This Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup is full of flavor, easy to prepare, and makes the house smell insanely amazing.
Made with chicken, peppers, onion, and a lot of deliciousness, it makes a large batch that feeds my family of seven plus a few more.
There isn’t a time of year when I wouldn’t say I like using my crockpot and making all things soup. From tomato to this Chicken Tortilla Soup, I love making a simple dinner my family loves and a meal that can easily feed a crowd.
Chicken Tortilla Soup is one of our family’s favorite recipes.[/caption]
I have a few recipes that are my “go-to’s” when it comes to using my crockpot, and Chicken Tortilla Soup is one of them. I love this version of Chicken Tortilla Soup Crock Pot because it’s completely versatile.
You have your core ingredients and then all the additional toppings or ingredients you can add in or not, and make this soup exactly how you want it or how your family will eat it. While I love it fully loaded, as pictured above, my husband hates beans and corn, so to make it his way, I simply don’t add those to the soup and serve them on the side instead. So we both walk away with a bowl of soup we love.
Not only is this slow cooker soup incredibly flavorful, but it is also that way with just a few simple ingredients, which minimizes the prep time; during busy school, a simple recipe with few ingredients is ideal for me.
My Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe has vibrant colors and makes a stunning meal. It all starts with the deep tone of the broth, and by adding in some fresh vegetables and chicken, you have a great foundation from which to build.
Easy slow cooker meal Chicken Tortilla Soup.
I don’t just love cooking in my crock pot during the cold months – although this is when I often use it. I love using my slow cooker during all the crazy busy months, which always fall during the fall and winter with sports for all five of our kids, including wrestling, dance, basketball, volleyball and cross country. My afternoons consist of me doing kid carpool duty to all their destinations. Throw in the occasional haircut and dental appointments, and I can be in the car no less than 2 hours at a time. So having something comforting, homemade and delicious when we return from their events without taking up more precious time is pure joy.
How do you make Chicken Tortilla Soup in the slow cooker or crock pot?
Melt butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Season peppers, onion, and garlic with 1 teaspoon salt and saute until they are tender. Add to the slow cooker.
Place chicken breasts in the slow cooker on top of the vegetables. Then add chicken broth, enchilada sauce, cumin, chili powder, oregano, taco seasoning, and the remaining 1 tsp salt.
Cook on high for 3-4 hours or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°.
Remove cooked chicken and shred or chop, then place back into the soup. At this point, add any of the optional ingredients that you wish to use, such as corn or beans.
If you’d like a creamier soup, add 1-2 cups of heavy cream now. For a thicker soup, whisk 2-3 tablespoons of flour or cornstarch to the heavy cream before stirring it into the soup. Cook on high for another 1 hour.
Serve with your choice of garnishes such as fresh chopped cilantro, sour cream, and tortilla strips.
What can you make in a crockpot?
Virtually anything!
Soups, dinners, even desserts! Sounds crazy, right? But it is oh so easy.
Check out some fun slow cooker and crockpot desserts that we love:
Find all of our favorite slow cooker recipes here! Love your slow cooker?
Check out my 50 Favorite Slow Cooker Recipes here.
Our family eats up every last bite of this Chicken Tortilla Soup, yours will too.[/caption]
Then over the holidays, I love making a big batch of this Chicken Tortilla Soup. You can put it all together or simply make the base of the soup and have all the add-ins on the side, allowing each guest to customize their own.
Either way, this is fantastic for serving a large group. It’s filling, appealing to the eye, and everyone will rave about how delicious it is – of course, asking for the recipe, which you’re sure to share kindly.
Don’t let the busy months ahead stop you from creating fantastic, wholesome, and flavor-filled meals for your family.
This recipe for Chicken Tortilla Soup will soon become a part of your monthly, maybe even weekly, dinner rotation. Make this soup your own, and share your favorite toppings and add-ins below; I would love some additional ideas. xoxo San
Other simple recipes for dinner or dessert include:
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Sausage Quiche
- Zucchini Bread
- Pretzel Hotdogs
- Chicken Pot Pie Soup
- Crock Pot Ham
- Siclian Chicken Soup
Don’t forget to pin this soup recipe to your favorite Pinterest board for later.
Chicken Tortilla Soup Crock Pot
Ingredients
Chicken Tortilla Soup
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 1 red pepper diced
- 1 yellow pepper diced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons salt divided
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts about 2-3 breasts
- 2 cans chicken broth 14.5-ounce cans
- 14 ounces red enchilada sauce
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 1 1/2 cups half-and-half or heavy cream if desired, for a creamier soup
- 2-3 tablespoons flour or cornstarch if desired to make a thicker soup
- 1 can pinto beans drained, optional
- 1 1/2 cups frozen corn optional, do not use canned
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Melt butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Season peppers, onion, and garlic with 1 teaspoon of salt and saute until they are tender. Add to the slow cooker.
- Place chicken breasts in the slow cooker on top of the vegetables. Then add chicken broth, enchilada sauce, cumin, chili powder, oregano, taco seasoning, and remaining 1 tsp salt.
- Cook on high for 3-4 hours or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°.
- Remove cooked chicken and shred or chop, then place back into the soup. At this point, add any of the optional ingredients that you wish to use such as corn or beans.
- If you'd like a creamier soup, add 1-2 cups of heavy cream now. For a thicker soup, whisk 2-3 tablespoons of flour or cornstarch to the heavy cream before stiring into the soup. Cook on high for another 1 hour.
- Serve with your choice of ganishes such as fresh chopped cilantro, sour cream, and tortilla strips. Enjoy!
Nutrition
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This recipe was really tasty when I tried it but mine came out a little more watery than creamy. I may have added the wrong ingredients at the wrong time. What does it mean when it says “add the base ingredients”. What would be considered a base ingredient?
Sorry for the confusion! We’re working on fixing it so it is more clear. The ingredients you add during the last hour would be the heavy cream, corn, and beans, then garnish with cilantro. Everything else goes in the pot as the base ingredients.
Do you place frozen chicken or fresh? thank you!
They should be fresh or thawed chicken breasts.
You need to tweak your instructions. I just put it all together – including cream as a base ingredient not even thinking- and noticed 3 weeks ago you said you were working on it. It’s a snow storm and I’m now out of all of my ingredients. I tweaked my cooking time to low for two hours due to using shredded rotisserie chicken so I’m praying this isn’t ruined. :-/
Oh no! I’m sorry we didn’t get around to it, but it has been fixed now. I have done the same thing before and it came out alright; I hope it worked for you!
Can I use rotisserie chicken ( precooked) and shredded into the recipe or do I need to use the fresh ?
You can definitely use rotisserie chicken! Add it at the point that you would shred the chicken breasts, for just the last hour of cooking.
How long would this recipe take using a instant pot? Would I still follow the same instructions and add all the base ingredients in then when the last hour came just add the rest?
Hi! I’m sorry, we have not tested this in the Instant Pot on the pressure setting, so I am not sure how it would work. If you use the slow cooker setting, it would be the same instructions as the recipe. Let us know how it turns out if you do give it a try!
The soup is very tasty, but I agree with one of the reviewers above that it comes out more watery than creamy. Any suggestions on how to remedy that?
How much cream did you add and did you make sure to add it during the last hour of cooking? It should definitely be a thin soup base, not thick.
Hi there! Where do the black beans come in and how many cans? I see pinto beans, but I don’t see black beans although it looks like they are in the picture. I’m a terrible cook, so I need specifics!
Sorry for the confusion! It looks like a can with 3 types of beans, or a tri-bean blend, was used for the photos. You can use whatever combination or type of bean that you prefer, just total 15-ounces or one normal can. You can also always adjust to your preference and use more if you like a lot of beans, or fewer if you don’t. Enjoy!
Thank you! I’m cooking it today. Going to add a little bit of cheese. Can’t wait to see how it turns out! It’ll be my first try cooking this kind of soup.
I hope it turned out well! Thank you!
I used a block of cream cheese instead of cream, as well as a can of black beans and it thickened it up perfectly, and had a great flavor.
Did you use cornstarch also?
Due to eating some tough frozen corn and valuable freezer real estate, I now only consume corn from the can (except summertime of course) so I must ask, why does can versus frozen matter? Salt content?
Thanks! Looking forward to making this tomorrow!
Canned corn has added salt and will add more liquid to the soup! It also may come out a bit more mushy than using frozen corn, so I would add it at the last minute. Definitely rinse it and maybe let it drain in a colander with some paper towels to remove that extra moisture.
What are your thoughts on using fresh corn that has been cooked slightly?
You can definitely use fresh corn! If it has been cooked, just add it near the end to let it heat up. If you add it at the beginning it may turn mushy. I hope you enjoy!
After following all the ingredients, my soup was super spicey. Other than that the consistency and taste was good. Next time, I will just put less than a teaspoon of that spice:)
We always use mild enchilada sauce and mild taco seasoning so it is never too spicy, as the younger kids are picky about spice! 1 tsp of chili powder shouldn’t make it too spicy but you can definitely adjust it to your taste.
I use a can of tomato soup in with the Enchilada sauce it mellows out the spicey flavor. When I make Enchiladas using red Enchilada sauce I always add a can of tomato soup, any brand, but I usually use Campbells soups. It makes the sauce more tiltable to children and adults that don’t do spicey foods. Just a suggestion. I’ve been cooking for quite a few years and have learned many little things to make food for everyone. Enjoy!
Great flavor!
Any tricks to make it thicker?
Thanks! If you’re adding the heavy cream, set aside 1/2 cup and whisk in a tablespoon or two of cornstarch or all-purpose flour until there are no clumps. Then add this to the soup along with the other add-ins and it should thicken slightly! If you want it even thicker or aren’t adding the cream, just scoop out some of the liquid and whisk in another tablespoon of flour. If you add the flour/starch right in the soup it will clump up. Hope this helps!
Can you freeze this soup
Thanks
You can definitely freeze it if you’d like! Make sure it’s in an airtight container. I recommend not freezing it for longer than 3 months for the best flavor. Enjoy!
Thanks for your sharing i like it so much good job bro, Wow this is amazing.
Hello, I’m making this recipe right now! I was wondering since I didn’t have any cream laying around, could I add shredded cheese? And if so, how much?
Hi Rachel! You can definitely add cheese for serving, but I’m not sure how it would work when replacing the cream. You can use the same amount or a little less of milk, whole or 2% ideally to add that bit of creaminess in the recipe! If you leave it out, you may need to adjust the spices and broth a little bit to your taste. I hope it turned out well for you.
WOW!!! Made this for supper tonight and it was a hit with the entire family! I added 3 BIG chicken breasts because my husband likes lots of meat. I also halved the chili, taco seasoning, and red enchilada sauce because none of us like spice and it was perfect! I tried your trick with mixing 2 tablespoons of corn starch to some of the cream before adding and I liked the consistency. we topped our soup with grated cheese, sour cream and lime tortilla strips. Mmmmm! the best part is, it fed my family, and I had enough to pass some along to my dad, and to freeze a batch for another day! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
So glad to hear that you loved the soup!! It definitely makes a big enough batch that makes it perfect for sharing. Thank you!
next time use all the ingredients, but add a can of tomato soup to this it will mellow out the enchilada sauce spiciness.
Great suggestion.
I absolutely love this recipe. I do not add the heavy cream at all as I dont want the extra calories and fat. We add tortilla strips and a little cheese when serving and its fantastic. I also use black beans instead of pinto.
I’m so glad you like the soup!
Are there are substitutes that can be used for the taco seasoning and the red enchilada sauce?
Do you have an allergy or just looking for ideas?
No allergies, just that those ingredients aren’t easy for me to find. I was hoping there were more common substitutes I could use.
You can make both from scratch using spices that you may have on hand. We don’t have any recipes for either but you can find them easily online. I hope you’re able to make and enjoy the soup!
That’s such a pretty soup, and I’m sure will be a big hit with my entire family!
Thank you, I bet it will!
I love soup season for recipes just like this one! Looking forward to warming up with this later this week; looks delicious!
I do too! Enjoy!
This looks so delicious and perfect for this time of season! I can’t wait to make this recipe for my family!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
It came out absolutely perfect, perfect for this time of the year!
So glad you enjoyed it, it really is the perfect winter soup!
This soup was a huge hit with the kids!
So glad to hear that!
It’s so cold outside here so I need a hearty soup like this!
It definitely is a perfect soup for these cold days! Enjoy!
This is such a delicious and comforting meal! Everyone loved it!
So glad to hear that!
I love this recipe, but I’m shocked it feeds 10. Am I missing something or are you doubling the ingredients?
Well gosh, how many did it feed for you? I have teens so they don’t eat small portions, let me know your thoughts – happy to update it.
5/5
reminds me of the tortilla soup from baja fresh
glad i found this site!
Thank you!
This recipe is great!! My boyfriend love chicken tortilla soup but hates veggies, so I blended the broth to hide those bell peppers! He’ll never know 😉 thank you for the amazing recipe!
We definitely understand that, haha! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Love a good tortilla soup, especially one you can make in the crock pot!
So creamy and full of flavor. We love this soup!
Smells and tastes amazing!
Love how hearty this soup is! Chicken tortilla flavor is always the best!
I had never tried to creamy tortilla soup, and this one is so delicious! Thanks for the great idea!
This Chicken Tortilla Soup looks absolutely delicious! Yummy!
This is such a fantastic and very tasty comforting soup! I love crockpot recipes and making them ahead of time! Such a delicious and great recipe. Definitely going to make this for dinner soon!
I love that this is CREAMY! Can’t wait to try it!
I need to try this Chicken Tortilla Soup is immediately, it looks so good!
Love how rich and flavorful is this tortilla soup! The best ever!
This is one of our favorite comfort soups and we just love making this soup throughout the year! Such a delicious and very flavorful soup. Excited to make this very soon!
How much chicken should be used if measured by weight?
It should be about 1 pound/16 ounces. I hope you enjoy it!
Thank you! It’s so helpful to know the weight – I just got a chicken breast yesterday that was almost a pound just by it’s self!
They definitely vary in size a lot! I would say 2 chicken breasts can weigh anywhere from just under a pound, to just over 1.5 pounds these days. If you like more chicken in your soup, you can definitely go with 1.5 pounds and it’ll be just as tasty. I’m glad I could help!
Can I made this a day ahead of time and reheat in a crock pot or will everything get too watery and break down? I won’t be at a place to add everything at one hour before eating.
We haven’t tried reheating it in the crockpot, but it should work just fine! We have had no problem adding the last few ingredients more than an hour before eating without them breaking down.
Delicious! I added all of the optional ingredients. My only complaint is that it didn’t seem to thicken as much as I would have liked it to, that could have been on my part. However, this will definitely become a staple in my home! Thank you
Hi Melissa! The soup isn’t very thick as it is. If you do want it thicker next time, just remove a cup of the liquid when you reach the step where you shred the chicken. Whisk together the liquid and 1 Tbsp of cornstarch or flour and pour back into the pot and stir. It should thicken slightly over the last hour of cooking. I hope this helps!
How much is 1 serving for the 287 calories you suggested? Thanks!
Just made this today and have updated the nutrition facts with the exact measurements if that helps! The finished soup makes 12 1-cup servings, totaling 259 calories per cup.
This soup is delicious! I followed the recipe exactly, but then did a few minor additions. I added a tablespoon of chicken Demi-glace, and one chopped / seeded jalapeño to the base part of the soup. Then at the end, one tablespoon of cornstarch mixed in one cup of cream, and one can of Ro-tel. Thanks!
Perfect for a fall afternoon – a savory halloween treat.
I haven’t made it yet but I do have a question. Why does it say total cooking time is 3 hrs when the recipe instructions say to cook it for 3 hrs and then shred the chicken and put it back in for another hour. Shouldn’t that be a total time of at least four hours or am I reading it wrong?
It looks like that was a typo, sorry about that! It has been fixed. Thanks for letting us know 🙂
Can you freeze the soup?
I haven’t tried this, but I would see no issue with it.
I love this recipe. I do change a few things because I like a thicker soup. I omit the chicken broth, because I find the broth from the chicken cooking is enough liquid. I also treat it as a dump and go recipe, except for the heavy cream. I mix the heavy cream with a little bit of cornstarch. I also add a whole envelope of taco seasoning in place of the spices to make it easier.
love your changes, I will try them too!
Can you use carrots instead of peppers? I don’t have peppers on hand
You can either leave the peppers out or if you’d like to use carrots that would be fine too! They may just need to cook a little longer than the onions.
Will definitely be making this soup that looks amazingly beautiful & sounds so delicious but I was wondering if you can share how you make your own tortilla strips.
Hi Lisa, I hope you enjoy the soup! To make your own tortilla strips, just heat 1″ of oil in a pan, then slice your choice of tortillas into strips, and fry in batches in the oil. Use a slotted spoon to remove them when golden brown and sprinkle with salt immediately. Hope this helps!
Can you cook this in the crockpot on low for 7-9 hours?
Hi Shannon, you should be just fine leaving it on low for 7-9 hours! Just be sure the chicken is cooked all the way through before serving.
I’m obsessed with slow cooker meals so I’m always looking for new simple delicious recipes and this one did not disappoint! It really was easy to make and was packed with so many amazing flavours. Thanks for this, its a keeper!
This was delish! We didn’t add cream and I used a can of corn (didn’t have any frozen), simply added them with about 30 mins to go.
One of my favorite soups! Thank you for the easy recipe!
Oh my, this tortilla soup looks and sounds amazing! I am so excited to try it!
So much incredible flavor going on here! It looks and sounds soooo good!!
This soup is so flavorful and delicious! I can’t wait to make it again.
So satisfying, and really easy to make!
It really is!
Everything is easier in the Crock Pot! And this soup is so rich and flavorful!
Delicious! One of the best soups I’ve ever made. Thanks!
Awe, thank you!
Tried this tonight and it was a hit with the whole family – hooray! We’re putting it on our “make again” list. I’ve tried other chicken tortilla soup recipes but this has been our fave for sure. I substituted taco sauce for the enchilada sauce and it turned out just fine.
Oh this makes me so happy!
This was delicious and so easy! I think it might become a regular in my cooking. I added the heavy cream, flour, and a can of black beans in the last hour. Thank you!!
I can’t stress this enough—this is hands down the best soup I’ve ever made. I absolutely crave it at this point and how fantastic is it that I’m getting in vegetables I’d never normally eat? I wouldn’t be touching red or yellow peppers normally. My husband and I will literally fight over the leftovers. The flavor is unbelievably delicious. About the only thing I change is I add minced garlic at the end of cooking the onion and pepper. I also nearly double the amount of chicken stock.
This seriously made my day; sending you a little Starbucks treat (email) to make yours. Thank you!
Absolutely delicious. I cooked it on the stove top and added in rotisserie chicken. I’ve been eating it for four days straight now because it’s that damn good.
Love your adjustments, I will try that way too!
Tell me about the nutritional info? Does that account for the cream, corn, beans, flour/cornstarch? Looking at carb count and those items could change it a lot.
A nutrient and rich soup like this is exactly what I need right now. Looks so inviting!
My family always loves when I make this soup. I has found its way into our weekly dinner rotation. So yummy!