Chicken Tortilla Soup is the perfect easy weeknight dinner. Full of tender shredded chicken, corn, beans, and homemade tortilla strips, this soup is a meal in itself. It’s comforting, hearty, and filling.
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Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe
Chicken tortilla soup is like a taco in soup form. Its rich tomato and chicken broth pairs perfectly with nutritious veggies, shredded chicken, beans, and sweet corn. What’s even better? Just like our Taco Soup and Turkey Chili, this Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe comes together in one pot on the stove.
You can sprinkle some homemade crispy tortilla strips right on top with a healthy handful of cheese, or pair the dish with soft Dinner Rolls.
Tips For the Best Tortilla Soup
- Use Leftover Chicken. I cook the chicken breasts right in the soup, but you can use a Roast Chicken, or leftover Baked Chicken Breasts to make a fresh batch of Chicken Tortilla Soup, just shred and add the cooked chicken in step 3.
- Bone Broth Makes All The Difference. Use low-sodium bone broth or easily make your own chicken stock.
- 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.
How 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:
- Sauté Vegetables – Place a soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1 Tbsp oil and saute 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.
Natasha’s 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.
Toppings for Chicken Tortilla Soup
The only thing that makes Chicken Tortilla Soup taste even better is 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.
- To Reheat: You can warm the soup up in a saucepan on the stove or microwave until heated through.
This homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup is so cozy, comforting, and hearty for the cooler Fall and Winter months, and you’ll love that leftovers taste even better as the flavors meld.
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Chicken Tortilla Soup with tender chicken and homemade crispy tortilla strips is the perfect, cold-weather weeknight dinner. What’s even better? It comes together in one pot.
Ingredients
Servings: 6 servings
Chicken Tortilla Soup
- 2 Tbsp light olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1-2 jalapeno peppers , seeded and diced
- 32 oz chicken broth
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 1 lb chicken breasts, (2 medium), or leftover rotisserie chicken*
- 15 oz can corn, drained and rinsed
- 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 1/2 tsp chilli powder
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp salt, or to taste
- 1/3 cup cilantro, chopped, plus more to garnish
- 1 1/2 Tbsp lime juice, from 1 lime, 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 or dutch oven with olive oil over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, garlic, and chopped jalapeño and sauté until veggies soften.
- Add chicken broth, crushed tomatoes, chicken breasts, corn, beans, chili powder, cumin, salt. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 20 minutes or until chicken is just cooked through and easy to shred.
- Remove chicken from the pot and shred it using 2 forks. Add shredded chicken back to the soup and simmer another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro and lime juice.
- Serve the soup garnished with some tortilla strips, diced avocado, fresh cilantro and lime wedges, or use your favorite toppings.
Notes
*If using leftover rotisserie chicken, shred the chicken and add it to the soup in step 3.
Nutrition Per Serving
539kcal Calories55g Carbs30g Protein24g Fat
Nutrition Facts
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Amount per Serving
Calories
539
% Daily Value*
Fat
24
g
37
%
Saturated Fat
4
g
25
%
Trans Fat
0.01
g
Polyunsaturated Fat
4
g
Monounsaturated Fat
15
g
Cholesterol
48
mg
16
%
Sodium
1112
mg
48
%
Potassium
1406
mg
40
%
Carbohydrates
55
g
18
%
Fiber
13
g
54
%
Sugar
8
g
9
%
Protein
30
g
60
%
Vitamin A
604
IU
12
%
Vitamin C
30
mg
36
%
Calcium
133
mg
13
%
Iron
5
mg
28
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Filed Under
More Soup Recipes You’ll Love
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- Cabbage Soup
- Roasted Tomato Soup
- Hamburger Soup
- Easy Vegetable Soup
- Zuppa Toscana
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
Brilliant! I’ve tried many tortilla soup recipes and this is by far the best!! Cooking the chicken in the soup mixture was mind blowing and all so simple.
One of the very few things I get asked to make. So easy and delicious even I can’t screw it up!
Can this be served with rice in it? when should I add that?
Hi Roo, Rice will work great with this recipe, several of my readers mentioned they steamed rice and put a scoop or two in the bottom of each bowl. I hope that helps.
Made this in a crockpot and it was amazing!!! Family loved it and was super easy
Soup was delicious, enjoyed with avocado slices. The lime juice addition is awesome. Thanks so much. Love your site, everything always comes out great!
I’m so happy to hear you love our site, Lucy!
We loved this one!! Next go around I will add more chicken and beans.
No one is talking about the sautéing of the jalepeno. My house filled with such intense pepper odor I kept coughing and sneezing and had to open the window. It lasted for 30 minutes. What did I do wrong.
Hi Caroline, I haven’t heard of anyone having that experience – maybe you got an exceptionally spicy jalapeno?
I usually used pickled jalopeno when a recipe calls for jalopenos. They are a little milder. I have had the jalopenos sting my eyes etc when sauteeing. I don’t have a stove hood that works.
Thank you for sharing that with us, Nydia!
So is the recipe best with bone stock or chicken broth? The notes above the recipe say to use bone stock but the recipe itself calls for chicken broth – maybe I don’t know difference btw the 2. I’m excited to make it
Hi Abbey, we used our Homemade Chicken Stock, but broth works also. Not everyone has the time to make it from scratch so they purchase the broth. Both work great.
I’ve made this a few times and it’s always good. Today I didn’t have any black beans, so I used pinto (I think they all taste the same anyhow.) I always double the seasoning and this time I threw in a can of green lentils because I couldn’t find a better place to use them and I’m trying to clean out my pantry.
Thank you for sharing those substitutions with us, JJ! I’m glad you enjoyed this soup.
Hands down! This is one of the simplest, and most delicious soup recipes I’ve EVER used!! I put everything in the Crock-Pot and let it simmer over night. I’ll say it again, it is so delicious! I shared some with friends when my roommate asked if I wanted to share it some more, or shall we just be stingy? I asked her if it was bad because I didn’t want to share anymore of it?? Thank you, so much, Natasha (and family). I very seldom give 5-star ratings for anything, but please, DON’T CHANGE ANYTHING in this recipe!
Hi Ronni! That’s amazing, so glad to hear it was such a hit! Thank you so much for sharing.
I use this recipe every single time. I do however add McCormick taco seasoning and extra onion and chili powder. Up the jalapeños if you like it spicy. And I add in extra tomato paste for a rich broth. Truly it’s an amazing go to for meal prep. and make sure yall save your rotisserie bones for broth for next time!
I made this recipe today because I had so much leftover rotisserie chicken. It is super delicious. I did add smoked paprika instead of regular and I added a packet of Cholula smoky chipotle taco seasoning because I doubled the recipe and had run out of paprika. I also added about 1/4 cup of heavy cream to make it a creamier version but even without it, it was very tasty. Thank you so much for sharing!
You’re very welcome, Daisy! So glad you loved it!
You really have some of the best base recipes on the internet. In this case I ended up carmelizing the onion in tamarind base and maggi seasoning for a really rich layer of magic to this soup. Wonderful!
That’s so great, William! Thank you for sharing that with me.
Hubs made this for dinner tonight. He used a rotisserie chicken and used garbanzos instead of corn (as I don’t normally care for corn). He wven added avocado, sour cream and jack cheese like other reviews. It was perfect. When I said I would post my review, he said he wanted me to say, “So easy that even my husband could make it”. lol. This is a keeper.
THanks for sharing the substitutions that you used, I”m glad they worked out so well! Thank you for sharing that with us.
Angel, please tell your husband I couldn’t agree with him more regarding how easy it is to make. I love reading all of Natasha reviews as well. Everyone is so positive and I’m definitely gonna try some of them soon!
Picked this recipe because of the 5 stars, it’s easy and delicious. My family LOVED it! The 5 star rating is correct!
Thank you for your amazing feedback!
This was so simple and so good!
A couple adjustments I made- I used a can of southwest corn instead of regular corn. I used 32 Oz of chicken stock instead of regular broth. And a 15 Oz can crushed tomatoes and a 10 Oz can of Rotel. Cooking it in the Dutch oven was key, and Cooking the chicken in the soup made it so much better. My son ate two huge bowls and he’s a picky eater!!!
Thank you for sharing your experience making this recipe! Great to hear that your family enjoyed it!
Honestly, SO easy and SO good! super delicious! Weeknight friendly but Id def entertain with this recipe as well! I added one more can on black beans and a can of green chilis. Topped with sour cream, cilantro, cheese and avocado! YUM! Five star!
Made this for the first time today. Doubled the recipe to share with two other small families. My husband and I had it for dinner after delivering it to the others. It is delicious! This will be on our cool weather rotation. Thanks for sharing such a delicious recipe.
Try it as it is…you won’t be sorry. 😋
I made this soup for a work competition and won first place! I did add some additional seasoning to my taste, but everything else I left the same. It was also very good topped with Doritos. 😉
Delicious! I read a review and added one can of Rotel mild tomatoes. I used canned corn with poblano and green peppers. One jalapeño because mine was spicy. I topped with crushed tortilla chips and a 4 cheese blend. I also added the juice of 5 limes, I love lime flavor. Very filling and full of protein. Will make again!
I have been making this soup for a long time. I add some green bell and sweet red peppers along with the the jalapeño pepper and I use a can of fire roasted tomatoes