Name: Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 medium yellow onion, diced; 1 jalapeno pepper, finely diced (optional); 3 cloves garlic, minced; 4 ounces canned green chilies; 20 ounces canned Rotel tomatoes; 15 ounces canned black beans, drained; 11 ounces canned corn, drained; 3 tablespoons taco seasoning (1 packet); 4 cups chicken broth; 21 ounces canned cream of chicken soup; 1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded (about 3 cups); 1 lime (optional, but strongly recommended)

This Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup comes together on the stove in 30 minutes for an easy meal that has an abundance of Mexican flavor. The soup is filled with chicken, corn, beans, tomatoes and chiles, in a rich, creamy base that combines chicken broth and cream of chicken soup.

A bowl of homemade creamy chicken tortilla soup topped with cheddar cheese, sour cream, cilantro, tortilla chips and a lime wedge.

Jump to Recipe

Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup is the perfect meal if you’re looking for a seriously simple soup recipe that’s loaded with Mexican flavor.

Ready in 30 minutes, this homemade soup is ideal for weeknight dinners when time is a precious commodity.

This tortilla soup is one of my go-to recipes that I make several times during the chilly soup months. Crock-Pot Turkey Chili is another cold-weather favorite.

I love that chicken tortilla soup is an all-in-one satisfying meal, with chicken and beans for protein, corn, tomatoes, chiles and layers of Tex-Mex flavor.

Pile on toppings like cheese, avocado, cilantro, sour cream and tortilla chips for a soup that’s perfect for family dinner and potlucks.

An image of a bowl of creamy chicken tortilla soup garnished with sour cream, cheese, avocado, cilantro and corn tortilla chips, and a pot of the soup showing a close up of all the corn, beans, chicken and tomatoes in a creamy broth.

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

Quick & Easy One-Pot Meal – This soup has a lot of canned ingredients so there’s very little chopping or prep work. You basically saute some onion and dump in everything else.

No Cream Cheese – This tortilla soup gets its smooth creamy texture from cream of chicken soup, not cream cheese.

I love that a couple cans of cream of chicken soup has about half the calories of a block of cream cheese, which can be a little fussy to melt. It’s also about half the price.

Made with staple pantry ingredients – This recipe is mostly made with non-perishable foods, that you can easily keep on-hand, which makes it a quick last-minute dinner idea.

Tastes amazing. Leftovers are even better. This soup is loaded with lots of Mexican flavor and really hits the spot when you’re craving a hot soup that tastes amazing. And dare I say, leftovers taste even better as all the soup goodies have had time to mingle together.

A red soup bowl on a plate that has two lime wedges and some cilantro. The bowl is full of a creamy chicken tortilla soup that's topped with cheddar cheese, sour cream, cilantro, tortilla strips and a lime wedge.

Fresh lime is a must, when serving tortilla soup! Lime adds a zesty kick, balances the rich spices and gives the soup an overall brightness.

Ingredients Needed

Aromatics: onion & garlic
Seasoning: taco seasoning
Canned Goods: diced green chiles, corn, black beans, Rotel diced tomatoes, Cream of Chicken soup
Broth: chicken broth
Meat: shredded, cooked chicken

Onion and Garlic – Aromatics for adding a foundational layer of rich flavor to the soup.

Olive Oil – You need just a little for sauteeing the onion and garlic.

Canned Green Chiles – Use mild or hot, depending on how much heat you can handle. Substitute canned chiles with diced jalapeno pepper, if desired. (Or do both.)

Rotel Canned Diced Tomatoes – Use your favorite variety of Rotel tomatoes: original with chilies, mild, hot with habernos, or fire roasted.

Canned Black Beans – If you’re not a fan of black beans, you can substitute with pinto.

Corn – Canned or frozen corn both work. If you use frozen, just warm it up in the microwave before adding it to the soup.

Cream of Chicken Soup – This is what puts the “creamy” in creamy chicken tortilla soup. Don’t skip it!

Chicken Broth – When it comes to chicken broth, you have options: organic, free-range and low-sodium. I love the taste of Pacific organic free-range broth.

Taco Seasoning – This soup is seasoned with a single packet of taco seasoning. You can also make your own with my easy homemade taco spice blend recipe.

Cooked Chicken – To keep this recipe quick, I like to use shredded rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken. My pan-seared chicken tenders are also perfect for shredding up for soup.

For easy shredding use a chicken shredder twist tool or two forks.

Toppings – For a bowl of tortilla soup that’s next-level, heap on some toppings and fresh lime. Favorites are shredded cheese (like cheddar or Monterey Jack), sour cream, diced avocado, cilantro, jalapeno pepper slices, and tortilla strips or chips.

Chicken Options for the Soup

Pre-cooked chicken is added to the soup towards the end. Here a few options.

A wooden cutting board with a pile of shredded cooked chicken and two forks used that were used to shred the meat.

Rotisserie Chicken – When it comes to convenience, nothing beats a rotisserie chicken. Simply shred it up with a couple of forks and add it to the soup near the end.

Leftover Chicken – If I have leftover chicken, sometimes I shred it up and save it for soup. If I’m not making the soup the next day, I just toss it in the freezer and use it within 2 months.

Boiled Chicken Breasts – This is an easy method to cook chicken, especially for soup.

Just put boneless, skinless chicken breasts in salted water in a pot with a lid.

Bring to a boil, then slightly reduce the temperature once boiling begins. Cook for about 15 minutes or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165℉.

When done, let the chicken breasts rest on a cutting board and season with salt and pepper. When the chicken is still warm, but cool enough to handle, shred it with two forks.

Pan-Seared Chicken Tenderloin – Chicken tenders only take about 10 minutes to make on the stove. They’re perfect for slicing up for salads, or shredding for soups. Here’s my basic pan-seared chicken tenders recipe.

If you’re looking for another stove-top chicken tenders recipe, checkout my recipe for honey garlic chicken tenders.

A bowl of homemade chicken tortilla soup with lots of corn in it, that's topped with cheese, sour cream, tortilla strips, cilantro and lime. The bowl is on a plate that has a spoon resting on it and two pieces of lime.

Steps to Make Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Detailed recipe and instructions are in recipe card at bottom of post.

Warm up olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and reduce heat to low and cook 5-10 minutes until translucent, not brown and caramelized. If you are using diced fresh jalapenos in place of canned green chiles, cook them with the onion. Add minced garlic during last minute onion is cooking.
Add can of green chiles to onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
While the onion is cooking, shred rotisserie chicken, open all the cans and drain the beans and corn. If using frozen corn, warm it up in the microwave.
Once the onion, garlic and green chiles are cooked, add tomatoes, black beans, corn, chicken stock and taco seasoning. Increase heat to high. When the soup is near boil, whisk in the cream of chicken soup, then stir in shredded chicken. Simmer on low for 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper as desired.
Garnish with toppings like sour cream, cheddar cheese, diced avocado, cilantro, and tortilla strips. Squeeze fresh lime over the top.

Making the Soup Base

Cook the onion low and slow before adding garlic and chiles.

Garlic is delicate. Be careful not to burn it.

Cooking onion, garlic and diced green chiles in a pot, to make tortilla soup. — Cook onion, garlic and diced green chiles.

Canned corn, black beans and Rotel tomatoes added to pot to make tortilla soup. — Cook onion, garlic and diced green chiles.

Adding Cream of Chicken Soup & Shredded Chicken

When the broth is beginning to boil, add the cream of chicken soup, using a whisk to break it up.

Cream of chicken soup added to a pot of tortilla soup to make it creamy. — Add Cream of Chicken soup for creaminess.

Shredded cooked chicken being added to pot of tortilla soup. — Add Cream of Chicken soup for creaminess.

Can I cook the chicken in the soup?

You can, but I’ll be honest, I’m not a fan of this method. It’s a little messier and takes a little longer.

Plus, you may need to skim fat off the top of the soup.

If you don’t have pre-cooked chicken on-hand, I would suggest boiling it in a separate pot from the soup.

But if you prefer to cook it directly in the boiling soup broth, here’s what to do:

To cook the chicken in the soup: Before adding in the cream of chicken soup, bring soup to a low boil, add chicken breasts, partially cover pot and cook for about 20 minutes. Next, remove the chicken and shred with two forks. Finally, whisk the cream of chicken soup into the pot of tortilla soup until smooth, then add the shredded chicken. Simmer 15 minutes.

A bowl of creamy chicken tortilla soup garnished with avocado, sour cream, cheese, tortilla strips and lime wedge. The bowl of soup is next to half an avocado, half a lime, and a small bowl full of tortilla strips.

Recipe Tips

Meal-prep bags of shredded chicken ahead of time and keep in the freezer. Thaw in refrigerator overnight before making soup.
For extra thick soup, add another can of cream of chicken soup.
You can use a block of room temperature cream cheese cut into cubes in place of the cream of chicken soup if preferred.
For a spicy kick, sprinkle in some cayenne pepper or a tablespoon or two of Frank’s red hot sauce.

More Quick Soup & One-Pot Recipes

Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Yield: 8 servings (2 cups each)

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely diced (optional)
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 ounces canned green chilies
20 ounces canned Rotel tomatoes
15 ounces canned black beans, drained
11 ounces canned corn, drained
3 tablespoons taco seasoning (1 packet)
4 cups chicken broth
21 ounces canned cream of chicken soup
1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded (about 3 cups)
1 lime (optional, but strongly recommended)

Instructions

Warm up olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and reduce heat to low and cook 5-10 minutes until translucent, not brown and caramelized. If you are using diced fresh jalapenos in place of canned green chiles, cook them with the onion. Add minced garlic during last minute onion is cooking.
Add can of green chiles to onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
While the onion is cooking, shred rotisserie chicken, open all the cans and drain the beans and corn. If using frozen corn, warm it up in the microwave.
Once the onion, garlic and green chiles are cooked, add tomatoes, black beans, corn, taco seasoning and chicken broth. Increase heat to high. When the soup is near boil, whisk in the cream of chicken soup, followed by shredded chicken. Simmer on low for 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper as desired.
Serve with fresh lime for squeezing over top and garnish with toppings like sour cream, cheddar cheese, diced avocado, cilantro, and tortilla strips.

Notes

For convenience, shred rotisserie chicken for this recipe.
For extra thick and creamy tortilla soup, add another can of cream of chicken soup.
You can use a brick of room temperature cream cheese cut into cubes in place of the cream of chicken soup if preferred.
For a spicy kick, sprinkle in some cayenne pepper or a tablespoon or two of Frank's red hot sauce.

30-Minute Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

Ingredients Needed

Chicken Options for the Soup