Comfort food at its finest, and an easy hands-off dinner, Crockpot Chicken Tortilla Soup is full of vegetables and all things good for you. It's family-friendly, super simple to make and super delicious.
8ouncesraw skinless boneless chicken breast or thighscut into cubes
2cupsfrozen whole kernel corn
1large onionchopped
2garlic clovesminced
1quartlow-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
29ozfire-roasted diced tomatoes with juice2-14.5 oz cans
2tablespoontomato paste
10ozdiced tomatoes and green chilies with juicecan
2teaspoonground cumin
1teaspoonkosher salt
1teaspoonchili powder
⅛teaspoonground red pepper
⅛teaspoonground black pepper
Tortilla Strips
4small corn tortillas
1tablespoonvegetable oil
Optional Toppings
avocado chunks, sour cream, cilantro, lime wedges
Instructions
Soup
Combine soup ingredients in a 4-quart crockpot or slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 6 hours.
Tortillas
Place a skillet over medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the tortillas one at a time and cook on both sides until they are browned and crispy.
Sprinkle salt over the cooked tortillas and cut them into strips.
To serve
Ladle the soup into bowls and top with the tortilla strips.
Optional: Add avocado chunks, a dollop of sour cream, cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice before serving.
Optional: Instructions for cooking on the stove:
Add the onion and one tablespoon vegetable oil to a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook the onions until they are translucent. (about 4-5 minutes) Add the rest of the soup ingredients but use leftover cooked chicken instead of raw chicken and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Serve as directed.
Video
Notes
If you don't want to bother with making the tortilla strips, purchase a bag of your favorite tortilla chips and use those instead. Want to add a little variety to this recipe, or if you need it to stretch to feed more than eight folks, add a can of drained black beans or a cup or so of cooked rice before serving. To use leftover cooked chicken instead of raw chicken in this recipe, add all ingredients but the chicken to the crockpot and cook as directed. Add the cooked chicken to the crockpot a few minutes before serving to allow it to warm up. This soup will keep covered in your refrigerator for up to four days and can be frozen for up to six months. If frozen, allow it to defrost in your fridge overnight before heating up.I have a four-quart crockpot, and this recipe fits perfectly with room to spare. You can go larger, but I wouldn't go much smaller.