Food & Cooking Recipes Soups, Stews & Stocks Soup Recipes Chicken Tortilla Soup 4.2 (84) Quick, easy, and spicy, this soup makes a delicious dinner. Prep Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 10 mins Total Time: 25 mins Servings: 6 Jump to recipe Quick, easy, and spicy, too, there's a lot to love about this chicken tortilla soup. Our recipe uses chicken stock (homemade or store-bought) and already-cooked shredded chicken, which means the prep is quick. You can use leftover roast chicken, rotisserie chicken, or quickly cook chicken breasts or thighs to shred for this soup. You'll need to turn the oven on to make the crunchy corn tortilla chips; while they're cooking, you can prep the tasty garnishes like sliced avocado, scallions, cotija cheese, cilantro, and lime wedges. It's a simple, satisfying dinner that's ready in under 30 minutes, and a total weeknight winner. 22 Recipes With Tortillas, From Breakfast Taquitos to Dinner Tacos Credit: Jason Donnelly Origins of Tortilla Soup No one can pinpoint exactly when or how tortilla soup, or sopa de tortilla, came to be, but it is believed to have originated in Central Mexico, home of the Aztecs, where corn and tortillas were a main staple of indigenous peoples' diets. By the middle of the 20th century, the soup had made its way north to California, appearing on restaurant menus and cookbooks before eventually spreading throughout the U.S. The Best Chicken to Use for Chicken Tortilla Soup The best chicken to use for this recipe is the chicken you already have on hand such as leftover roast chicken or rotisserie chicken. Don't have any already cooked chicken available? Not a problem—you can still make this soup by cooking boneless breasts or thighs and shredding the cooked meat. (Follow our basic poached chicken recipe, leaving out the vegetables for ease or keeping them in for extra flavor.) You would need about 1 1/2 pounds of boneless and skinless raw chicken to yield 4 cups shredded. You'll only need one cup of diced tomatoes to flavor this soup, leaving you with about the same amount left in the can. Feel free to add the rest to the soup for more flavor and texture, or refrigerate it for up to one week. You can toss the leftover diced tomatoes in pasta, chili, or another soup, or freeze itthem in an air-tight container for future use. Broth Versus Stock Chicken stock is a rich, unseasoned liquid made from chicken bones, vegetables, and aromatics. Typically simmered for several hours, it contains collagen and gelatin from the carcass, giving it more body and structure than broth. It should not contain any salt, making it a convenient ingredient to add to soups, sauces, and other recipes without the risk of over seasoning. Chicken broth, on the other hand, is a seasoned, flavorful liquid that can be sipped on its own or used in recipes. Unlike stock, it can be made from meat as well as bones and aromatics, and is usually more diluted than its more gelatinous cousin. Buying Broth for This Recipe While broth and stock are two different entities, many companies use the words interchangeably which can make buying it a confusing task. For this recipe, chicken broth or stock will work just as well, though if you're looking for a liquid with more body, seek out a product labeled "bone broth" (another name for stock) and check the label to confirm it's made with bones. If you're watching your salt—or want to be in control of seasoning the finished soup—buy an unsalted or low-sodium option. Otherwise, what you're buying will likely be on the saltier side and require less seasoning later on. Directions Credit: Jason Donnelly Preheat oven; cook garlic: Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large pot, heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium-high. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Credit: Jason Donnelly Add tomato paste, tomatoes, and chili powder and cook; add broth: Add tomato paste, diced tomatoes and liquid, and chili powder and cook until most of liquid is evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil; season with salt and pepper. Credit: Jason Donnelly Toss tortilla strips with oil and bake: Meanwhile, on a rimmed baking sheet, toss tortilla strips with 2 teaspoons oil. Bake until crisp and golden, about 8 minutes, tossing halfway through. Credit: Jason Donnelly Stir chicken into soup; garnish and serve: Stir chicken into soup to heat through. Divide soup among six bowls and top with avocado, cheese, cilantro, scallions, and tortilla strips. Serve with lime wedges. Credit: Jason Donnelly How to Store Leftover Chicken Tortilla Soup If you find yourself with leftover chicken tortilla soup, refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 3 months. Garnishes can be refrigerated separately—squeeze a bit of lime juice on the avocado to keep it from browning. Variations Switch up your spices: Instead of regular chili powder, try a single ground chile like ancho or chipotle (though keep in mind chipotle is on the spicier end, so you may want to decrease the amount added). A small amount of ground cumin and/or coriander would also be a welcome addition. Try other toppings: In place of—or in addition to—the toppings suggested above, consider adding some finely diced white onion, a dollop of sour cream or crema, or shredded Mexican-inspired cheese blend. If you don't have corn tortillas handy but still want to make this soup, swap in store-bought tortilla chips or simply leave them out. Other Chicken Soup Recipes to Try Chipotle Chicken and White-Bean Soup Peruvian Chicken Soup With Rice and Potatoes Easy Chicken Noodle Soup Thai Chicken Soup Chicken and Wild Rice Soup Updated by Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds is an experienced recipe developer, recipe tester, food editor, and writer with over a decade of experience in the food and media industries.