then place the remaining ingredients in the slow cooker. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or 7-8 hours on low. However, if you are in a hurry, just throw all ingredients mentioned above in a slow cooker and cook.
Follow steps #1 and #2 then add chicken breast, black beans, and corn into the pot. Do not stir! Set it to manual and cook for 5 minutes on a high setting. Once the cooking cycle is completed, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
Let the soup cool down at room temperature, no more than 2 hours. Store the leftover in an airtight container. You can keep it in the fridge for 2-3 days or up to 6 months in the freezer.
Check Out More Soup Recipes:
- Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
- Italian Bean Soup
- Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
- Creamy Ravioli Soup
- French Onion Soup
- Middle East Red Lentil Soup
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below! I'd appreciate it.
📖 Recipe
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
- 1¼ pound chicken breast
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1½ cups diced onion
- 1 jalapeño (diced, with or without seeds)
- 3 garlic cloves (minced)
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
- 1-2 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce - canned (pepper only)
- 1½ tablespoon chipotle pepper in adobo sauce - canned (adobo sauce only)
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cans (28 oz) canned diced tomatoes (separate the tomatoes from the juice)
- 1 can (15 oz) black beans (rinsed and drained) - add more if needed
- 1 can (15.25 oz) corn (rinsed and drained) - add more if needed
- chopped cilantro
- chopped avocado
- lime juice
- tortilla strips (Here's a great recipe for low-calorie tortilla strips)
Method
- Heat oil in a large pot. Cook onion and jalapeño with a small pinch of salt over medium heat for minutes or until soft. Add garlic, cumin, chili powder, and cook for 1 minute.
- Add chipotle pepper, diced tomatoes (without juices) and cook for 4-6 minutes or until the diced tomatoes start to caramelize. Add tomato juice, Mexican oregano, and 1½ tablespoon of chipotle pepper juice into the pot. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add chicken breast, black bean, and corn. Bring the soup to a boil then lower the heat, simmer for about 20 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. Add salt and black pepper to taste.
- Remove the fully cooked chicken and shred. Put the chicken back into the pot and stir to combine. Serve the tortilla soup with tortilla strips, a squeeze of lime juice, chopped avocado, and cilantro.
Jamie says
This would be so good with some crusty bread on the side. Love the flavors in here.
Rika says
Thanks, Jamie!
Tara says
Definitely quite the comforting meal for a rainy day! So many amazing flavors and color too.
Rika says
Thanks, Tara!
Kushigalu says
Love Mexican food and this flavor packed soup sounds amazing. Pinned.
Rika says
Thank you!
Jo says
I made it tonight, and it turned out deliciously! Family approved!
Rika says
I am glad that you liked it, Jo!
Suzy says
The family LOVES tortilla soup! It has something for everyone and is super tasty! We make it once a week!
Rika says
Thanks for taking the time to leave your feedback, Suzy!