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One-pot Mexican chicken soup is full of amazing flavor and so easy to make! A great way to use up leftover or rotisserie chicken, and it only takes about 30 minutes to make from start to finish. Perfect for busy evenings and chilly days.
How to Make This Recipe
See recipe card below for full list of measurements, ingredients, and instructions.
Sauté the Veggies.
Add onion, carrots, and celery to hot oil in a large dutch oven and sauté everything for about 10 minutes, until all the vegetables have softened and the onions are translucent. At that point, toss in the minced garlic and sauté it until it’s nice and fragrant.
Stock and Spices.
Pour 1 quart of chicken stock into the pot and deglaze the pan, then add the crushed tomatoes, jalapeño, and spices. Stir it all together, bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 15 minutes.
Add the Chicken.
After 15 minutes, toss in the shredded chicken. Continue simmering the soup until the chicken’s nice and hot.
Garnish and serve.
Stir in cilantro, then ladle the soup into serving bowls. Garnish each bowl however you’d like – I usually go for tortilla strips, diced avocado, lime wedges, and sometimes a little cheese for good measure. Serve and enjoy!
What I Love About This Recipe
- Mexican chicken soup is full of great flavors! Fresh veggies, crushed tomatoes, a little jalapeño, cumin, coriander, and a little salt. Oh, and don’t forget the chicken and cilantro!
- If you love an easy recipe, this is the recipe for you! It’s a one-pan meal, which you know we love, and you can use leftover or rotisserie chicken instead of cooking chicken specifically for the soup. Easy prep and easy cooking mean easy clean-up!
- It only takes about 30 minutes to make up a batch of Mexican chicken soup, so it’s perfect for busy evenings or low-energy days.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions or variations listed are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
Mexican Chicken Soup
Equipment
- large dutch oven or other large, heavy-bottomed pot
- Large wooden spoon or silicone spatula
Ingredients
For the Mexican Chicken Soup
- 1 tablespoon neutral-flavored oil avocado oil, olive oil, etc.
- 1 cup diced white onion approximately 1 small onion
- ½ cup chopped carrots approximately 1 medium carrot
- ½ cup chopped celery approximately 1 medium stalk
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh garlic approximately 6 large cloves
- 4 cups chicken stock low-sodium if preferred
- 1 14.5-ounce can crushed tomatoes do not drain
- 1 large jalapeño stem and seeds removed, pepper finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon salt more or less to taste
- 3 cups shredded cooked chicken
Serving Suggestions (All Optional)
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- tortilla strips
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Place large pot on stovetop over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon neutral-flavored oil and continue heating pot until oil is hot and shimmery.
- When oil is hot, add 1 cup diced white onion, ½ cup chopped carrots, and ½ cup chopped celery to pot. Stir to incorporate. Sauté vegetables, stirring often, approximately 10 minutes or until vegetables have softened and onions are translucent.
- Once vegetables have softened, add 3 tablespoons minced fresh garlic to pot and stir to incorporate. Sauté ingredients, stirring occasionally, 30 to 60 seconds or until garlic is just fragrant.
- When garlic is fragrant, pour 4 cups chicken stock into pot. Stir to incorporate stock, scraping bottom of pot with spoon or spatula to loosen any vegetables that may have stuck to pot.
- Add 1 14.5-ounce can crushed tomatoes, 1 large jalapeño, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, and 1 teaspoon salt to pot. Stir to incorporate.
- Increase heat under pot to high and bring liquid to boil.
- Once liquid begins to boil, immediately reduce heat under pot to low. Simmer soup, uncovered, 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, add 3 cups shredded cooked chicken to pot and stir to incorporate. Simmer soup approximately 5 minutes or until chicken is warmed through.
- Add ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro to pot and stir until cilantro is just incorporated.
- Once cilantro is incorporated, ladle soup into serving bowls. Garnish with tortilla strips and lime wedges if desired. Serve immediately.
- Chicken: Chicken breast meat or chicken thigh meat will both work fine in this soup. You can cook chicken specifically for this recipe, or you can pick up a fully-cooked rotisserie chicken and shred it for the soup.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can! Prepare the soup as written, then let it cool completely. Transfer it to an airtight container, then place it in the freezer. It’ll keep up to 2 months! Just defrost it in the fridge overnight then reheat it on the stove or in the microwave.
Other Easy Soup Recipes You’ll Love
- Leftover Turkey Tortilla Soup
- Creamy Everything Bagel Chicken Soup
- Creamy Zucchini Soup
- Turnip Green Soup
- Jalapeño Popper Soup
- Kale and White Bean Soup
- Tom Yum Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken and Rice Soup
- Chicken Parmesan Soup
- Udon Soup
- Gluten-Free Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Chili’s Southwest Chicken Soup
- Instant Pot Cajun Chicken Pasta Soup
- Popcorn Soup
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