Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup
Take your tortilla soup game to new levels and make this Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup! Loaded with leftover smoked chicken, this soup is thick, rich, hearty, and packed with crazy good flavor!
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Wow, is this soup ever flavorful! The use of leftover smoked chicken transforms this soup into something that’s simply too good not to be tried! You can make it with regular chicken, but I urge you, the next time you fire up your Traeger pellet smoker or any other smoker, add some extra chicken just to make this Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup!
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Like any good soup, the flavors in this one are developed in layers. It won’t take long to make, and when you’re done, you’ll have an amazing soup that’s as good or better than anything you’ve had in a restaurant.
What you’ll love about Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup
- It’s meaty, cheesy, smoky, and spicy – in every spoonful!
- Ready in about 30 minutes!
- It freezes perfectly, so make a double batch!
Loaded up with all your favorite garnishes (see my suggestions below) or just eaten as is, this is hands-down one of my favorite soups. Try it, and I think you’ll agree that the flavors in this soup are on point!
Ingredients
- Cooking oil – I like avocado oil, but use your favorite cooking oil.
- Sweet onions – You can also use regular white or yellow onions.
- Jalapeno – Remove the seeds if you don’t like it too spicy. Or try the soup with smoked jalapenos!
- Garlic – Use fresh garlic cloves; skip jarlic for the best flavor.
- Chicken broth – Make your own or use a good-quality store-bought low-sodium chicken broth.
- Diced tomatoes – Canned. Grab a big can, the 28-ounce can.
- Fresh tomatoes – I use Roma tomatoes.
- Green bell pepper – Seeded and diced.
- Black beans – 1 14.5/15 ounce can rinsed and drained.
- Leftover smoked chicken – You can also use leftover rotisserie chicken or grilled chicken.
- Frozen corn niblets – Or get fancy and use fresh corn kernels.
- Lime juice – From a fresh lime.
- Chili powder
- Cumin
- Ground chipotle powder – Or ground cayenne pepper.
- Salt and pepper – Season to taste.
To Garnish Your Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup:
- Cilantro – Chopped.
- Avocado – Diced just before serving.
- Shredded cheese – Cheddar or Monterey Jack are tasty in this easy chicken tortilla soup recipe.
- Sour cream
- Crispy tortilla strips – You can pan-fry your own or buy them in bags from the salad dressing aisle in the grocery store.
- Pico de gallo – Just a spoonful on top!
How to Make The Best Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup
For a full list of ingredients and instructions, please scroll down to the recipe near the bottom of this page.
Heat the oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat until hot but not smoking. A heavy-bottomed pot helps distribute the heat more evenly and prevents scorching.
Add the diced onions and jalapeño and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions begin to soften and turn translucent.
Stir in the garlic and cook for another 1 minute until fragrant. Be careful not to let the garlic brown too much.
Pour in the chicken broth, diced tomatoes, and fresh tomatoes. Stir well, then cover the pot and simmer on low heat for about 15 minutes so the flavors can blend together.
Remove the lid and add the bell pepper, black beans, chicken, corn, and spices. Stir until everything is evenly combined, then simmer uncovered for another 5 minutes until heated through.
Turn off the heat and stir in the lime juice, salt, and pepper. Taste the soup and adjust the seasonings if needed. The lime juice helps brighten the smoky and savory flavors.
Ladle the soup into bowls and top with your favorite garnishes before serving. Tortilla strips, avocado, shredded cheese, cilantro, and sour cream all work especially well.
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- This soup cooks quickly, so make sure you’ve got all your chopping done quickly. I use an Alligator Chopper to make short and quick work of chopping the tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapenos, and onions.
- Adjust the chipotle pepper to suit your taste – it’s spicy, so add a bit at a time.
- Make this chicken tortilla soup recipe with rotisserie chicken or even leftover grilled chicken if you don’t have smoked chicken.
- The flavors intensify as it sits, so it’s even better the next day!
Storage
Store any leftover soup for 3-4 days in an airtight container in the fridge, but it’ll also freeze nicely.
Make It A Meal
This soup is hearty enough to be a meal all on its own, but it also pairs nicely with quesadillas, a Philly cheesesteak sandwich, sliders, and more. Or make it a part of your Tex-Mex feast with queso, a corn salad, and chili.
Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 each onion diced
- 1 jalapeno seeded and diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 28 ounce canned tomatoes diced tomatoes
- 2 cups diced Roma tomatoes about 4 tomatoes
- 1 cup green bell pepper diced
- 14 ounce canned black beans rinsed
- 2 cups frozen corn kernels
- 3 cups cooked chicken smoked, rotisserie, or grilled chicken
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder or to taste
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 teaspoons salt or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper or to taste
Optional garnishes:
- cilantro chopped
- sour cream
- shredded cheese
- lime wedges
- crispy tortilla strips
- avocado diced
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat until hot but not smoking.
- Add the diced onions and jalapeno and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the onions start to soften.
- Add the garlic and cook another minute.
- Add the chicken broth, diced tomatoes, and fresh tomatoes and simmer on low, covered, for about 15 minutes.
- Remove the lid and add the bell pepper, black beans, chicken, corn, and spices, and simmer for another 5 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and add the lime juice, salt, and pepper. Adjust the seasonings.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with your favorite garnishes.
Notes
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- This soup cooks quickly so make sure you’ve got all your chopping done quickly. I use an Alligator Chopper to make short and quick work of chopping the tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapenos, and onions.
- Adjust the chipotle pepper to suit your taste – it’s spicy, so add a bit at a time.
- Make this chicken tortilla soup recipe with rotisserie chicken or even leftover grilled chicken if you don’t have smoked chicken.
- The flavors intensify as it sits so it’s even better the next day!
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.
This soup is a powerhouse of flavor and nutrition! I absolutely loved it.
Chicken Tortilla Soup is one of our favorites! I’d never thought to make it with smoked chicken. What a perfect flavor combo it turned out to be. Thanks for sharing your delicious recipe!
An awesome way to use up leftover chicken and such a comforting soup for fall!
This one comes together perfectly! And it is so good. Couldn’t get my hands on a smoked chicken but I used a rotisserie like you suggested and it was perfect!
I used ready-made smoked chicken slices from the shop for this recipe. But oh my, the soup tasted so deliciously comforting and filling. Already planning to make it again this weekend. Thank you for the recipe.
Chef Jenn, what is an alligator chopper?? Thank you!!
I have arthritis in my hands so I can’t chop as finely as I used to. This is bad news for a chef! I use the alligator chopper to assist with chopping. It’s such a neat gizmo! I talk more about alligator choppers in this post for Shirazi Salad which is all finely chopped veggies!
https://cookwhatyoulove.com/shirazi-salad-recipe/