Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

Jump to Recipe

Cozy, flavorful, and nourishing—Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup is a must make to beat those cold weather doldrums. It’s an easy dinner made with shredded rotisserie chicken, pantry staples, and a few fresh vegetables.

Close up overhead shot of Chicken Tortilla Soup with a ladel and garnishes blurred in the background.

I love soup all year long, but it’s especially comforting when those temps dip outside. There’s just something about warming your hands around a bowl of hot soup. Then, lifting that spoon of flavorful broth, taking that first sip, and warming up on the inside. Hello warm fuzzies!

Add a little spice to your life, and warm up with this super easy, one pot dinner. Prepared as is, I would rate the spice level of this Chicken Tortilla Soup as medium spicy. (Keep in mind that people’s definition of spicy varies wildly.) I try to keep things fairly mild around here to keep the husband happy. You could definitely up the spice level by adding extra chipotle powder or cayenne. Might I suggest taking a taste before adding extra spice? It’s easy to add spice, but super difficult to tone it down once it’s added.

Side shot of Chicken Tortilla Soup garnished with tortilla strips, cilantro, and cheese with a ladel blurred in the background.

FAQs:

Can I freeze Chicken Tortilla Soup?

Sure thing! Simply allow the soup to cool completely in the refrigerator, then freeze into your desired portion sizes. I like to freeze mine into single serve portions for easy to heat lunches during the week. Simply add any desired toppings after reheating.

What is hominy?

Hominy is produced from dried maize kernels that are soaked in an alkaline solution. This removes the outer hull and causes the corn to swell to about twice its normal size. It has a slightly chewier texture than sweet corn kernels, and tastes a little earthier. (Check out the Spruce Eats for a more in depth explanation and additional uses for hominy.) You could definitely substitute sweet corn for the hominy in this recipe, but I really like the texture that the hominy brings to the soup.

What should I serve with Tortilla Soup?

I like to serve a simple side salad, but you could also serve a side of cornbread or other crusty bread. Rice (or beans and rice) with soft tortillas is also a good choice.

How to Prepare Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup:

Prepped ingredients on a wood cutting board. — **You will need these ingredients ⇧**

Bowls of black beans, hominy, and diced tomatoes on a wood cutting board. — **You will need these ingredients ⇧**

Begin by prepping your veggies. For the jalapeños and bell pepper, slice in half, remove the ribs, seeds, and tops, then dice. Dice the onion, and mince the garlic.
Drain and rinse the hominy and black beans. Set aside.
Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat, and add the extra virgin olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the diced onion, jalapeño, and bell pepper. Cook about 7 minutes until the peppers begin to soften and the onion is translucent. Add the minced garlic, and cook about 3 more minutes, stirring constantly.
Add the can of diced tomatoes to the Dutch oven along with the cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Stir well to combine all ingredients, and cook about 5 minutes.
Finally, add the chicken broth, black beans, hominy, and shredded chicken to the Dutch oven. Cover with a lid, and simmer about 20 minutes until heated through. Taste before serving for seasoning, and adjust salt and pepper if needed.
While the soup is simmering, prepare the tortilla strips. Preheat oven to 350º F, and spray a baking sheet with olive oil. Slice the corn tortillas into strips, and place them on the baking sheet. Spray lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle a bit of salt over the top. Bake for about 6 minutes until the strips are golden brown. Carefully remove the strips to a plate until ready to top your soup.
To serve the soup, ladle into bowls and add desired toppings. We like to use the tortilla strips, fresh cilantro, and Manchego cheese, along with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days, or freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Bell pepper, onion, and jalapeno cooking in a Dutch oven. — Sauté the bell pepper, onion, and jalapeño.

Adding garlic with a garlic press to the bell pepper mixture in the Dutch oven. — Sauté the bell pepper, onion, and jalapeño.

Topping Suggestions for Chicken Tortilla Soup:

Tortilla strips or broken tortilla chips add a nice contrasting crunch to the soup. It is called tortilla soup, right? 😂
Add a scoop of sour cream or Avocado Crema to add a cooling element to the bowl.
I love adding fresh cilantro, but you could also use fresh parsley or oregano.
If you’re cheesy like me, add a sprinkle of your favorite cheese. Cotija, Manchego, or queso fresco are all great choices, but you could also use a white cheddar or Monterey jack.
Other fresh topping ideas include: diced avocado, sliced red onion, or thinly sliced radish.
One must for me is a squeeze of fresh lime juice to each bowl. It simply brightens the flavor.

Chicken Tortilla Soup in a bowl garnished with tortilla strips, cilantro, and cheese with a red Dutch oven blurred in the backbround.

More Soup Recipes:

Inspired Fresh Life is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon.com. Thank you for supporting Inspired Fresh Life.

Recipe Notes:

Using rotisserie chicken keeps this recipe fast and simple, but you could also cook and shred two chicken breasts. If you’re like me and love to have shredded chicken in the freezer for recipes like this, check out these two easy ways to meal prep. Kristin at Yellow Bliss Road uses a slow cooker for Easy Shredded Chicken, and Liz from the Clean Eating Couple has an Easy Instant Pot Shredded Chicken recipe.
Want to go meatless? Check out Vegetarian Tortilla Soup.
Keep this recipe gluten-free by using La Banderita’s gluten-free Street Taco Corn Tortillas.
A Dutch oven makes soup recipes easy. It has a large volume, conducts heat well, and cleans up easily.
I like to use a garlic press to make mincing garlic super easy.

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card and/or a review in the comments section at the bottom of the page. Are you following along on Pinterest, Instagram, or Facebook?

More Soup Recipes to Love:

Vegetable Minestrone

Chorizo and Bean Chili

Creamy Broccoli Potato Soup

Explore all the Soup recipes from Inspired Fresh Life.

Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Yield: 10 servings

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Use leftover rotisserie chicken to make this quick and easy Chicken Tortilla Soup for dinner. A mix of pantry items and fresh vegetables make this a simple soup that is packed with flavor.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium red onion, diced (about 1 cup)
1 medium red bell pepper, diced (about 1 cup)
2 medium jalapeño peppers, diced (about a ⅓ cup)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
6 cups chicken broth
2 ½ cups shredded chicken
1 14-ounce can hominy (drained and rinsed)
1 14-ounce can black beans (drained and rinsed)
4 corn tortillas

Instructions

Begin by prepping your veggies. For the jalapeños and bell pepper, slice in half, remove the ribs, seeds, and tops, then dice. Dice the onion, and mince the garlic.
Drain and rinse the hominy and black beans. Set aside.
Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat, and add the extra virgin olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the diced onion, jalapeño, and bell pepper. Cook about 7 minutes until the peppers begin to soften and the onion is translucent. Add the minced garlic, and cook about 3 more minutes, stirring constantly.
Add the can of diced tomatoes to the Dutch oven along with the cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Stir well to combine all ingredients, and cook about 5 minutes.
Finally, add the chicken broth, black beans, hominy, and shredded chicken to the Dutch oven. Cover with a lid, and simmer about 20 minutes until heated through. Taste before serving for seasoning, and adjust salt and pepper if needed.
While the soup is simmering, prepare the tortilla strips. Preheat oven to 350º F, and spray a baking sheet with olive oil. Slice the corn tortillas into strips, and place them on the baking sheet. Spray lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle a bit of salt over the top. Bake for about 6 minutes until the strips are golden brown. Carefully remove the strips to a plate until ready to top your soup.
To serve the soup, ladle into bowls and add desired toppings. We like to use the tortilla strips, fresh cilantro, and Manchego cheese, along with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days, or freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Notes

Using rotisserie chicken keeps this recipe fast and simple, but you could also cook and shred two chicken breasts.
I love adding fresh cilantro, but you could also use fresh parsley or oregano.
If you’re cheesy like me, add a sprinkle of your favorite cheese. Cotija, Manchego, or queso fresco are all great choices, but you could also use a white cheddar or Monterey jack.
Other fresh topping ideas include: diced avocado, sliced red onion, or thinly sliced radish.
One must for me is a squeeze of fresh lime juice to each bowl. It simply brightens the flavor.