Chicken "Tortilla" Soup
A smoky tomato and chile broth full of shredded chicken, topped with avocado, melted jack cheese, cilantro and crushed pork rinds in place of fried tortilla strips.
Nutrition per serving
1½ cups- Net carbs
- 5g
- Calories
- 335kcal
- Protein
- 33g
- Fat
- 19g
- Total carbs
- 9.1 g
- Fiber
- 4 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient (optional ingredients excluded). Brands vary — check your labels if you track closely.
Ingredients
Creamy: Cream cheese melted into the broth makes a rich, velvety soup, like the creamy chicken tortilla soup served in restaurants.
- After returning the chicken, turn the heat to low and stir in the cream cheese for 3–4 minutes, until completely melted. Don't let it boil afterwards.
Vegetarian (black soybeans): Black soybeans and zucchini replace the chicken, simmered in vegetable broth for a hearty meat-free bowl. Top with cheese crisps instead of pork rinds.
- Use vegetable broth and simmer the soup for 15 minutes, adding the black soybeans and zucchini for the last 8–10 minutes, until the zucchini is tender.
- Top with the avocado, cheese and cilantro, with parmesan crisps for crunch instead of pork rinds.
- Soup
- Toppings
- Nice to have (optional)
- Soup
- Toppings
- Also add
- Nice to have (optional)
- Soup
-
1½ lb boneless, skinless chicken thighsleave out - Toppings
-
1 oz pork rindsleave out - Also add
- Nice to have (optional)
Estimated cost $16.23 for 6 servings ($2.71 each) · how we estimate
Instructions
-
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the onion and jalapeños for 5 minutes, until soft.
-
Add the garlic, cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika and oregano and stir for 1 minute, until the spices smell toasty.
-
Pour in the tomatoes with their juices and the broth, add the chicken thighs and salt and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partly covered, for 20–25 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F (74°C).
-
Lift out the chicken and shred it with two forks. For a thicker broth, blend about 2 cups of the soup until smooth and stir it back in. Return the chicken to the pot.
-
Stir in the lime juice and half the cilantro and taste for salt.
-
Ladle into bowls and top with the avocado, Monterey Jack, crushed pork rinds, remaining cilantro and a spoonful of sour cream.
Tips for success
-
Add the pork rinds at the table so they stay crunchy — they play the part of the fried tortilla strips. Shards of baked parmesan crisps work too. - Fire-roasted tomatoes add a smoky depth regular canned tomatoes lack. For more smoke and heat, blend in one chipotle pepper from a can of chipotles in adobo.
- Thighs stay juicy through simmering; breasts work too, but start checking them at 15 minutes. Leftover or rotisserie chicken can go in at the end — just heat it through.
Nice to have, not needed
- A chipotle pepper in adobo blended into the broth adds smoky heat — the soup is plenty flavorful without it.
Storage & meal prepMeal-prep friendly
- Keeps 4 days in the fridge
- Freezes up to 3 months
Reheat: Reheat over medium heat until steaming, then add the toppings.
Prep tip: Freeze the soup in portions without toppings; add the avocado, cheese and pork rinds fresh so they stay creamy and crunchy.
Refrigerate the soup without toppings up to 4 days, or freeze up to 3 months.
Variations
2 variations, each with its own ingredients and macrosCreamy
FlavorCream cheese melted into the broth makes a rich, velvety soup, like the creamy chicken tortilla soup served in restaurants.
- + 4 oz cream cheese
6.1 g net · 401 kcal · 34 g protein · 25 g fat · ≈$2.91 per serving (+1.1 g net carbs vs the original)
Vegetarian (black soybeans)
DietBlack soybeans and zucchini replace the chicken, simmered in vegetable broth for a hearty meat-free bowl. Top with cheese crisps instead of pork rinds.
- chicken broth → vegetable broth
- + 2 cans black soybeans
- + 1 medium zucchini
- no boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- no pork rinds
7.6 g net · 252 kcal · 14 g protein · 16 g fat · ≈$2.12 per serving (+2.6 g net carbs vs the original)
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