Spicy Mexican Chicken Soup

This Spicy Mexican Chicken Soup has a spicy edge with a ton of flavour.  I had a craving for a spicy soup but had thawed chicken breast in the fridge that I needed to use up.  So this soup was born….

Take me to the Recipe

Before putting together my version of this soup, I did take a look at Ree Drummond’s Slow Cooker Mexican Chicken Soup recipe for inspiration.  Some things are similar and some things are different but I was definitely inspired by her recipe so wanted to give credit there! 

I took my chicken breast and diced it into bite sized pieces.  To be honest, when I make this soup again, I will use chicken thighs instead of breast because I think the flavour is better.  While you could make this soup on the stove top, I used my Breville Pressure Cooker which has functions to slow cook, pressure cook, sear, steam, saute and reduce.  I LOVE my Breville which I got for Christmas last year.  It has truly been a game changer for me.  And YES, I love to get kitchen stuff for Christmas!

Amazon sells them — If you are interested, the link is on the right hand side of the page.

If you are watching the prices though, I have heard really rave reviews about the Instant Pot which comes in at a lower price point but has a ton of functionality. I must be honest though, I have not personally used the Instant Pot.  The link for that is also on the side of this post.

I hope these links are helpful for you.  We are a participant in the Amazon Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.  We always put a jump to the recipe button in that allows you to skip all the links but you will miss my glorious editorializing about the recipe then!

Anyways, I put my Breville on the sear function and added some oil to heat up.  I then tossed in the chopped chicken and seasoned it with some sea salt and pepper.  I added a chopped onion and finely diced garlic.  When the chicken has a nice sear on it and the onion and garlic is soft, add some chili powder, dried oregano, cayenne and cumin.  I mixed that up.  Add a can of diced tomatoes in their juice, a can of rinsed black beans, and a can of corn, drained.  Then, toss in a diced sweet potato or two, three chopped chipotle chiles in adobo sauce,  and one to two dried poblano peppers crushed.  Finally, I add enough chicken broth to get the consistency I like.  I used about 4 cups in this version of this soup.

I then changed the setting on my Breville to slow cooker and put it on high for 5 hours.  At this point, it babysits itself for the cook time.  That makes it a great choice when you are going to be pressed for time around mealtime.  To finish and serve this soup, I open the lid and taste the broth and adjust the seasonings to my liking.

I slice some corn tortillas into 1/4 inch strips and then in half length wise.  Heat a fry pan with enough oil deep enough to shallow fry the tortilla strips.  Fry the strips until crispy.  Work in batches if necessary so you don’t crowd the pan or you will end up with strips that are soft in some spots and crispy in other spots.  When the tortillas are crispy, pull them out of the and place them on some paper towel to drain the oil off.  Before they dry however, take some sea salt and sprinkle it over the tortilla strips.  Mmmmmm…

To serve the soup, ladle the soup into the bowl, then top with crispy tortilla strips and a squirt of lime juice.  Finish with shredded cilantro (unless it tastes like soap, in which case, omit the cilantro!)  You could also drizzle some sour cream over it if you feel like it.  My photos don’t show that but I think it would be good.

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Spicy Mexican Chicken Soup

This soup warms you from the inside out on those cold wintry days.

Course Soup

Cuisine Canadian

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 5 hours

Total Time 5 hours 15 minutes

Servings 6

Calories 336 kcal

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp oil
• 12 ounces chicken thighs
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 4 cloves garlic large, minced
• 1 tbsp chile powder
• 1 tbsp oregano dried
• 1 tsp cayenne powder
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 14 ounce tomatoes diced and canned
• 14 ounce black beans canned and rinsed
• 1 corn canned and drained
• 1 sweet potato large, peeled and diced
• 3 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce finely chopped
• 2 poblano chiles dried and crushed
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 4 corn tortillas small
• 1/3 cup oil enough to fry the tortilla strips

Instructions

1. Chop chicken into bite sized pieces.

2. Set multi-pot function to sear and add the oil to heat up.

3. Add chopped chicken to the hot multi-pot and season generously with salt and pepper.

4. Add onion and garlic to the pot and cook until the chicken has a nice sear on it and the vegetables are soft.

5. Add chile powder, oregano, cayenne and cumin and stir.

6. Add canned ingredients.

7. Add sweet potato, chipotle chiles and adobo sauce and the poblano peppers.

8. Add chicken broth and stir all ingredients together.

9. Set multi-pot to slow cooker function on high and cook for 4 to 6 hours.

10. Taste the broth and adjust the seasonings for your taste.  Add salt, pepper, chicken broth or more heat if required!  You could add some tomato paste if you like a more tomatoey flavour to the soup.

11. To finalize and serve, take a fry pan and fill with sufficient oil to pan fry the tortilla strips.  Make sure you don't crowd the pan so all strips crisp up and you don't end up with soft spots.  Once the strips are crispy, remove to a paper towel lined plate and immediately season with sea salt.

12. Ladle the soup into the bowl and prop the tortilla strips on top so they don't get soggy.  Add a spritz of lime juice, some sliced avocado and some cilantro.

13. Serve and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

The calorie counts do not include the oil from frying the tortilla strips.