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An easy, quick, no-fuss version of delicious authentic Chicken Tortilla Soup! All you do is dump everything into the crock pot, and turned it on. Garnish with fresh sliced avocado, grated cheese, sour cream, and fried tortilla strips!

There’s nothing better than a quick easy crock-pot recipe! One where you dump everything in, turn it on, and get on with your day! Then hours later you come home to a delicious warm savory meal! This Slow cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup is that meal!

Loaded with tender chunks of rotisserie chicken in a rich enchilada chicken broth, with hints of cumin, chilies’, onion and garlic. I love adding corn, and beans to this recipe for additional protein.

Top this off with shredded cheddar cheese, sliced fresh avocado, and sour cream. Let’s not forget the those thin freshly made corn strips! (My kids fight over those babies! Nothing like a good food fight to make dinner interesting!) Garnish with chopped cilantro for an extra pop of flavor!

This is a hearty soup that I love to serve with my Buttery Sweet Corn Bread! It’s the perfect winter meal!

How To Make Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

If you’ve been following my Tip Saving Tuesday series on Instagram, you know this is a fantastic recipe to use the Rotisserie Chickens you stocked up on! It’s a great slow cooker meal! Most the ingredients can be found in your pantry. Which makes it an easy dinner recipe on the days you can’t decide what to make! (Which if you’re like me is almost daily!)

List of Chicken Tortilla Soup Ingredients

• 1 pound shredded, cooked chicken
• 1 (15 ounces) can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 (10 ounces) can red enchilada sauce
• 1 (15.5 ounce) can of White Chili Beans in Green Sauce
• 1/4 diced onion flakes
• 1 (4 ounces) can chopped green chile peppers
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 can corn, drained, or 1 (10 ounce) bag frozen corn
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 Tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 8 corn tortillas cut into thin strips
• Vegetable oil for frying
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 large, ripe avocado, sliced

Preparing Soup for the Crock Pot

Place shredded chicken in bottom of your slow cooker.

Add 2 cups of water and 2 cups of chicken broth.

TIP: I love to use the broth from my boiled Rotisserie chicken bones. It creates a rich wonderful broth! Added flavor to the soup, any soup, is a big bonus!

Add drained diced tomatoes and drained, or frozen, corn.

I absolutely love the vibrant pop of color the corn provides in this dish!

Add enchilada sauce, green chile peppers, dried onion, and garlic.

Most Chicken Tortilla Soup recipes don’t have beans. However, I love the additional source of protein. That is never a bad thing! Sometimes I add black beans, washed and drain. However, the White Chili Beans in a Green Sauce…are AMAZING in this soup!

Time for the seasonings! You can’t have a Mexican inspired soup without the proper seasonings! It’s where the warmth for this dish comes. I don’t mean “scorching your mouth till you’re a professional flamethrower”! I mean “warmth” from the flavors of a cultural dish! Especially South American inspired dishes.

Add 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, 1 bay leaf, 1 teaspoon cumin, and 1 teaspoon chili powder.

Add 1 tablespoon chopped Cilantro! Now I know…not everyone loves cilantro! If you don’t, or it tastes like soap, you can skip it! Thankfully I love it and it loves me!

Cooking Slow Cooker Tortilla Soup

Give everything a good stir and place the lid on top of the crock-pot! Cook on Low for 6–8 hours, stirring occasionally or on High setting for 3 to 4 hours.

Quick Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

• Can this soup be frozen? Yes! This soup reheats beautifully with the same textures.
• How long can this soup be refrigerated? 3–4 days.
• Is Chicken Tortilla Soup Healthy? It’s healthy-ish! The corn tortilla strips not so healthy because they are fried. They can be omitted. It doesn’t lack for flavor thanks to its seasonings and enchilada sauce.

How To Make Fried Corn Strips

In a large sauce pan, add 1 cup vegetable oil, over medium-high heat! Cut 8 white corn tortillas into thin strips. Carefully place half of the corn strips in the hot oil, carefully give them a quick stir with a long handled wooden spoon, or a large set of silicone tongs.

TIP: Stirring the tortilla strips helps them to crumple up! I like crumply tortilla strips! It adds wonderful visual texture to this soup. Remember half of eating is with our eyes! (I wish this was true…my eyes would be chubby instead of me!)

Note: Make sure you hold onto the sauce pan when stirring tortilla strips! Place the sauce pan on the back burner to prevent spilling. ALWAYS USE CAUTION WHEN FRYING WITH HOT OIL!

Cook until tortillas turn a light golden brown and are crispy.

Carefully remove the fried tortilla strips, with a slotted spoon, and place on a paper towel lined plate. Sprinkle lightly with salt.

Keep Your Mitts OFF the Chips! I know what you’re thinking! You wanna eat just a “few”. That’s all. One or two. Next thing ya know you’re frying more tortilla strips! (This is the voice of experience speaking!)

This plate of golden crispy fried Tortilla Strips is why families fight!

TIP: You can buy store bought tortilla strips. You can also use crushed tortilla chips! However, the extra effort to make corn strips is SO worth it!

Garnishing and Serving Chicken Tortilla Soup

After 4–6 hours of cooking, the soup is ready to serve. Give it a good stir before each ladle full, to make sure all those yummy ingredients are in each scoop!

When you’re ready to serve this Slow Cooker Soup, I recommend a “garnish bar”! A “Garnish Bar” allows everyone to top-off their Chicken Soup the way they want!

Fresh sliced avocado, a big bowl of shredded Cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped fresh cilantro, and the crispy tortilla strips…with a guard dog standing by! (Remember… There may be potential wars over those chips! You’ve been warned! Lol)

All you need now is a big spoon and a healthy appetite! Speaking of healthy… I like to think this soup leans towards the healthy side! Maybe not those chips…but the flavor filled broth with its big chunks of chicken is perfection! Not heavy or calorie laden like cream soups!

Other Favorite Soup Recipes

• Instant Pot Creamy Butternut Pumpkin Soup
• Instant Pot Pork Chili Verde
• Hamburger Vegetable Pasta Soup
• Cream of Broccoli Soup
• Bacon Shrimp and Corn Chowder
• Navy Bean and Ham Bone Soup Recipe
• Traditional Clam Chowder
• Split Pea Soup from Julia’s Simply Southern

I’m not a huge soup fan…but this is one of my favorites! I love all the zesty flavors in this slow cooker soup. It’s the perfect all season soup… Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall! Enjoy!

Happy Nesting!

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