This soup smells so delicious. It only takes about 5 minutes to put together, providing you’ve got the chicken already cooked. I like to keep cooked chicken breast in the freezer for recipes like this. I’ve made the soup twice, once on the stove top and once in the slow cooker. Both ways worked fine, so you can do whatever is convenient for you.
Here’s what you’ll need:
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
- 32 oz chicken broth
- 2 cans diced tomatoes
- 1 can diced tomatoes with green chilis
- 6 oz tomato paste
- 2 cups frozen corn
- 2 cups cooked chicken
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. cumin
- 1/8 tsp. chili powder
- 10 corn tortillas
- cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients in a large pot or slow cooker, except tortillas and cheese.
- Bring it to a boil, then turn it down to simmer while you fix the tortilla strips. Or cook on high in the slow cooker for 4-5 hours.
- For the tortilla strips, cut a stack of 10 tortillas in half. Then slice them into 1/4″ slices.
- Fry in hot oil in a skillet and drain on paper towels.
- Serve the soup with the tortilla strips and shredded cheese.
I also served Cheddar Muffins with the soup, which was a good combination.
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I’ve seen Chicken Tortilla Soup on menus but have never tried it. This looks delicious!
Ah, this is one of my favorite things to eat. Your’s looks scrumptious!
A basic question — How do you cook the chicken that stays in the freezer? I’ve been experimenting with grilling them (don’t like the charred bits) and boiling them (works pretty well), but didn’t know if there was another way. I’d appreciate any advice you could share!
I usually just bake chicken. I use either boneless breasts or sometimes with bones. You can use a whole chicken too. Just pop them in a baking dish, add a little water (with the boneless, I skip the water sometimes), salt and pepper if you like. Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 for about an hour or 1 1/2 hours. When I bake the boneless chicken, I don’t even bother thawing it out first. After it’s cooked, shred or chop it and freeze it. I never measure, but put about 2-3 cups of chicken in each bag. That’s enough for many casserole or soup recipes. It’s nice to have it already cooked and ready to go. It’s a great way to use up chicken that you got on sale too.
Roast it in the oven. Make sure it is covered to keep it moist.
Just found your blog and LOVE it! Thanks for the real recipes and great pictures. There is something about seeing the ingredients that makes it feel more doable!
We’ll be having this soup ASAP!
Love the idea of having the chicken already cooked and ready to go.
Soups are such a good entree to store in the freezer. It is easy to make a large batch and package up to enjoy later.
Love this recipe I will try it out on my gang, the will devour it Im sure
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Robin
I love your recipes and menus. I’ve been searching for years trying to find a site just like this. I know there are a lot of similar ones but they seem to be based more on chef cooking instead of homestyle, family type meals that children would also eat and without all those fancy/expensive ingredients.
Keep up the great work!!
Sandra
Hi! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I made it for supper last week on an especially chilly evening. My husband was not thrilled when he heard what was “on the menu,” as he is not a very adventurous eater. However, we all thoroughly enjoyed the soup bite for bite! I really liked the fried tortillas on top…what a scrumptious combination of flavors it all is. The recipe is a keeper…and in our house, that’s no small victory! Thanks again!!
I printed a recipe that ended up as 11 pages to get the 2 pages I needed! Am I missing a printer friendly version somewhere?
the printer version is right before the picture of the bowl of soup and then the recipe.
I don’t like the mess or calories of frying the tortilla strip, so here’s what I do. Preheat oven to 400. Spray a cookie sheet or jellyroll pan with cooking oil spray (I also cover my pan with foil to speed clean-up). Cut tortilla into strips as instructed in recipe, and spread them out on the cookie sheet in a single layer. Spray strips with cooking spray and, if desired, sprinkle with a little salt and chili powder. Cook for about 5 minutes, stir them around, cook for another 5 minutes. They might be done enough for you, or you can continue until they are as crisp and brown as you like. My family loves these with any mexican soup!
Suzanne, I love that idea! Thanks for sharing it.
Made this soup yesterday. It was a big hit! It simmered most of the afternoon. Wonderful flavor. I served it with lime wedges for squeezing over top at the last minute. Yum 🙂
Made this for dinner last night. I made it in the crockpot and used leftover turkey from the freezer and whole wheat tortillas. It was so simple I couldn’t help but wonder if it would really be that good. Oh, it was so delicious. Just perfect on a cool night and after a long day. Thanks so much!
I made the soup this past weekend, I chopped up an avocado in it and then served. It reminded me of authentic mexican soup that you get in some of the mexican cafes. YUMMY!
Janet, I love the idea of avocado in the soup. Mmmm!
Yes that’s I added to my soup tonight!
How many does this menu serve? I was needing to know to log it in myfitness pal ! Thanks
This recipe serves about 8 people.
I made this for dinner after spending all day out in over 20″ of snow. It was quick, easy and delicious!! I love the idea of baking the tortillas instead of frying them.
Thanks for all the great recipes!! This one will definitely be made again!
This stuff is so good loaded down with cheese and Fritos!
Making this tonite!
Can you tell me the serving size on the soup. I have to cook fit twenty five. Thanks.
Beth, the recipe makes about 8 servings.
Do you have any cooking ideas for 25?
Beth, Here’s a post I did about cooking for 100 people. You could make 1/4 of any of those recipes. You might also try a double batch of Taco Soup or Hamburger Vegetable Soup.
Thanks for the ideas! I really love this site! It has motivated me to try some new things instead of making the same stuff! I will let you know what I cook for 25,
Hi! Thanks so much for the yummy recipes! The Green Chili enchiladas are my favorite! On the Chicken tortilla soup do I need to thaw the frozen cooked chicken before I put it in the crockpot or put it in frozen? I’m making it for dinner tomorrow. yum! Thanks!
You might want to thaw it in the microwave for just a minute to break it apart. It doesn’t need to be all the way thawed out though.
If i cook it on a pot regular on the stove … how long do i cook it for?!
I just bring the soup to a boil. It doesn’t need to cook long.
this soup was not what i expected i expected something with a stronger tomato taste. it was alright. easy and quick though.
LOVE…LOVE…LOVE your blog!
I made this Sunday and it was a huge hit! My husband can’t stop talking about how good it is and took the recipe to work to share with people there!
The only change I did was I used Fire Roasted tomatoes for the 2 cans of diced.
This is a keeper!
Thanks for sharing such great recipes! I look forward to trying many, many more!
Blessings,
Linda
Fire roasted tomatoes are perfect for this! Love those things!
Hi Tiffany… Just wanted to let you know that I still use this recipe. It remains one of my husband’s favorites and his request for his first meal after we finish the Daniel fast at the beginning of the year. I just made a batch for after church today ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Have a blessed 2025
Linda
Do I put the cooked tortillas in the crock pot while everything else is cooking?
Savannah, no, the tortillas get saved and added to each bowl of soup before serving so they stay crunchy.
Okay I already have cooked them. What is the best way to store them until being served to keep them fresh and crunchy?
Let them cool completely, then store them in a plastic baggie or air tight container. Enjoy! That’s one of my favorite soups. In fact, I may put it in the slow cooker for tonight.
My husband and i loved this recipe! Its really good and i thought maybe the medium Rotel can would not be hot enough and it actually was once heated up. The only thing i did different in this recipe was leave the tomato paste out, it made it taste too tomatoey ( not a word ) but its amazing.
Do you think the recipe would work the same if I used frozen chicken breasts? Thanks!
Amber are you talking about precooked frozen chicken? I believe that it wouldn’t make a difference but if its raw try baking the chicken in oven first or boiling. I baked my chicken and it took a little while longer cause it was frozen but the results were amazing. I would recommend leaving the tomato paste out, it kinda makes a skin over the soup once settling in your bowl almost as if yous squirted a bottle of ketchup on top. Hope that helps
-Amilea
Amber, if you put the frozen chicken breasts (or tenders) in the slow cooker with the soup and cook it all day, it will work. Just take them out and shred before serving. I’ve never done this soup like that, but I have made others this way.
I am making this right now. I just put it in the crockpot. I didn’t add the corn,and I added canned chicken instead of cooking the chicken. I wanted to hurry up and get it in the crockpot as soon as possible so it would start cooking. I think I will bake the tortillas too. I am going to freeze the rest of it to have it on hand anytime I want! I can’t wait!
I made this for dinner – excellent!!
Hi hey i want to try this soup but the 2 cans of diced tomatoes…is that 2 —28 oz cans or 2 of the smaller cans
15 oz cans
I made this tonight and it turned out really good! I added 1 can of Bush’s pinto beans after I drained and rinsed the beans. I mistakenly picked up the wrong cans of diced tomatoes. These had garlic and basil added so I cut the garlic powder to 1/2 tsp. They worked great. Along with the cheese and tortilla strips, I added chopped avocado for a topping.