This healthy, flavorful, and easy slow cooker chicken tortilla soup recipe works on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot, too!
Table of Contents
If you’re looking for even more chicken soup recipes, be sure to try this popular chicken vegetable soup, a pot of flavorful Autumn Harvest chicken noodle soup, and this chicken potato soup, too!
Wow this soup has so many delicious flavors and textures…great recipe!
– Emily
Video: How to Make Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
Best Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe
Nothing beats the convenience of stirring ingredients together in the Crock Pot and walking away for a few hours. With about 10 minutes of prep time, you will come home to a simmering pot of delicious soup at the end of the day! It’s hearty and satisfying, but also very nourishing. Use low-sodium broth if you’re watching your salt intake, and add fewer chips to your bowl to reduce calories if you like.
Adjust the seasoning, tweak the ingredients, or omit the chicken altogether (and add extra beans instead). You can adapt this recipe in a number of different ways to suit your budget, your family’s preferences, and the ingredients that you have on hand. It works with raw boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, as well as cooked, shredded rotisserie chicken.
Ingredient Notes and Tips for Success
- Instead of black beans, try pinto beans or kidney beans.
- Use a packet of store-bought taco seasoning for a shortcut, or make your own homemade seasoning blend.
- This particular recipe is pretty mild and kid-friendly. If you want it spicier, add an extra tablespoon of taco seasoning, use spicy salsa, add diced jalapeño, or season with hot sauce at the end.
- Use the meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken (about 3-4 cups shredded) if you prefer. Or, use leftover slow cooker shredded chicken.
- Add a squeeze of fresh lime juice at the very end for a bright, acidic touch.
- Don’t forget the toppings! Garnish each bowl with grated cheese, sliced green onion, minced raw onion, or quick pickled red onions, chopped fresh cilantro, sour cream, diced avocado, guacamole, pico de gallo, or extra salsa.
How to Make Chicken Tortilla Soup in a Crock Pot
This recipe works well in the slow cooker, in a pressure cooker (like the Instant Pot), or on the stove top. All of the different directions are included in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post, but here are the easy Crock Pot directions:
- Place chicken and other ingredients (except the tortilla chips) in a crockpot.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours.
- Use two forks to shred the meat. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if necessary.
- Place a handful of coarsely crushed tortilla chips in the bottom of each bowl, then ladle the soup over top. Garnish with toppings and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
To round out the meal, pair the slow-cooker chicken tortilla soup with quesadillas, easy Spanish rice, jalapeño cheddar cornbread, Jiffy Mexican cornbread, cranberry walnut bread, or Texas caviar with tortilla chips.
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Storage: Make the soup in advance, allow it to cool completely, and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- How to Freeze: Allow the soup to cool completely, package in airtight containers or Ziploc freezer bags, and freeze for up to 3 months.
- How to Reheat: Thaw frozen soup in the refrigerator overnight. Place the soup in a saucepan or pot and reheat on low, just until warmed through.
Delicious! My husband and I love it. Definitely a fall and winter favorite from now on. I added cilantro and avocado. Yummmmm
– Julie
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Watch How to Make It
Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups frozen corn
- 1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (4.5 ounce) can diced green chilies
- 1 cup salsa
- 1 cup finely diced onion
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- Bag of tortilla chips
- Optional garnish for serving: shredded cheddar cheese, sliced green onions, lime, cilantro, sliced avocado, sour cream
Instructions
SLOW COOKER INSTRUCTIONS
- Combine the chicken, chicken broth, corn, diced tomatoes, black beans, green chilies, salsa, onion, garlic powder, cumin, and taco seasoning in a slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 4-6 hours or on high for 2-3 hours, until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Crumble a handful of tortilla chips in the bottom of each individual serving bowl.
- Ladle the soup over the chips and garnish with desired toppings.
INSTANT POT INSTRUCTIONS
- Dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
- Turn instant pot on sauté setting and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Once heated, add the chicken and cook, stirring often, for 3 minutes.
- Turn off instant pot.
- Add the chicken broth, corn, diced tomatoes, black beans, green chilies, salsa, onion, garlic powder, cumin, and taco seasoning to the pot with the chicken. Stir well.
- Seal the Instant Pot lid and turn the valve to sealing. Pressure cook on high pressure for 6 minutes.
- Allow the Instant Pot to naturally release for 2 minutes (by leaving it off after it finishes cooking). Then, carefully do a quick pressure release by using a towel or potholder to carefully turn the valve to venting to release the steam and pressure.
- Crumble a handful of tortilla chips in the bottom of each individual serving bowl. Ladle the soup over the chips and garnish with desired toppings.
STOVETOP INSTRUCTIONS
- Dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring regularly, just until the chicken is browned (it doesn’t need to be cooked through).
- Add the chicken broth, corn, diced tomatoes, black beans, green chilies, salsa, onion, garlic powder, cumin, and taco seasoning to the pot with the chicken. Stir well.
- Bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover the pot and reduce the heat to a low simmer.
- Let the soup simmer for about 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Crumble a handful of tortilla chips in the bottom of each individual serving bowl. Ladle the soup over the chips and garnish with desired toppings.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe Variations
- Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup with Rotisserie Chicken: If you prefer to use shredded, cooked rotisserie chicken in this recipe, you’ll need a total of about 3-4 cups of meat. You can reduce the total cooking time to 3-4 hours on LOW or 1½ – 2 hours on HIGH.
- Add diced sweet bell peppers to the soup for even more veggies.
- For a more zesty taste, use Rotel diced tomatoes and green chiles instead of the plain diced tomatoes. You can also add fresh seeded and diced jalapeno peppers, too.
- Turn it into slow cooker chicken enchilada soup by replacing the salsa with an equal amount of enchilada sauce. For a creamy version, you’ll love our crockpot chicken enchilada soup recipe.
More Crock Pot Chicken Soup Recipes
Cheesy Crock Pot Chicken Soup
2 hours hrs 20 minutes mins
Chicken Enchilada Soup {Crock Pot or Stovetop}
3 hours hrs 15 minutes mins
Crock Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
2 hours hrs 40 minutes mins
This recipe was originally published in 2013. It was updated in January, 2025.
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Great recipe. I added a 1/2 package of cream cheese and some Mexican blend shredded cheese to make a creamier version. Since I don’t like black beans, I substituted kidney beans. Love the recipe. Flavor is spot on.
Awesome! Thanks, Kristi!
This is sooooooo good and a breeze to make. I’ve made it once and I’m currently making it right now. Using cooked rotesserie chicken makes this even faster to prepare. Yummy! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Kishi!
This soup was delicious. I only used half the chicken and it was perfect. I like more broth in the soup. I used the Instapot and it worked out very well. I used sour cream and grated cheese for toppings. You can adjust the hotness with buying either the mild or the medium taco sauce.
Thanks, Catherine!!
I’ve made this recipe many times and my husband and I LOVE it. I just did the instant pot variation with uncooked chicken and it was also delicious! Wonderful recipe!
Thanks, Jamie!!
This tortilla soup is so tasty. This meal is probably my family’s favorite. I get a request to make it every week and I can’t say no. It is very easy to make. The soup is very hearty and has a great a taste.
Thanks so much, Kathleen! 🙂
Me and my family love this I even made it for my step mom and dad they loved it too. Now I always make it
That’s great, Crystal! Thank you! 🙂
First of all…I am NOT a good cook, it just doesn’t come naturally! But I made this for the first time and it was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS! Thank you for the amazing and easy to follow recipe! I was soo surprised how much it can feed, wow! Such a great meal on this fall night! I served it with all the additional options that you suggested and Tostito Scoops chips on the the side and avocados and it was a huge hit with my family! I will definitely be making this again!! Your recipe is awesome!!
Yay! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment, Amber! I’m so glad to hear that your family enjoyed it!
This soup is tasty! Got lots of compliments on it when I made it for a get together. So easy using Rotisserie chicken & slow cooker.
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks, Jenna!
Excellent soup, has definitely become a favorite in this home!
Thank you!
One of the yummiest soup recipes I have ever found on internet!
Thank you!
Just discovered this recipe on pinterest and made it for dinner earlier this week. Absolutely love it!!!! Instead of chips, I actually used tortilla strips that my Kroger sells by the croutons. Soooo yummy!!!
Thanks, Denise! i’m so glad that you love it. Those tortilla strips are perfect (so good, too)!
I love this recipe!! I made it a bunch of times last winter and it was delicious every time. I added corn tortillas to the slow cooker if I had them.
I’m wondering if this recipe work in the instant pot. Any suggestions/tips for converting the recipe? Thanks!!
Hi, Richard! I’m so glad that you enjoy it! There are instructions for the Instant Pot in the recipe box as well. 🙂
I haven’t made this yet but it sounds hearty and spicy and delicious. I will try soon!
OMG! This recipe is fantastic. I fixed to the T, except didn’t add cilantro or jalapeno (personal preference), also used rotisserie chicken. Definitely will be making again! Fix it, it does not disappoint!
Thanks, Rimmy! So glad that you liked it! 🙂
Made for a work soup contest and everyone loved it and asked for the recipe. It was super easy.
Yay! Glad that it was a hit with the co-workers, Roger. Thanks for your note!
5 stars for easy! I did delete 1 can of chicken broth and added 1 can of cream of chicken soup. I also added 1 Tbls. cumin 1 Tbls. Chili powder some garlic and a few shots of hot sauce tooo! Served with tortilla strips sourcream and chedder!
Sounds perfect! Thanks, Gabriel!
Made it today! It is fantastic! Thank you for sharing! Wish you all the best!
That’s wonderful, Melissa! Thanks for letting me know. 🙂
An easy and healthy Chicken Tortilla Soup
Thanks, James! So glad that you liked it!
So DELICIOUS! This is easy to make soup. Perfect for beginner chefs. And it was so yummy. I made it exactly as written.
Yay! Thanks, Elizabeth. 🙂