Chicken Tortilla Soup

 Loaded with tender chicken, green chilies, fresh cilantro, and a combination of rich Mexican spices, Chicken Tortilla Soup is also loaded with fabulous full-bodied flavor. And with a little spicy heat from cayenne? -- This is certainly one soup that'll warm you up on those cold winter days.

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Love bold flavor and a little spicy heat?  Then you'll for sure love this Chicken Tortilla Soup.

It's loaded with fabulous flavor from a combination of green chilies, diced tomatoes, fresh cilantro, and a whole slew of seasonings and spices.  And the heat? -- That heat's created by a nice hit of cayenne pepper.

It's a wonderfully spicy soup to enjoy on those cold winter days.  Or on any kind of day, for that matter.

This is certainly one soup that'll warm you up on those cold winter days.

At first glance, once might shy away from this recipe because its ingredient list looks a bit long.  And yes, the list is indeed a tad lengthy -- but the beauty is most of those ingredients are super simple canned goods and seasonings.

Which makes Chicken Tortilla Soup one that comes together pretty quickly and easily, despite its seemingly longer list of pieces and parts.

Whip up a pot for dinner, or make it ahead and pop it in the freezer for later. -- Chicken Tortilla Soup freezes very well.

At serving time, top each bowl with shredded cheese and crumbled tortilla chips for a fun and tasty bit of crunch. 

Chicken Tortilla Soup Ingredients:

Quite a few different seasonings and ingredients come together to create Chicken Tortilla Soup's fabulous, full-bodied flavor.  But don't let the somewhat lengthy list of ingredients scare you! -- The soup comes together really easily, and its flavor is well worth gathering up those ingredients.

To make a pot, you'll need: 

• Onion & garlic - Sauteed onion and fresh garlic create a flavorful base for the soup.

• Chicken broth - Use canned chicken broth, or homemade chicken broth if you have it on hand, for the soup's liquid.

• Green chilies - Canned green chilies help create Tortilla Soup's signature flavor. Use a 7-ounce can of diced green chilies, or two 4-ounce cans if a 7-ounce can isn't available at your store.

• Seasonings - The soup is seasoned with a combination of chili powder, ground cumin, dried oregano, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.  Cayenne pepper delivers up the soup's spicy heat, so adjust the cayenne as needed to your personal "heat" preference.

• Diced tomatoes - Canned diced tomatoes create the soup's rich tomato-laced broth.  Either petite diced or regular diced work great. 

• Chicken - Use boneless skinless chicken breast meat.  Prefer dark meat? -- You can certainly use a combination of boneless breasts and thighs. Or, grab a rotisserie chicken from the store to make this a Rotisserie Chicken Tortilla Soup, if you prefer.

• Fresh cilantro - Chopped fresh cilantro brings wonderful flavor when simmered in the broth, and is key to helping create Chicken Tortilla Soup's signature taste.

• Corn - Frozen or canned corn both work beautifully in this recipe.

• Crumbled tortilla chips - A topping of crumbled tortilla chips on each individual serving is a signature element of Tortilla Soup. Any type or variety of tortilla chips work just fine.

• Shredded cheese - Also top each individual serving with a sprinkling of shredded cheese.  Shredded cheddar, Monterey jack, or a combination of the two taste great.

How to Make Chicken Tortilla Soup:

As far as soups go, making a pot of Chicken Tortilla Soup is pretty straight-forward and simple. Despite a fairly lengthy list of ingredients, the soup comes together really quickly and easily. -- Many of those ingredients are super-easy-to-work-with canned items or spices.

To get started, first saute chopped onion and garlic together in a pot until the onions are tender.  This forms a flavorful base for the soup.

Then, add in chicken broth, canned green chilies, canned diced tomatoes with their juice, and the whole slew of spices used to create Tortilla Soup's signature flavor.  Bring this to a boil, then add in chopped fresh cilantro and some chicken that's been chopped into bite-sized pieces.

As far as soups go, making a pot of Chicken Tortilla Soup is pretty straight-forward and simple.

Now, a couple of notes about the chicken in this recipe:

1.  Unlike many other soups, with this Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe you chop up uncooked chicken and add it to the pot.  As the chicken simmers in the spicy broth, two wonderful things happen --- 1) It cooks up super tender. And, 2) It takes on fabulous flavor.

2. The recipe calls for boneless skinless chicken breasts. However, if you prefer dark meat, a combination of boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs can certainly be used.

3. Or, you can make this Rotisserie Chicken Tortilla Soup with a fully-cooked rotisserie chicken, if you prefer. Simply remove the meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken, chop into bite-sized pieces, and add the already-cooked chicken to the pot to simmer as you would if using uncooked chicken.

Once all these ingredients are in the pot, simmer everything together for an hour to develop the soup's flavor.  Then add in some corn, and simmer for 10 minutes more.

That's it! -- Definitely easy, despite it looking from the length of the ingredients list as though it could be hard.

At serving time, top individual bowls with crumbled tortilla chips and shredded cheese, and enjoy the spicy Tortilla Soup deliciousness.

Now, we like the spicy heat level of this soup as it is -- a good amount of heat, but not mouth-scorching.  You can reduce the amount of cayenne pepper if you'd like to bring the heat level down.

 And with that spicy little heat from cayenne? -- Chicken Tortilla Soup is certainly one soup that'll warm you up on those cold winter days.  Loaded with tender chicken, green chilies, fresh cilantro, and a combination of rich Mexican spices, it's also loaded with fabulous full-bodied flavor!

Check out these other super delicious soup recipes:

• Ground Beef Taco Soup
• Leftover Rotisserie Chicken Soup
• Kielbasa Potato Soup
• Homemade Tomato-Mushroom Soup
• Chicken Lasagna Stew
• Sausage Tortellini Soup
• White Bean & Sausage Soup
• Slow Cooker Clam Chowder
• Pasta e Fagioli
• Creamy Chicken Corn Chowder
• Brussels Sprouts Soup
• Cheeseburger Macaroni Soup
• More soups

Thank you for stopping by The Kitchen is My Playground. We'd love to have you back soon!

chicken tortilla soup recipe, chicken soup recipe, rotisserie chicken soup, spicy chicken soup

Soups

Mexican-American

Yield: about 8 servings

Author: Tracey | The Kitchen is My Playground

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Loaded with tender chicken, green chilies, fresh cilantro, and a combination of rich Mexican spices, Chicken Tortilla Soup is also loaded with fabulous full-bodied flavor! And with a little spicy heat from cayenne? -- This is certainly one soup that'll warm you up on those cold winter days.

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 1 H & 20 MTotal time: 1 H & 30 M

Ingredients

• 1 T. canola or olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, crushed or minced
• 6 c. chicken broth
• 1 (7 oz.) can diced green chilies
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1/3 to 1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 c. frozen or canned corn
• tortilla chips
• shredded cheddar and/or Monterey jack cheese

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until onion is translucent, about 5 to 6 minutes.
2. Add chicken broth, green chilies, chili powder, cumin, oregano, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, and diced tomatoes (with their juice).  Bring to a boil.
3. Add chicken (uncooked) to soup mixture. Return to a boil.
4. Add cilantro.  Reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.
5. Add corn and simmer for 10 minutes more.
6. Top individual servings with crumbled tortilla chips and shredded cheese.

TRACEY'S NOTES:

1. Use a combination of boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs, if you prefer.
2. Or, make this chicken soup with rotisserie chicken. Remove meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken, chop into bite-sized pieces, and simply add the already-cooked chicken to the pot to simmer as you would if using uncooked chicken. 
3. We like the spicy heat level of this soup as it is -- a good amount of heat, but not mouth-scorching.  Reduce the amount of cayenne pepper if you'd like to bring the heat level down.

Similar Recipes

Homemade Chicken Broth

{Leftover} Rotisserie Chicken Soup

Creamy Chicken Corn Chowder

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