Experience the bold flavors of Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup with our easy recipe. This hearty soup combines tender chicken, savory spices, and crispy tortilla strips for a Tex-Mex delight.
Let the Instant Pot do the work, making it a quick and flavorful choice for a satisfying meal. Enjoy the comforting taste of chicken tortilla soup with the convenience of Instant Pot cooking!
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Why This Recipe Works
With a cook time of just 20 minutes, it’s hard to believe that a soup this good can be made. But trust me on this one – your Instant Pot can crank out some crazy good recipes!
This easy chicken tortilla soup Instant pot recipe will soon become a family favorite because it is:
- Fast and simple to come in the pressure cooker.
- Loaded with flavors such as chili powder.
- Perfect for having as leftovers - Who doesn't love leftover soup!
📋 Ingredients
All you have to do to get started is gather up the simple ingredients listed below.
- Olive Oil: Used for sautéing the onions and garlic.
- White Onion: Provides a savory and slightly sweet flavor to the soup.
- Cloves garlic : Infuses the soup with aromatic flavor, adding depth and complexity to the overall taste profile.
- Diced Green Chiles: Adds a mild heat and a tangy flavor to the soup, enhancing its overall spiciness and adding a subtle kick.
- Fire-Roasted Diced Tomatoes: Brings a smoky and slightly charred flavor to the soup, adding depth and richness.
- Red enchilada sauce: Contributes a rich and tangy taste to the soup, providing a bold and vibrant flavor profile.
- Chili Powder: Adds a mild spiciness and a rich earthy flavor to the soup, enhancing its depth of taste.
- Cumin: Infuses the soup with a warm and earthy note, adding complexity and complementing the other flavors.
- Black Beans: Adds a protein-rich element to the soup, providing texture and substance.
- Low Sodium Chicken Broth or Stock: Provides moisture and a savory base for cooking the soup, enhancing the overall flavor and giving it a comforting depth.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts or Shredded Chicken: Adds a tender and juicy element to the soup, providing protein and a satisfying texture.
- Canned or Frozen Corn: Adds a sweet and slightly crisp texture to the soup, contributing a burst of freshness and enhancing the overall flavor profile.
- Salt and Pepper: Enhances the taste of the soup, bringing out the natural flavors of the ingredients and helping to balance the overall seasoning.
- Shredded Cheese: Used as a garnish, it adds a creamy and indulgent element to the soup.
For the complete list of ingredients with measurements and instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
🔀 Substitutions & Variations
- Protein Options: Swap chicken breast for chicken thighs for a juicier texture, or use shredded rotisserie chicken for a quicker version. You can also substitute with turkey or even black beans for a vegetarian twist.
- Broth & Liquid Variations: Use a mix of chicken broth and fire-roasted tomatoes for a smoky depth, or add a splash of coconut milk for a creamy, slightly sweet contrast.
- Spice & Flavor Enhancements: Adjust the spice level by adding diced jalapeños, chipotle peppers in adobo, or extra cumin and smoked paprika for a bolder taste.
- Topping & Serving Ideas: Garnish with crispy tortilla strips, avocado slices, fresh cilantro, lime wedges, or a dollop of sour cream for added texture and flavor.
🔀 Optional Toppings & Add Ins
I love toppings! Some of my favorite toppings for Chicken tortilla soup are:
- Crispy tortilla strips or tortilla chips
- Shredded cheese
- Fresh Cilantro
- Diced Onions
- Fresh Jalapenos
- Lime Wedges
- Sliced Avocado
- Sour Cream
You can easily add on anything that you’d like! Putting your own toppings on your chicken tortilla soup bowl is the best.
🔪How to Make Chicken Tortilla Soup in the Instant Pot?
Get ready to be amazed at how simple this chicken tortilla soup recipe is!
Step One: To start, gather all of your ingredients and set your Instant Pot to the sauté function. Add the oil. Once hot, sauté the chopped onion for 5 minutes or until lightly brown stirring occasionally. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
Step Two: Cancel the saute function. Add a half cup of chicken broth and scrape any brown bits from the bottom of your Instant Pot. This will ensure there is no burn message while pressure cooking.
Step Three: Add remaining broth, chicken breast, spices, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, chilies, and beans. Close the Instant pot lid and seal the pressure valve. Pressure cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
Step Four: Quick release pressure and remove the chicken. Shred the chicken and return it to the pot. Serve and enjoy with your favorite topping such as lime-crumbled tortilla chips (smeared with lime juice) or homemade tortilla strips, sour cream, green chilies shredded cheese and diced avocado.
👩🍳 Expert Tips
- Sauté for Flavor: Use the sauté function to cook onions, garlic, and spices like cumin and chili powder before adding the broth for a deeper, more aromatic base.
- Layer Ingredients Correctly: Add diced tomatoes, black beans, corn, and chicken breasts, then pour in broth. Avoid stirring to prevent a burn notice.
- Quick Pressure Cook & Shred: Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes, followed by a quick release. Shred the chicken, stir, and serve with tortilla strips, avocado, and fresh lime juice for the perfect finishing touch.
💭 FAQs
Yes, you totally can! If you’re a fan of meal prep and freezing soups, this is a great recipe to do that with. All you need to do is make sure that you’re letting the soup cool down all the way before adding it to a freezer-safe bag.
I like using frozen corn kernels because it add just the right amount of sweetness and are super convenient. Plus, frozen corn tends to be a bit more tender than canned corn. But if you prefer, you can use canned corn with the same pressure cook time.
Using low-sodium chicken stock allows you to control the amount of salt in your soup. Regular chicken broth can often be high in sodium and using a low-sodium version will help keep the sodium levels in check while still providing plenty of flavor.
Making homemade tortilla chips or strips for toppings on this Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup is super easy. Take a few corn or flour tortillas and cut them into long, thin strips.
Heat up some olive oil in a pan and fry the cut tortillas until they are crispy. Drain them on a plate lined with paper towels to remove excess oil.
To store chicken tortilla soup, allow it to cool to room temperature. Once cooled, transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3-4 days. If you want to store it for a longer period, you can freeze it for up to 3 months
How to Use Leftovers
Here are two ways to use leftover Chicken Fajita Soup:
Chicken Tortilla Soup Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
If you want to mix it up, another yummy way to use leftover Chicken Tortilla Soup is to turn it into Chicken Tortilla Soup Stuffed Sweet Potatoes!
Just bake some sweet potatoes until they are fork tender and slice them open. Top with your leftover Chicken Tortilla Soup, extra toppings, and enjoy as a new meal option.
Chicken Tortilla Soup Flatbread Pizza
You could also turn it into a Chicken Tortilla Soup Flatbread Pizza by layering it on a flatbread crust with some cheese and extra toppings, then baking it in the oven until the crust is crispy and the cheese is melted.
So many delicious options with Instant Pot tortilla soup leftovers!
🍜 Related Recipes
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Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons Olive Oil
- ½ cup Onion diced
- 1 tablespoon Cloves Garlic minced
- 4 ounce Diced Green Chilies
- 1 Can can fire roasted diced tomatoes 14.5 Oz
- 15 ounces Red Enchilada Sauce
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Cumin
- 15 ounce Can of Black Beans rinsed and drained
- 4 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
- 1- pound Chicken Breast Boneless Skinless
- 1 cup Corn drained if canned
- Salt And Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Set the instant pot to sauté and add the oil. Once hot, sauté onions for 5 minutes or until lightly brown. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
- Cancel the instant pot. Add a half cup of broth and scrape the instant pot bottom to remove onion and garlic.
- Add remaining broth, chicken, spices, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, chilies, and beans. Close the lid and seal the pressure valve. Cook on high for 10 minutes or until chicken is 165° internal.
- Quick release pressure and remove the chicken. Shred chicken and return to the pot.
- Serve and enjoy with your favorite topping such as lime crumbled tortilla chips or tortilla strips, sour cream, shredded cheese, and/or avocado.
Notes
Nutrition
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The possibilities are endless with the Instant Pot! Happy cooking!
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