Add this Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup to your dinner plans asap! With a base of enchilada sauce thickened with corn tortillas and both sharp cheddar and cream cheeses, the soup is hearty and rich. Pops of texture come from tender chicken, sweet corn, and earthy black beans. And the best part? You can top this delicious bowl with any number of tasty toppings. Add cool avocado, crisp tortilla strips, peppery radishes, fresh cilantro, you name it! It will be a hit with the whole family.
This soup can be prepared right on the stove top or you can set it and forget it by preparing it in the slow cooker. The slow cooker method is perfect if you have a crew that is eating at all times of the evening thanks to sports or band practice. You can have the soup ready to go and keep it warm while fresh toppings are added by your hungry diners as needed.
Leftover rotisserie chicken is perfect in this easy soup! Grab one and make two recipes at once for meal prep magic. This Grilled Chicken Chopped Salad, Chicken Pot Pie with Puff Pastry Crust, or this Chicken Pecan Salad, are all great options.
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Ingredients
I include ingredient notes here when I think they'll be helpful, including ways to source, any preparation tips, or why I've chosen a particular ingredient. Be sure to check out the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and their quantities!
- Garlic - No need to mince or press the garlic cloves for this soup! A rough chop will be enough to have it break down while simmering with the other ingredients.
- Sharp Cheddar - A generous handful of sharp cheddar adds flavor and creamy texture to the soup without it being too heavy.
- Corn Tortillas - Corn tortillas provide thickening power to the soup. We are much more likely to have some corn tortillas on hand than masa harina, which is a common addition to enchilada soup.
- Cooked Chicken - Use leftover rotisserie chicken, canned chicken, or even leftover turkey for the soup. You can dice the chicken or shred it, whichever texture you prefer.
- Ground Spices - This soup has a rich flavor thanks to the addition of cumin, chili powder, onion powder, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.
- Chicken Stock - Use a boxed or canned chicken stock or broth for this recipe Of grab 2 cups of water with the recommended amount of bouillon cubes, powder, or paste.
- Tomato Sauce - Canned tomato sauce is smooth in texture and bright in flavor and builds a light tomato base for the soup.
- Enchilada Sauce - Use your favorite red enchilada sauce here. If you want the soup to be spicy, use a hot enchilada sauce. We use a mild one and add hot sauce right to the individual bowls to keep the spice level tolerable for the kids.
- Cream Cheese - It doesn't take much, but a couple of ounces of cream cheese really help build that creamy soup texture.
- Black Beans - Use one can of black beans and be sure to drain and rinse them well.
- Corn - Choose canned corn for the easiest option. You can also add frozen corn that has been thawed or fresh corn right off the cob in summer!
Instructions
Prep your garlic by peeling it and giving it a rough chop. Chop the tortillas. Shred the cheese and cube or shred the chicken, if necessary.
Add the garlic, tortilla pieces, onion powder, salt, cumin, chili powder, cayenne, black pepper, stock, enchilada sauce, and tomato sauce to a large pot or Dutch oven.
Bring the soup ingredients to a boil and then reduce the heat to maintain a slow simmer for 20 minutes, or until the tortillas are tender. Stir the pot occasionally to ensure the tortillas do not stick to the bottom.
Add the shredded sharp cheddar and cream cheese to the soup.
Blend the soup using an immersion blender. Alternatively, transfer ladles full of the soup to a standard blender covered with a kitchen towel in place of the lid. This will allow steam to escape and save you from redecorating your kitchen cabinets with soup!
Blend until the soup is creamy and uniform in texture.
Add the chicken, beans, and corn to the soup.
Stir the ingredients well and heat the soup on medium until everything is warmed through, about 3-5 minutes.
Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup
To prepare this soup in the slow cooker or Crock Pot, add all ingredients except the chicken, corn, black beans, and any desired toppings to the crock of the slow cooker. Place the lid on the cooker and cook for 4-6 hours on low. You want to make sure the tortillas are tender before proceeding. Blend the soup with an immersion blender and add the chicken, corn, and black beans. Replace the lid and allow the soup to heat through for 10 minutes before serving with your toppings.
Equipment
Here are some great kitchen tools and equipment to help make this tasty soup with minimum effort:
- Immersion Blender - An immersion blender or stick blender will make quick work of this creamy enchilada soup, blending the corn tortillas into a smooth texture. Immersion blenders save you the step of transferring your hot soup to a blender and back again to the soup pot. They are also great for smoothies, dressings, marinades, and making homemade aioli. If you don't have an immersion blender, your standard blender is the best alternative. Take care to blend the soup in batches and place a towel over the top instead of the lid, allowing steam to escape.
- Dutch Oven - An enameled cast iron Dutch oven is a great pot to have in your kitchen for all sorts of recipes. They can go from stove top to oven, are good for deep frying, and are perfect for stews, braises, and soups. The Dutch oven provides even heating for the soup and tortillas without scorching.
- Wooden Spoons - I purchased my favorite wooden spoon in college and still use the same one to this day! The one pictured in this post is especially good for scraping along the bottom edges of pots.
Serving Suggestions
Garnishing this soup is the best part! There are so many delicious toppings for this soup, use anything from the list below:
- Fried tortillas strips
- Avocado
- Radishes
- Cilantro
- Lime wedges
- Sliced jalapeno
- Sour cream
- Cotija cheese or additional shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- Chopped onions
Make This Recipe Kid Friendly
The mild Tex-Mex flavors in this soup are kid friendly right from the start. The fun comes in letting the kids DIY their bowl with all of the toppings they love! This DIY dinner strategy is part of this big post on Keeping Peace with Picky Eaters. Take a peek and find some new dinner time strategies to help bring some harmony to family dinner.
Storage and Make-Ahead Options
Store your leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. This soup reheats really well, making it a perfect option for meal prep lunches for the week. Store any preferred toppings like tortilla strips, lime, or avocado separately. You can reheat your soup and then add the fresh toppings to preserve their crunchy texture.
You can also store batches of creamy chicken enchilada soup in the freezer for busy weeks where you need a zero-effort meal. Freeze the soup in airtight containers. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 24 hours before reheating to avoid trying to reheat a semi-frozen block of soup. Reheat large batches of the soup in a saucepan on the stove, or smaller batches in the microwave.
FAQ
A lot of the flavors are similar, but this creamy chicken enchilada soup uses corn tortillas, sharp cheddar, and cream cheese to create a thick and creamy texture. While chicken tortilla soup uses diced tomatoes and Rotel to create a tomato base, this enchilada soup uses enchilada sauce and tomato sauce. Both soup options are even better with plenty of fresh toppings!
I have successfully used my Instant Pot to prepare this soup, however I have also experienced the dreaded "burn" message. The tortillas can stick to the bottom of the pot and cause the burn issue, so I recommend the slow cooker or stove top method.
Yes! Start with a vegetarian stock for the base of the soup. Substitute the chicken with additional beans and corn or add a plant based shredded chicken.
Tex-Mex Dinner Favorites
We have plenty of Tex-Mex inspired dinners on heavy rotation. Here are some of the favorites:
More Recipes with Corn
Adding some sweet kernels of corn to your dinner is easy thanks to fresh local corn in summer and frozen corn during the rest of the year. Try any of the recipes below to take advantage of fresh corn when it's available:
Try It and Share
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Recipe
Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup
Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3 oz sharp cheddar
- 3 corn tortillas (6-inch size)
- 2 cups chicken breast (cooked and cubed or shredded)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin (ground)
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper (ground)
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (ground)
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 8 oz tomato sauce
- 19 oz red enchilada sauce
- 2 oz cream cheese
- 15 oz black beans (canned, drained and rinsed)
- 15 oz corn (canned, drained)
- lime wedges, tortilla strips, avocado chunks, sour cream, or cilantro (for toppings)
Instructions
- Peel and roughly chop the garlic cloves. Shred the cheddar cheese. Roughly chop the tortillas. Cube or shred the cooked chicken.
- Add the garlic, tortilla pieces, salt, onion powder, cumin, chili powder, black and cayenne pepper, stock, tomato sauce, and enchilada sauce to a large stock pot or Dutch oven.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 20-25 minutes, until the tortillas are tender, stirring occasionally to prevent the tortillas from sticking.
- Add the cream cheese and shredded cheddar and use an immersion blender to process the soup until smooth. Alternatively, transfer the soup in batches to a blender and blend until smooth. Use a kitchen towel in place of the blender top to allow steam to escape if you use a standard blender.
- Stir in the cooked chicken, black beans, and corn. Heat for 3-5 minutes on medium until all ingredients are warmed through. Serve with desired toppings.
Notes
Nutrition facts are sometimes provided below and are calculated using an online calculator. With specific brands of ingredients and additions, omissions, or substitutions the nutrition facts may change. We encourage you to use your own nutrition facts calculator to obtain the most accurate nutrition facts for your meal.
Cassie Waltman says
This soup is a great addition to the meal plan rotation all year round!