Chicken Tortilla Soup
Cold weather demands comfort foods and we’ve got just the one to warm your soul. We think our chicken tortilla soup, with its classic spices and corn flour known as masa harina, can compete with those you would find in any Mexican restaurant.
This is a great wintertime soup that can double as a meal—it’s that filling! You can prep while you cook so it only takes about an hour from start to finish. Have a busy week coming up? Make a batch ahead of time, freeze it then bring it out when you need a homemade meal in a snap. You’ll have enough for 10 servings so plan accordingly.
Our recipe is easy to follow, pretty basic and can be adjusted to one’s tolerance level for hot, spicy sauces.
Purée the veggies right in the pot with an immersion blender—they’re not too expensive and make cleanup so much easier. Don’t have such a thing? Run everything through a blender then return it to the pot. If you like your soup chunky, skip the puréeing altogether.
Serve with avocado, shredded cheese, sour cream, tortilla strips, chopped onions and cilantro. Enjoy!
Serve this soup recipe in a fancy homemade bread bowl!
Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe
Ingredients
soup
- 1 Tbsp oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Anaheim pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and diced
- 1 1/2 tsp chicken bouillon, about 3 small cubes, or kosher salt
- 7 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 14 1/2 oz can tomatoes, petite diced
- 1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 3 - 4 corn tortillas, torn into 1" pieces
garnish
- tortilla chips, or strips
- tomatoes, chopped
- green onion, sliced
- cheese, grated
- avocado
- cilantro, chopped
- sour cream
Instructions
- Place a 4-6 qt soup pot over medium-high heat, add the oil and heat until shimmering.
- Add the onion, garlic, anaheim chile, jalapeno and bouillon or salt and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 3 minutes.
- Pour in all of the chicken broth and the entire can of petite diced tomatoes, including the juices. Rinse the chicken breasts under cool water and add them to the pot.
- Bring the soup to a boil and immediately reduce the heat to medium low. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 15−20 minutes.
- Remove chicken breasts from the pot onto a plate and set aside to cool slightly.
- Add all of the remaining ingredients (including corn tortillas) to the broth and purée with an immersion blender or blend in increments using a counter top blender. Do not fill blender more than ⅓ full. Hot liquids expand when pureed and may explode out of the top of the blender causing a big mess and possibly burns. Believe us, work in small batches!
- Transfer the pureed soup back into the pot and return the pot to low heat.
- Shred or cube the cooked chicken when it is cool enough to handle, then add it back into the soup and stir to combine. Simmer the soup for an additional 30 minutes.
- Test the soup and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with plenty of options for garnish, such as: tortilla strips, chopped tomato, sliced green onions, grated cheese, avocado, cilantro and sour cream. Enjoy!
Notes
