Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup
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Creamy chicken enchilada soup includes a tortilla puree for a silky, creamy consistency. Make this recipe for a flavorful, creamy tortilla soup!
Big batches of soup are a great option for simple dinners or easy leftover lunches.
The secret to this green chile chicken soup is to use seasoned chicken broth and a homemade tortilla puree that you will make by blending corn tortillas with some green enchilada sauce.
Also, it gets a smooth, creamy texture at the end by melting in a blend of shredded Monterey Jack and cream cheese.
While this soup is hearty enough on its own, a green side salad or loaf of crusty bread would make a great addition as well. For another tasty Mexican classic soup, try me easy Caldo de Res recipe!
Ingredient notes for creamy chicken enchilada soup
Note: This is just a partial list of ingredients. For the full ingredient list, see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Chili powder – It’s easy to make your own homemade chili powder with fresh ingredients and spices.
- Oregano – While using Mexican oregano will give a more authentic flavor to this recipe, whatever you have on hand will work just fine.
- Chicken breasts – Save time by using the breasts from a rotisserie chicken, or use either boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenders and cook with the soup.
- Enchilada sauce and chicken broth – If you don’t want to make your own, store-bought will work just fine.
- Shredded cheese – Use either Monterey Jack or sharp cheddar and shred it yourself. Bagged shreds have a preservative that prevents them from melting properly.
Video: Making creamy chicken enchilada soup
This recipe comes together in about an hour and is simple to make. Just combine fresh ingredients with homemade purees, then simmer until it’s done!
To see it made from start to finish, watch the video located in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Instructions
Make the tortilla puree
- Chop the chicken and vegetables and measure out the spices.
- Make the green enchilada sauce if needed.
- Use a blender or food processor to blend the tortillas, water, and enchilada sauce.
Saute the onions and spices
- Heat the oil in a dutch oven or large pot and saute the onions for a few minutes.
- Stir in the spices and continue cooking until the onions start to brown.
Add the chicken and liquids
- Stir in the cubed chicken. If raw, cook until browned on all sides.
- Gently whisk to combine the tortilla puree and chicken broth and bring to a boil.
- Simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes.
Finish and serve
- Add the cheeses and simmer the chicken enchilada soup until melted, stirring well to combine.
- For a smoother soup, puree with an immersion blender.
- Ladle into bowls and add any desired toppings.
Chicken enchilada soup recipe notes
- Storage – Transfer leftover soup to an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Reheating – Add the soup to a saucepan and heat on the stove until warmed through. Stir occasionally to avoid any burning on the bottom of the pan.
- Freezing – Soups with dairy do not freeze well because the texture becomes unpleasant once thawed and reheated. Instead, you can store the creamy tortilla soup without the cheeses and add them in later. Keep in the freezer for 4 to 6 months, then thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
- Handling peppers – It’s best to wear gloves when handling chile peppers, especially when seeding. The oils can burn when transferred to the skin or eyes, and it’s easy to miss some spots when washing with soap and water.
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This post, originally published on Kevin is Cooking Oct. 22, 2018, was last updated with new content on Oct. 20, 2021.
Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup + Video
Ingredients
Tortilla Puree
- 8 corn tortillas (6-inch round)
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups green enchilada sauce
Soup
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion diced (about 2 cups)
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp chili seasoning (See Note 1)
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp oregano (See Note 2)
- 1 lb chicken breasts (See Note 3)
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 8 oz cream cheese cheese (room temp) cut into small cubes
- 8 oz Monterey Jack cheese (or sharp cheddar cheese)
Toppings (optional)
- 1 Roma tomato diced
- 1 jalapeño seeded and diced
- cilantro chopped
- Sour cream or Mexican crema
Instructions
- If using raw chicken: Slice chicken into strips and then cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces, set aside.
- Tear the tortillas into quarters and add to a blender. Add the water and enchilada sauce. Purée until smooth. Set aside.
- In a large dutch oven add the olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, salt, chili powder, cumin, oregano and stir. Cook for another minute or until onions are translucent and starting to get some color.
- Add the diced chicken pieces to the dutch oven, stirring to mix. If using raw chicken, cook for 4 minutes until no longer pink. If using cooked rotisserie chicken that you cubed, stir.
- Pour in the puréed tortilla/enchilada mix and chicken broth. Stir well and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes on low heat.
- Add the Monterey Jack cheese (or cheddar cheese) and cream cheese. Stir well and simmer until melted on low. Leave soup chunky OR use a stick blender to puree.
- Serve the soup with toppings (optional).
Video
Notes
- I make my own chili powder and you can find the recipe here.
- I like to use Mexican oregano in my Latin cooking as it has a more authentic flavor. If you can’t find Mexican oregano, please, by all means use whatever oregano you have on hand. A LITTLE INFORMATION FOR YOU ON THE TWO DIFFERENT OREGANOS: Mexican oregano is a relative of Lemon Verbena and is native to Mexico. Similar in that it’s pungent like Mediterranean oregano, Mexican oregano has notes of mild licorice and citrus. Mediterranean oregano is a member of the mint family and most often is used in Greek and Italian recipes. Mediterranean oregano is the one most found in spice racks and supermarkets.
- Either use cooked rotisserie chicken breasts cubed, OR boneless skinless (or chicken tenders).
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Soup season is finally here!! YEEEY This will be my first one this year!
Thanks and I hope you enjoy this one Diego, I have lots on the site so take a look around. Cheers!
Tried this two days ago, and it is as good as it looks ! I used a 28 oz can of enchilada sauce, and multiplied other ingredients by 1.75. I used frozen chicken tenders, and was concerned about how much the added broth would affect the weight of the chicken, so I added a few more ounces. I will probably add more chicken next time. Is the cream cheese supposed to melt and add thickness, or should there be chunks left ? Oh, and sour cream really went well with it.
Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know Mike. The cream cheese should melt and help thicken the soup, yes. I adjusted the recipe to note that it should be room temp to clarify. Cheers!
Enchiladas with green chili sauce is one of my favorite Mexican dishes so you know I would really enjoy this soup.
Thanks Karen, it’s wonderful, filling actually freezes well, too. 🙂
This is my version of comfort food! I’m surprised the soup is so red – I expected green! Love the ingredients.
With a freshly made batch of chili powder and some cheddar cheese in there it is. When I make with just Monterey Jack cheese it shows more green Mimi.
This looks like the coziest bowl of soup EVER Kevin! And so packed with flavor. I’ll need to add this one to our weekly soup menu. And perfect for game day with friends too! I’m on it!
Definitely Mary Ann. We’re having some before seeing the Notre Dame vs Navy game tonight here at Qualcomm. 🙂
This soup is giving me all the comfy, cozy vibes!! I absolutely love enchiladas, so the fact that you turned them into a slurp-able soup is making me want to do a happy dance! Send napkins – drooling over here! Pinned! Cheers!
It really does taste like enchiladas, it’s so darn good. It’s like your mouth feels soup, but your head says enchilada. 🙂
Drooling over here! I love enchilada soup and yours looks just perfect! Definitely putting this one on the menu!
Hey Kevin! We just had green chile chicken enchiladas!! With the cooler weather this is going on my list. I’ve got a horrible cold and this would definitely be a great comfort! I like the addition of the corn tortillas, I can just taste how good this is!
How funny Dorothy, great timing. 🙂 Hope you feel better soon!
This looks so delicious and perfect for this suddenly chilly weather we’re having! Love how you thicken it with tortillas. The flavor must be awesome! Have to try it!
The corn tortillas are the perfect add for thickening as well as flavor Kelly. Thanks!
What a delicious bowl of soup and talk about comforting! Getting this one on the menu asap. This cold weather has me craving alllll the comfort food!
It has a beautiful consistency and is so flavorful Dawn. Hope you like it!