Chicken Tortilla Soup

The BEST slow cooker chicken tortilla soup is filled with chunks of chicken, beans & corn. It is easy to make and full of flavor!

A classic and popular soup recipe – this chicken tortilla soup is always a hit! Filled with so many great ingredients and being so simple, we love to make this all year long along with our other favs – Enchilada Soup and White Chicken Chili.

THe best & easiest soup!

I’m in Soup Mode right now and taking advantage of this cool fall weather to try out even more soups.

I mean, how can you NOT love them?

Today’s recipe for Chicken Tortilla Soup tastes so good and is so simple that we wanted to make sure you could try it too. Being Hispanic, our family loves anything with tortillas, so this recipe was right up our alley.

We ended up topping it off with some homemade tortilla strips and cubed avocado, which made it even that much better!

If I’m going to be honest, if a recipe calls for Chicken and Avocados, I pretty much know I’ll love it. 😉 Put it in a soup form, and I love it even more. This really is the best and easiest soup!

How to Make Tortilla Soup

CHICKEN. Cook the chicken and shred (or cube) it – for tips on shredding chicken GO HERE. You can also buy a rotisserie chicken and shred.

COOK. Add the shredded chicken, chicken stock (or chicken broth), corn, diced tomatoes, onion, green chiles, black beans, garlic and seasonings (cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper) to the crock pot and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours, or HIGH for 3-4.

SERVE. Stir in cheese just before serving.

TORTILLA STRIPS. If you want to make homemade tortilla strips for sprinkling on top, cut corn tortillas into strips with a pizza cutter. You can either flash fry in hot oil, or bake at 425° for 8-10 minutes turning halfway through. You can also crush tortilla chips as well.

Aside from the tortilla strips, here are other topping ideas:

• Dairy: more shredded cheese, sour cream, queso fresco
• Diced avocado
• Chopped green onions
• Cilantro
• Limes

Stovetop Instructions

To make tortilla soup on the stovetop:

• BOIL. Simply put all the ingredients (minus the cheese and toppings) into a large pot, and cook on medium-high heat to bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
• GARNISH + SERVE. Dish into bowls. Add cheese just before serving, and top with your favorite toppings!

Recipe Tips

Change it up: Add any other favorite ingredients to make it how you like it: pinto beans, kidney beans, chopped bell peppers, etc. You can also add other seasonings like taco seasoning for added flavor.

How to make it vegetarian: To make this soup vegetarian, just eliminate the chicken and use vegetable broth instead of chicken stock. For a dairy free version, leave out the cheese and don’t top with sour cream.

How to thicken it: Our favorite way to thicken tortilla soup is to use masa harina, which is traditional Mexican flour used to make tortillas. You can whisk a little bit of this in to give it a distinctive flavor and to thicken. If you don’t like the flavor of masa harina, you can use regular flour to thicken the soup.

How to make it creamy: This slow cooker chicken tortilla soup is definitely more on the broth-y side, but can also be made creamy. In the last 30 minutes of cooking in the crock pot, just add 2/3 cup heavy cream and ⅓ cup sour cream, and it will be nice and creamy!

FAQ

How to store? To store, place in a tupperware and store in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.

How to freeze? To freeze, let the soup cool first, then freeze in an airtight container or freezer bag, making sure you omit the toppings.

When you’re ready to REHEAT, let the soup thaw overnight in the fridge (if frozen) and reheat on the stove or in the microwave.

What to serve it with? Some of our favorites include:

• Homemade Tortillas
• Mexican Cornbread
• Cheese Quesadillas
• Cheese Crisps

For more chicken soup recipes:

• Chicken Pot Pie Soup
• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Crock Pot Enchilada Soup
• Chicken Tortellini Soup
• White Chicken Chili
• Chicken Dumpling Soup