Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup

chicken tortilla soup in a bowl with avocado slices on top.

This Mexican-inspired chicken tortilla soup will be your favorite soup this fall. It's easy, healthy, and protein packed. And the best part - it can be made on the stove top or in your crock pot!

Course dairy-free, dinner, gluten-free, nut-free, Soup

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword chicken tortilla soup, healthy chicken soup

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Servings -10 servings

Calories 297kcal

Author Erin Antoniak

Ingredients

2 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion
4 cloves garlic
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 large chicken breasts 1 - 1.5 lbs
4 cups chicken broth
2 14.5 oz cans diced fire roasted tomatoes
1 can black beans
1 can corn
1 can green chilies optional - or 1 jalapeno diced
1 small lime juiced
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika optional
¼ teaspoon cayenne optional for heat
2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Avocado Greek yogurt, cheese, hot sauce, cilantro for garnish

Homemade tortilla chips:

6 small corn tortillas
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

In a large pot, heat two tablespoons olive oil over medium heat
Add in onions, garlic, and cilantro and saute until fragrant
Add chicken broth, tomatoes, beans, corn, chilies and lime juice and stir
Add in remaining spices and then add in chicken breasts
Bring to a boil
Once boiling, lower heat and let simmer for 10 minutes
Remove chicken breasts from soup and let rest for 10 minutes, then shred with fork
Put shredded chicken back in soup and let simmer an additional 10 minutes

Tortilla Chips:

Cut corn tortillas into thin strips. We like them very thin for extra crisp!
Toss with olive oil and salt to coat
Bake in 400F oven for about 10-12 minutes or until golden brown
For crockpot: Place all ingredients in crockpot and cook on low for 5-6 hours. Shred chicken with fork and place back into crockpot for serving.

Notes

Fire-Roasted Tomatoes Are the Move: Using fire-roasted diced tomatoes instead of regular brings a noticeable depth of flavor to the broth.
Go In Raw With the Chicken: Add the chicken breasts to the pot raw — they'll poach right in the broth and come out perfectly tender for shredding. No need to pre-cook them!
Drain and Rinse the Beans and Corn: Before adding your canned beans and corn, drain and rinse them first to keep the soup from getting starchy or watery.

Nutrition