Chicken Tortilla Soup is the perfect easy weeknight dinner. Full of shredded chicken, corn, beans, and homemade tortilla strips, this soup is a meal in itself. It’s comforting, hearty, and filling.
What’s even better? Just like our Taco Soup and Beef Chili, this Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe comes together in one pot.

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup:
Chicken tortilla soup is like a taco in soup form. Its rich tomato and chicken broth pairs perfectly with chunky veggies, shredded chicken, beans and sweet corn.
You can sprinkle some tortilla strips right on top with a healthy handful of cheese, or pair the dish with soft Dinner Rolls.

Tips For Tortilla Soup:
- Use Leftover Chicken. Have a rotisserie chicken hanging out in your fridge? What about some leftover chicken breasts you don’t know what to do with? You can always use leftover chicken to make a fresh batch of Chicken Tortilla Soup.
- Bone Broth Makes All The Difference. Use low-sodium bone broth or easily make your own chicken broth.
- Adjust The Spice. Do you like it spicy? Add some extra jalapeños into the mix.
- Save Time With Canned Corn And Beans. Speed up the cooking time by using canned corn and beans.
- Cut Avocado Right Before Serving. To keep your avocado from browning, cut it right before you serve the soup
- Season To Taste. Depending on the tomatoes and broth you use, you may need to adjust the salt to taste at the end.

To Make Crispy Tortilla Strips:
- Pan Frying: Preheat a pan with 1/4 cup oil over medium-high heat. Cut 8 (6″) corn tortillas into thin strips and fry them in a couple of batches, adding more oil as needed. Remove from the pot and let drain on a paper-towel-lined plate.
- To Bake: Toss tortilla strips in a bowl with 2 Tbsp oil until well coated. Bake on a cookie sheet in a single layer at 350˚F for 15 minutes.

How To Make Chicken Tortilla Soup:
- Place a soup pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1 Tbsp oil and sautee chopped onion, garlic, and jalapeno until tender.
- Add chicken breasts and remaining soup ingredients to the pot. Bring to a boil then simmer for 25 minutes.
- Remove the chicken to a bowl and shred it with 2 forks. Return chicken to the pot and simmer 5 minutes then add lime juice.
- Serve the soup with homemade tortilla strips, chopped avocado, fresh cilantro, and lime wedges.

Make-Ahead Tip: the broth gets more and more flavorful the longer it marinates in itself. Can you say delicious leftovers? Make a big batch of tortilla soup and eat it for lunch throughout the week.
Serving Chicken Tortilla Soup:
The only thing that makes Chicken Tortilla Soup taste even better are the toppings. These are our favorites:
- Sour cream
- Homemade tortilla strips
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Cilantro
- Avocado
- Lime wedges
- Jalapeno, sliced or diced

Storing Leftover Soup:
- Refrigerator: Store your leftover soup without toppings in an airtight container in the fridge. It should stay fresh for 3-4 days.
- Freezer: You can also freeze your soup in an airtight container for up to two months. When you are ready to eat it, allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight. Reheat soup by bringing it to a boil in a saucepan.

More Soup Recipes You’ll Love:
- Beef Stew – with tender morsels of beef
- Pasta e Fagioli – easy Olive Garden copycat recipe.
- Loaded Potato Soup – creamy and you’ll love the toppings
- Chicken Noodle Soup – a family favorite
- Cabbage Soup – a soup to warm your soul in winter
- Minestrone Soup – a hearty, tomato-based soup that never gets old.
Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

Ingredients
Chicken Tortilla Soup
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 jalapeno pepper , seeded and diced
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 1 lb chicken breasts, (2 medium)
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 32 oz chicken broth
- 14 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 14 oz can corn, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped, divided (reserve 1/4 of it for garnish)
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 tsp salt, or to taste
Homemade Tortilla Strips
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 8 corn tortillas , (6" tortillas)
Toppings
- 1 large avocado, diced
- 1 lime, cut into wedges, to serve
Instructions
Tortilla Strips:
- Preheat a pan with 1/4 cup oil over medium-high heat. Cut tortillas into thin strips and fry them in batches in the hot oil until crisp. Remove from the pan and allow them to drain on a paper towel. Repeat with remaining tortilla strips, adding more oil as needed then set aside.
Chicken Tortilla Soup:
- Preheat a pot with oil over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, garlic and chopped jalapeño and sauté until veggies soften.
- Add whole chicken breasts, corn, beans, chilli powder, cumin, crushed tomatoes, salt, ¼ cup of cilantro and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and let simmer for at least 25 minutes.
- Remove chicken from the pot and shred it using 2 forks. Add shredded chicken back to the soup and simmer another 5 minutes then add lime juice.
- Serve the soup with some tortilla strips, pieces of avocado, fresh cilantro and lime wedges.
My honest review is that it was pretty underwhelming, but still worth making bevause it was so easy and fast. I made the recipe according to a batch for three people. It was plenty for one person, but the flavor was lacking very much at first. I added extra cumin and chili powder, and garlic, and added tomato paste to add more of a tomato flavor. I simmered it longer to soften the chicken, too. Don’t expect a recipe like a mexican restaurant. This is a very basic tortilla soup recipe. I did make it using Amazon brand ingredients, so perhaps if you have products that are higher quality it would turn out better. I think one way would be to use bone-in breasts with the skin on before removing them from the soup for shredding and removing the skin. It will help give the broth body.
Excellent!! Thank you
Delicious! I added chopped cauliflower, yellow zucchini & chipotle chili to replace chicken for veggie version. Mmmmmm!
Yum! I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
When simmering does the soup need to be covered? Or left uncovered
Hi there! I would start it covered, bring it to boil and uncover if needed to adjust the flavor or thickness.
This was so good!! 😊 I did one jalapeño and added a can of mixed diced tomatoes and green chiles. Thickened it up a touch with a cornstarch slurry. Topped with freshly shredded extra sharp cheddar, sour cream, avacado, extra cilantro and lime juice. Huge hit in our house!
Hi Lo! That’s great to hear. So glad it was a hit.
Made this today for the first time and it was delicious! I substituted rotisserie chicken-adding the last five minutes. Also I am not a black bean lover or jalapeño so I used frozen corn and green beans. Yummy! My husband had two bowls! This will be a repeat dinner!
I doubled the cumin, cilantro, & lime, and added a tsp of cinnamon and a healthy splash of EVOO right before serving. Topped with more lime & cilantro, avocado, pickled jalapeños, & toasted tortilla strips (no oil). Soooooo good!
Turned out fantastic! I tweaked the recipe a tad. I omitted the jalapeno, used a rotisserie chicken and two cans of beans, added a packet of chicken taco seasoning. Huge hit at my house! Thank you.
I didn’t think the cut up, seeded whole jalapeño added much – this time I bought a small can of Hatch Nacho sliced jalapeños, diced 1/2 tablespoonful, rinsed those, then tossed them in the pot. A sharper flavor and rave reviews! 😃
If my husband see a jalapeño he runs for the hills so I use a can of tomatoes with chilies and it is still great.