Spring is kind of a strange time of year to be making soup, but I know at least some of you are still experiencing freakish January-style winter blizzards. Plus, this Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup is a clear broth soup, which actually makes it light enough to enjoy in warmer weather. Squeeze some lime on top, serve it with an ice cold margarita, and you won’t care what the weather is doing. Promise.
Like most slow cooker recipes, this Chicken Tortilla Soup is ridiculously easy and very forgiving, so it’s a great meal to prepare when you know you can’t give your full attention to the stove. If it goes a little longer than the prescribed cook time, it’s all good. Your meal won’t be ruined. This is a busy peoples’ soup.
Chicken to Soup Ratio
In true Budget Bytes style I used only ONE chicken breast for the entire batch of soup. I know it sounds crazy, but I promise there is so much else going on in this soup that you won’t feel like you’re missing out. Once that chicken gets shredded and mixed back in, it looks like a lot of meat, and I promise, it’s guaranteed to be more meat per serving than any soup you’d get out of a can. But hey, if your budget affords, you can always double the meat if that’s your style (no other adjustments needed).
It’s All About the Toppings!
The broth of this Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup is deliciously smoky, a little spicy (although that’s adjustable), and surprisingly light. But the toasted tortilla strips are what really make it, so don’t skip those! The toasty corn flavor really rounds out the soup and makes it special. A little squeeze of fresh lime juice on top also takes this soup to the next level!
Toppings are always fun, and I’ve included some of my fav’s in the pricing below, but the soup and tortilla strips on their own also stand strong! So, adjust to your liking and budget. :)
How to Store Chicken Tortilla Soup
After cooking your soup, make sure to divide it into single portions before refrigerating. This helps it cool down faster in the refrigerator, which will extend its lifespan. You can keep the chicken tortilla soup in the refrigerator for about 4-5 days, or you can freeze it for longer storage (about 3 months). Make sure to add your toppings fresh after reheating.
Love slow cooker recipes? Check out my full line up in the Slow Cooker Recipe Category.
Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
Servings 6 about 1.5 cups eachIngredients
Soup
- 1 yellow onion ($0.32)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 3/4 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast ($2.09)
- 1/2 Tbsp chili powder * ($0.15)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional) ($0.02)
- freshly cracked black pepper ($0.03)
- 1 15oz. can fire roasted tomatoes ($1.00)
- 1 10oz. can diced tomatoes with green chiles ($0.49)
- 1 15oz. can black beans ($0.59)
- 1 cup frozen corn kernels ($0.38)
- 6 cups chicken broth** ($0.78)
Tortilla Crisps
- 8 6-inch corn tortillas ($0.75)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.02)
- pinch salt ($0.02)
Optional Toppings
- 1 avocado ($1.50)
- 1/4 bunch cilantro ($0.22)
- 6 Tbsp sour cream ($0.48)
- 1 lime ($0.69)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the onion, garlic, chicken breast, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne, some freshly cracked pepper (about 10 cranks of a pepper mill), the fire roasted tomatoes (with juices), diced tomatoes with chiles (with juices), black beans (drained), corn, and chicken broth to the slow cooker.
- Give everything a brief stir, place the lid on the slow cooker, and cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours.
- After cooking on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours, carefully remove the chicken breast, shred it with a fork, then return it to the soup.
- To make the tortilla crisps, preheat the oven to 400ºF. Stack the tortillas, then slice them into strips that are approximately 1/4-inch wide and 2 to 3-inches long. Place the strips in a bowl, drizzle with cooking oil, and a pinch of salt. Gently toss the strips until they’re completely coated in oil.
- Spread the oil coated tortilla strips over a baking sheet in a single layer, overlapping as little as possible. Bake them in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, stirring once every five minutes, or until they are deeply golden brown and crispy. The total cook time will depend on the size of your strips and how crowded they are on the baking sheet, so watch them closely and adjust the cook time as needed.
- To serve, ladle the soup into bowls, top with a handful of the tortilla crisps, some chopped cilantro, a few slices of avocado, and a dollop of sour cream. Squeeze a wedge of fresh lime over top just before eating.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Chicken Tortilla Soup in a Slow Cooker – Step by Step Photos
To begin, dice one yellow onion and mince two cloves garlic Place the diced onion, minced garlic, and one 3/4 lb. chicken breast in a slow cooker (6 qt size). You can use more or less chicken without adjusting anything else in the recipe. Sprinkle 1/2 Tbsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp cayenne, and some freshly cracked pepper over top. You can leave the cayenne out if you want your soup mild, or if you’re using a spicier chili powder (every brand is a little different).
Also add 1 cup frozen corn kernels (no need to thaw), one 15 oz. can black beans (drained), one 15 oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes (with juices), and one 10 oz. can of diced tomatoes with green chiles (with juices). The diced tomatoes with chiles are like Rotel tomatoes, but you can often find generic store brand versions as well. If you can’t find them at all, you can use two 15 oz. cans of fire roasted diced tomatoes, plus one 4 oz. can of diced green chiles.
Finally, add 6 cups chicken broth and give everything a brief stir. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for four hours, or low for eight hours.
While the soup is cooking, make the tortilla crisps. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Stack the tortillas and cut them into strips, about 1/4-inch wide and 2 to 3-inches long.
Place the strips in a bowl, drizzle with 1 Tbsp cooking oil, and add a pinch of salt. Gently toss the tortilla strips until they’re completely coated in oil. Spread the oil coated tortilla strips out over a baking sheet in a single layer. Try to make them overlap as little as possible. The more they overlap the longer they’ll take to cook.
Bake the tortilla strips for 10-15 minutes, stirring every five minutes or so, or until they’re deeply golden brown and crispy. The cooking time can vary quite a bit depending on the size of the tortilla strips and how closely packed they are on the baking sheet, so watch them closely and adjust the cooking time as needed. Set the tortilla strips aside.
After 8 hours it will look like this. The chicken will be very tender and easy to shred at this point…
Carefully remove the chicken breast, shred it with two forks, then stir it back into the soup.
And the Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup is essentially finished at this point. It’s always a good idea to give it a taste and adjust the salt if needed. But the real magic happens when you plate it up…
After ladling the soup into your bowls, add a handful of the toasty tortilla crisps, and any additional toppings you like. Squeeze a wedge of fresh lime over top and enjoy!
Love your recipes! Trying this one tomorrow! If I use a precooked rotisserie chicken will I need to adjust the time?
Just made this today, and it was very delicious. I really enjoyed adding sour cream to it, as it gave it a little extra flavor. I think next time I may try blending half the tomatoes a bit to make it slightly more creamy. Not sure if that will work but it’s worth a try. I used I think a 6 quart vintage crock pot, and it was filled almost to the brim, thinking I need a new crock pot now haha.
This looks delicious. If I substitute chicken breast for tenderloins how long would they take to cook in the slow cooker? Many thanks
Hi Tracey, I’d still recommend the full cooking time.
I just discovered this site this weekend and made this soup today. No way I was waiting 4-8 hours, so I used my heavy dutch oven, and poached two chicken breasts and shredded them before starting the rest of the soup. I sauteed onions, garlic, and some diced green pepper in olive oil, then added the spices and other ingredients. Didn’t have chicken broth, but it was delicious with vegetable broth. I just used that and 1 can of fire roasted diced tomatoes with green chilies and one can of tomato sauce. Instead of cayenne, I tossed in some crushed red pepper flakes and a dash of Louisiana Hot Sauce. Subbed Greek yogurt for the sour cream (don’t skip the dairy in your bowl, folks–it turns the broth into silky amazing goodness!) First time ever making the tortilla strips (used olive oil for them, too) and they are so easy, Had an avocado, but alas, no lime. Solid recipe. LOVE it! I’m excited to try others from your site.
I haven’t had tortilla soup since I left South Texas 20 years ago. Made this tonight and it was outstanding! Don’t skip the add ins – they really make the dish. So easy to make too.
Thank you!
This is delicious! I actually pureed half of it with my immersion blender because I’m not a big tomato chunk fan and I really liked the texture and flavours of this. Yum!
We made this yesterday and it was so delicious. It hit every note for me. We will be making it again this weekend so we can fine-tune it for us. Love this site!!!
Thank you Regina!
Made this recipe exactly as listed, toppings included, and couldn’t agree more with the other comments: this recipe is delicious! The leftovers are even better. I cooked this in the slow cooker for 3 1/2-4 hours on high and the toppings were entirely worth it and added a great depth of flavor combined with the other ingredients. We will definitely be making this again!
I’ve made this recipe a bunch of times now and everytime it has been amazing! So much flavor in every bite.
I’m curious, has anyone tried substituting the chicken for tofu/vegetarian type option? Obviously it would change the cooking times on the chicken etc. but if anyone has tried I’d love to know how it came out with a non-meat alternative.
We haven’t yet Michael, but like you I’d love to hear! We suggest adding some extra beans and you could saute them in the seasoning for it to be vegetarian.
I made it with Trader Joe’s Vegan Soy Chorizo — it was great! Obviously more of a ground beef texture than a shredded chicken texture, but the flavors worked well! I didn’t make it in a slow cooker, though, so I’m not sure what would happen to the soy chorizo in the slow cooker.
I made this tonight and it turned out rather well for my taste. The tortilla crips really tied everything together. It was also really simple to make. I used a pressure cooker to make it and cooked it for 25 minutes on high and then I let the pressure naturally release. This is a solid week night meal in my opinion.
That’s what we like to hear! Thanks for sharing!
So yummy! I will definitely be making again.
Happy to hear it Eve!
Hello! So I have a bean allergy and I feel like if I take out the beans it’s gonna make a huge difference because that’s 15oz just gone… any suggestions?
That’s a great question! I think I would add a can of hominy, which is similar in shape and texture to a bean, but is actually corn. It’s different enough in flavor and texture from the frozen corn kernels, too, that you could easily have both in the soup.
The recipe is great and results taste wonderful. However I don’t know where you live because your prices are crazy low. I could never get 3/4 of a bound of boneless skinless chicken breasts For $2 plus change. It is much closer to $3 plus change. Garlic @ 16 cents for two?? I have to page 50 cents lowest for 1. Do you have your own garden? Just curious where you live and shop.
Thanks Eileen! Beth does a lot of shopping at Aldi, a discount grocery store. It’s amazing what you can find when you shop around.
It just uses 2 cloves of garlic not bulbs, and there are 11-30 cloves in a head of garlic, so that would make sense. Also, chicken around me (Northeastern US) is about $1.99 per pound when you purchase in 3-4 pound quantities, cheaper if on sale).
I made this and it was great – but it definitely makes way more than 6 servings of 1.5 cups each (9 cups total). I was using a 4-quart crockpot and filled it completely while leaving out 2 cups of broth.
Good to know Louis! Thank you!
My favorite soup is Chicken Tortilla but I have never done it in a crock pot so I followed this recipe. Not a corn lover, so instead I used shredded carrots! And instead of putting the chicken in raw, I used shredded cooked chicken which worked fine except that it was a little less flavorful…worked well because I just didnt have 4 hours to slow cook and lime really made up for any loss of flavor! Sooo good!
Happy to hear it Emily!
I absolutely love this recipe. It has been in my rotation for awhile now. Recently, I tried blending together onion, garlic, tomato, jalapeno, cilantro, and chipotle as a substitute for the canned tomatoes and used hominy as a sub for corn. I also threw in a can of diced green chilies. If you like spice and earthiness, it’s a great modification to this recipe. I did find I had to add the juice of a whole lime to add acidity at the end. But the balance of flavors in this recipe is just so perfect for substitutions and additions. I used paprika, garlic powder, lime juice, and salt on my tortilla chips. My fiance wouldn’t stop talking about them! Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Amazing! Thank you Christine!
SO good!