Rotisserie chicken tortilla soup is a quick and easy yet still super-flavorful take on a classic. Makes a great weeknight dinner.
Why we love this recipe
This rotisserie chicken tortilla soup recipe packs a lot of bang for your buck. In about half an hour, you'll have a cozy, satisfying, pretty good-for-ya dinner that kids and adults both love. It's:
- Quick and easy
- Full of great flavor and satisfying textures
- High in lean protein and veggies
- Family-friendly
I first published this recipe here way back in 2011, adapted from the I Love Trader Joe's College Cookbook by my friend Andrea Lynn. I've since updated the post for clarity and made a few tweaks to the recipe.
What you'll need
Here's a glance at the ingredients you'll need to make this recipe.
- You'll start with the meat from a whole rotisserie chicken. Remove the skin and break up the meat into shreds with your fingers. Alternatively, you can use leftover roasted turkey from the holidays.
- A good reduced-sodium chicken broth and a large can of diced tomatoes with their juices form the bulk of the broth. You can use fire-roasted tomatoes if you like.
- An easy blend of ground spices (chili powder blend, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper) plus freshly squeezed lime juice infuse lots of flavor in no time at all. Instead of the spices, you can use a packet of taco seasoning per the original version of the recipe.
- The garnishes are a huge part of this soup's satisfying vibe. Fresh cilantro leaves, sliced scallions, sliced avocado, crushed corn tortilla chips, and cheese add tons of flavor and textural interest. For the cheese, I usually shred some extra-sharp cheddar or pepper jack or crumble some cotija.
Level it up
If I have a little extra time, I'll sometimes buy really good corn tortillas, cut them into strips, and fry them myself in an inch or so of safflower oil in a cast iron skillet, then drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt. It's a bit of extra work, but it really levels things up.
Our favorite sources for meat
For years, I've been sourcing our meat from ButcherBox. We love this curated meat delivery service, which provides grass-finished beef, heritage breed pork, organic chicken, and more from small farms direct to the customer. You can learn more in my extensive Butcher Box review and unboxing.
More recently, we've also become big fans of Cooks Venture for chicken.
How to make it
Here's an overview of what you'll do to make a fabulous pot of rotisserie chicken tortilla soup. You can see the steps in action in the video that accompanies this post, and get all the details in the recipe card below.
- First you'll stir together the broth, tomatoes, and seasonings and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat and add the chicken and lime juice. Simmer gently for five minutes.
- Ladle into serving bowls.
- Garnish generously with cilantro, scallion, avocado, cheese, and crushed tortilla chips. That's it!
Expert tips and FAQs
The specific origins of tortilla soup (sopa de tortilla) aren't known, but it comes from the area around Mexico City. This quick and easy version is Mexican-inspired and does not lay any claims to authenticity.
This recipe doesn't take long to make, so I don't usually make it in advance — but you can definitely do so if you like. Make the soup itself and prep all toppings except for the avocado up to about three days in advance. Reheat the soup, slice the avocado, and top each portion with garnishes just before serving.
Leftovers will keep in separate airtight containers in the fridge for up to a week, and soup itself can be frozen for up to a year.
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Rotisserie Chicken Tortilla Soup
Rotisserie chicken tortilla soup is a quick and easy yet still super-flavorful take on a classic. Makes a great weeknight dinner.
Ingredients
- 4 cups (950 ml) lower-sodium chicken broth
- 1 28-ounce (794-gram) can diced tomatoes with their juices
- 1 tablespoon chili powder blend (see note 3)
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Meat from a whole cooked rotisserie-style chicken (about 4 cups shredded)
- ¼ cup (60 ml) freshly squeezed lime juice (from about two limes)
- ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves (plucked from stems)
- 4 scallions, white and green parts sliced
- 4 ounces (113 grams) shredded extra sharp cheddar (see note 4)
- 1 ripe Hass avocado, sliced
- 8 ounces tortilla chips, crumbled
Instructions
- Into a medium pot, add the chicken broth, tomatoes, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in shredded chicken and lime juice.
- Simmer for five minutes.
- Ladle into two bowls.
- Garnish each bowl with a quarter of the cilantro, scallion, cheese, avocado, and crumbled chips.
Notes
- You'll start with the meat from a whole rotisserie chicken. Remove the skin and break up the meat into shreds with your fingers. Alternatively, you can use leftover roasted turkey from the holidays.
- A good reduced-sodium chicken broth and a large can of diced tomatoes with their juices form the bulk of the broth. You can use fire-roasted tomatoes if you like.
- An easy blend of ground spices (American-style chili powder blend, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper) plus freshly squeezed lime juice infuse lots of flavor in no time at all. Instead of the spices, you can use a packet of taco seasoning per the original version of the recipe.
- The garnishes are a huge part of this soup's satisfying vibe. Fresh cilantro leaves, sliced scallions, sliced avocado, crushed corn tortilla chips, and cheese add tons of flavor and textural interest. For the cheese, I usually shred some extra-sharp cheddar or pepper jack or crumble some cotija.
- If I have a little extra time, I'll sometimes buy really good corn tortillas, cut them into strips, and fry them myself in an inch or so of safflower oil in a cast iron skillet, then drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt. It's a bit of extra work, but it really levels things up.
- This recipe doesn't take long to make, so I don't usually make it in advance — but you can definitely do so if you like. Make the soup itself and prep all toppings except for the avocado up to about three days in advance. Reheat the soup, slice the avocado, and top each portion with garnishes just before serving.
- Leftovers will keep in separate airtight containers in the fridge for up to a week, and soup itself can be frozen for up to a year.
Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 583Total Fat: 22.8gCarbohydrates: 61.7gFiber: 7.7gProtein: 39.4g
Hungry for more?
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