Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup — Chicken, tomatoes, corn, black beans, avocado, cheese, and addictively crunchy tortilla strips! Fast, easy weeknight meal, and better than from a restaurant!!
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Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe
When I see chicken tortilla soup on a restaurant menu, I get excited. There’s something about the slightly spicy broth with tender chicken, the corn and black beans, juicy tomatoes, creamy avocado, and those addictively good tortilla strips on top that I can’t resist.
Rather than making a trip out for it, you can make Mexican tortilla soup with chicken at home in 30 minutes and it’s easy.
So many ingredients get tossed into the pot all at once and before you know it this hearty, comforting soup is ready. And it tastes better than my favorite restaurant version!
My family loved this easy tortilla soup and I love that it’s ready so quickly and with very minimal effort.
It makes enough that I stashed half in the freezer for those nights when I just want to pull something out of the freezer for dinner. And with winter cold and flu season around the corner, soup is perfect.
Chicken Tortilla Soup Ingredients
To make this easy tortilla soup recipe, you’ll need:
- Corn tortillas
- Olive oil
- Kosher salt and pepper
- Yellow onion
- Jalapeño pepper
- Garlic
- Chicken broth
- Diced tomatoes
- Black beans
- Cooked shredded chicken
- Corn
- Lime juice
- Spices
- Fresh cilantro
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Chicken Tortilla Soup
This really is such an EASY recipe for chicken tortilla soup! Here’s a look at how it’s made:
- Sauté the onion and jalapeño in an oiled Dutch oven, then add the diced garlic and continue cooking until fragrant.
- Add the chicken broth, tomatoes and juice, black beans, chicken, corn, lime juice, spices and bring to a boil.
- Let the mixture boil for 5 minutes, then stir in fresh cilantro and boil another minute.
- Ladle the homemade chicken tortilla soup into bowls and top with homemade crispy tortilla strips (I’ve given the recipe in the recipe card below), cubed avocado, shredded cheese, and/or sour cream.
Tips for the Best Chicken Tortilla Soup
To save time, use store-bought rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken that you have on hand. Of course you can roast or pan sauté chicken if you’re so inclined.
Salt your soup to taste. I use low-sodium chicken broth and no-salt-added tomatoes and add a bit of salt to my soup so I can control the overall salt level.
The saltiness of low-sodium broth, rotisserie chickens, canned tomatoes, black beans, and personal preferences for salt all vary so salt to taste.
Recipe FAQs
I’m sure you could, but when a recipe is as quick and easy as this one I’d rather use the stove to avoid dirtying extra dishes.
Absolutely! Buy pre-shredded rotisserie chicken at your local grocery store to save yourself some prep work and reduce the cook time.
We love garnishing out individual bowls of soup with fresh cilantro, cubed avocado, a little shredded cheese (like cheddar or a Mexican cheese blend), and / or sour cream. And tortilla strips, of course! But use any toppings that sound good to you!
As written, this homemade recipe has a nice kick to it without being burn-your-tongue-off spicy. You can easily reduce the amount of spice by removing the seeds from the jalapeño pepper or using half of the jalapeño instead of the whole thing. For more spice, keep the seeds in the jalapeño or add another jalapeño to the pot of soup.
Storage Instructions
This easy tortilla soup will keep airtight in the fridge for 5 to 7 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Extra tortilla strips will keep in airtight at room temp for up to 5 days.
Can the Soup Be Frozen?
Yes! You can freeze the soup (without the tortilla strips on top) for up to 6 months.
What to Serve with Chicken Tortilla Soup
This simple tortilla soup pairs well with crusty bread or a green side salad. Here are a few side dishes to serve with chicken tortilla soup:
- Grilled Mexican Corn
- Homemade Tortilla Chips
- Salsa (Pineapple Chipotle Salsa or Restaurant-Style)
- Guacamole
- Grilled Corn and Avocado Salad
- Mexican Wedge Salad
Pair your bowl of soup with a homemade margarita or refreshing glass of horchata to wash it all down!
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Easy 30-Minute Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
Tortilla Strips
- 10 small corn tortillas, cut into 1/4-inch wide strips
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
Soup
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup sweet Vidalia or yellow onion, peeled and diced small (about 1 medium onion)
- 1 large jalapeno pepper, about 4 to 5 inches long, diced very small (the seeds are where the heat is concentrated; included or discard them based on preference)
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced
- 32 ounces 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- two 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes and juice, I used petite diced, no-salt-added
- one 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken, use storebought rotisserie chicken to save time; or roast or cook your own chicken in a skillet
- 1 ½ cups corn, I used frozen straight from the freezer, fresh may be substituted
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, regular paprika may be substituted
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional and to taste
- ⅓ cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely minced
- diced avocado for serving, optional for serving
- shredded cheese, optional for serving
- sour cream, optional for serving
Instructions
Make the Tortilla Strips:
- Preheat oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with a Silpat or foil to save cleanup time.
- Loosely scatter the tortilla strips, evenly drizzle with olive oil, evenly sprinkle with kosher salt, toss with hands to coat evenly, and bake for about 15 to 18 minutes, or until crisp and lightly golden brown; set aside.
- While strips bake, begin making the soup.
Make the Soup:
- To a large Dutch oven or stockpot, add 2 tablespoons olive oil and heat over medium-high heat to warm.
- Add the onion, jalapeno, and sauté for about 5 minutes, or until vegetables begin to soften. Stir intermittently.
- Add the garlic and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir intermittently.
- Add the chicken broth, tomatoes and juice, black beans, chicken, corn, lime juice, chili powder, cumin, 2 teaspoons salt, pepper, smoked paprika, optional cayenne pepper, and bring to a boil.
- Allow mixture to boil gently for about 5 to 7 minutes. If at any point the overall liquid level looks low or you prefer your soup to have more broth, add 1 to 2 cups of water; you’ll adjust the salt and seasoning levels at the end.
- Add the cilantro and boil 1 minute.
- Taste soup and add salt to taste. This will vary based on how salty the chicken broth, tomatoes, black beans, and rotisserie chicken are, and personal preference. Make any necessary seasoning adjustments (i.e. more salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, etc.).
- Ladle soup into bowls, top with tortilla strips to taste, optionally garnish with avocado, cheese and/or sour cream; serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Soup will keep airtight in the fridge for 5 to 7 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Extra tortilla strips will keep in airtight at room temp for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Chicken Soup Recipes:
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Easy 30-Minute Chicken Enchilada Soup — Don’t have all day for chili to simmer? No problem! This EASY, hearty, healthier chili full of Mexican-inspired flavors is ready in 30 minutes! Perfect for busy weeknights!!
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Easy 30-Minute Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup — Classic, comforting, and tastes just like grandma made but way easier and faster! This soup is amazing and it’ll be your new favorite recipe!
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Originally posted September 15, 2015 and reposted September 4, 2020 with updated text.
I made this soup and took the chicken out and blended it before putting chicken back in. My family prefers smooth soup. Very good flavor!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad you enjoyed the soup!
Delicious! Will be a staple.in our house and very easy! Even my 2 yr old loved it :-)
Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad it will be a staple in your house!
Wow! I was going to just use tortilla chips, but so glad I made the tortilla strips. Yummy!!
Thanks for the five star review and I’m glad you made the tortilla strips too:)
Fabulous! SO easy to make. We had been craving Chicken Tortilla Soup and thought we had some big-box-store-brand stashed in the freezer. We didn’t. I looked up a recipe and this was the first one I found. Thankfully we had all the ingredients in the cupboard and 30 minutes later we had this VERY tasty soup! The recipe made enough for two meals and it was even better the next day. We will never use the ready-made again. Highly recommended!
Thanks for the five star review and I’m glad you’ll never need to use store-bought tortilla soup again!
Omigosh!! This was the best soup ever and even my picky husband loved it!
Glad it turned out great and Mr. Picky loved it as well!
I made this yesterday because I had a big leftover chicken breast. OMG! It really is the best tortilla soup I’ve ever had. It must be the combination of spices because the ingredients aren’t anything different. The soup base is SO GOOD! YUM! Husband says YUM! This is definitely going in the go-to rotation file!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad you loved it and that it’s going into your rotation!
Does the nutritional information include the tortilla strips and garnishes?
yes
This soup was amazing. Perfect amount of heat and spice without over powering. Really easy to make and incredibly tasty! This will definitely be added to the rotation. Hubby asked me to make it again next week already!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad it was the perfect amount of heat and spice for you and that you will be making it already next week!
This recipe is a keeper! I made a double batch, with no changes to the recipe–RAVE reviews from all!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad it is a keeper and got rave reviews without any changes to the recipe!
This soup was super yummy! I’m not a fan of jalapeños so I substituted drained, canned green chiles. Thank you for the recipe!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad the canned green chiles worked out well!
So… could I use “taco seasoning” … garlic powder.. onion powder, & paprika? I do have some limes, and avacodo tho?
I have only made it with the spices I listed. Taco seasoning in packets can also contain other things that thicken up a meat sauce so I wouldn’t recommend it.
Ooops, I meant to leave you 5 stars but missed doing so. Now you know how much we loved this soup!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad you absolutely love the soup!
This was ABSOLUTELY delicious! We had some extra rotisserie chicken in the fridge and wanted to make something other than chicken noodle or rice soup. My family went nuts over the flavors of this soup and it was a home run. In fact, my husband just bought more ingredients so I can match another batch for freezing.
Thank you, Averie!!
This was a great base for an authentic tasting tortilla soup. I had to add a couple of Serrano chilies sans seeds, and cook in the crockpot and it was FABULOUS!
We like our soup SPICY!
Thanks for sharing!
Glad it delivered for you and I too love spicy… I write my recipes for people who don’t but personally love the heat and spice and I’m sure some serranos were great!
I made this and it was a huge hit! I added Goya seasoning for a little kick! So much yum!!!
Thanks for the five star review and I’m glad that it was a huge hit!
I made the soup for a late lunch here at our cabin in Northern Michigan. It was delicious! I wasn’t careful when I added fresh squeezed lime juice (added more than what recipe calls for) and it was still amazing. I have never made tortilla strips home made before this and probably will never need to purchase them in the store again -mine were so much better. Next time I’ll use corn oil instead of EVO to see how flavor changes. Lastly, I used a fresh chicken breast chopped into pieces and sautéed it with the onions & garlic – that made it a one-pot meal! This recipe will be a regular here at our cottage.
Thanks for the five star review and I’m glad the recipe will be a regular for you!