It's officially spring, but the weather has been a little uncooperative this year! It's still so chilly in the Philadelphia area. Although I'm looking forward to the warmer weather, more chilly weather does means at least one good thing: I can still enjoy my soup!
A few weeks ago, I tried Chick-fil-A's tortilla soup for the first time. I believe it's a limited time item? I've tasted other tortilla soups and have to say that I wasn't a big fan so I didn't have really high hopes. I was pleasantly surprised! Their version is much creamier than other versions I've tried and it is spicy without being too spicy. It's also heavy on the beans, kind of like a chicken chili - I really enjoyed it. In fact, I enjoyed it so much so that I set out to recreate the soup at home, especially since I'm trying to add more fiber rich foods to my diet.
I didn't have much luck finding a copycat recipe online so I created my own version and was really happy with the results. I purchased a small bowl from Chick-fil-A to do a side-by-side taste test after my version was finished. My husband also tried both versions and was very complimentary.
Although they tasted quite similar, the homemade soup was much more flavorful and had a much "fresher" taste compared to the fast food version. I suppose that shouldn't be surprising.
This soup is comfort food that's actually healthy. Yay! Now, that's definitely a good thing!
Although I opted to eat the soup plain, it would be even better topped with shredded cheese, sour cream, cilantro, and/or tortilla strips. And if time, allows make a quick and easy homemade chicken stock to include in this soup and make sure to make extra for freezing!
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📖 Recipe
chicken tortilla soup
Ingredients
- 32 ounces White beans (Northern or Navy), (2 cans), drained and rinsed
- 1 cup Black beans (about ½ can) drained and rinsed
- 1 cup Corn (about ½ can)
- 4.5 ounces Green chili peppers diced (1 small can)
- 3 cups Chicken broth up to 4 cups
- ½ large Red bell pepper finely diced
- 1 medium Celery stick finely diced
- 1 medium Onion , 1 medium, finely diced
- 2 cloves Garlic finely minced (or 2 teaspoons garlic powder)
- 2 tablespoon Canola oil
- 4 tablespoon Sour cream
- 4 tablespoon Corn flour (Masa - see photo), 4 tablespoons
- 1 teaspoon Salt or to taste
- 2 tablespoon Chili powder
- 1 tablespoon Cumin
- 2 tablespoon Fresh lemon juice
- 2 small Chicken breasts cooked and shredded
- Tortilla chips , optional to serve
Instructions
- In a large dutch oven, heat canola oil over medium high heat and add onion, celery and garlic and heat until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes
- Add white beans, black beans, corn, green chilis, bell pepper, and chicken broth to the pot and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally
- Add sour cream and continue heating for 1 minute
- Add corn flour, salt, chili powder, cumin, and lemon juice and continue heating for 15 minutes
- Check seasonings, adding more if needed.
- Add shredded chicken and continue cooking until chicken is heated, about 2 more minutes
- Serve with tortilla strips/chips (optional)
Yanisse Berrios says
Anyone know what the serving size is to match the nutritional facts? IT'S DELICIOUS! But not trying to go crazy with portions...
Donna Johnson says
I made this tonight and yes... it is even better than Chick-Fil-a’s!!!!!! The only thing I changed was the chicken. Instead of shredding it I pan seared it and cubed it before adding it. My husband ate 3 bowls and asked me to put it on the “make it again” list. 😊
Lindsay says
My husband really enjoyed this soup. I thought it was good, but when I squeezed some fresh lime juice right before serving, it made it absolutely amazing! Tasted so fresh. Thanks for this recipe, already plan to make it again
Marie says
Ohhh good tip thanks!!
Ryan says
Great soup!!! Not too far away from Chic Fila’s!!! They still have something unusual about theirs. Nonetheless this recipe is going into the catalog!!!!
Brenda Young says
I think this recipe comes close to the real thing. But I added lentils. Yum