Chicken Enchilada Soup
The ultimate comfort food, this creamy and flavorful Chicken Enchilada Soup is perfect for a cozy night in. With a delightful blend of spices and tender chicken, it’s an easy weeknight dinner that everyone will love!
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- Chef's Knife
- Wooden Spoon
- Skillet
- Whisk
- Frying Pan
- Oven
- Cutting Board
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs patted dry OR rotisserie chicken (see notes)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil divided
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tablespoons chili powder NOT cayenne pepper; see notes
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 yellow onion diced; may sub 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 4-6 cloves garlic minced; may sub 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 9 cups reduced sodium chicken broth divided
- 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- pinch cinnamon
- 1 15 oz. fire-roasted tomatoes not drained
- 1 15 oz. black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 15 oz. sweet corn rinsed and drained
- 1 14 oz. mild diced green chilies
- 3/4 cup masa harina see notes
- 4 oz. cream cheese cubed, very soft
- 4 oz. freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- Lime juice to taste
- Tortilla chips or crushed tortilla strips
- Sour cream for serving
- Tomatoes for garnish
- Avocados for garnish
- Hot sauce to taste
- Cilantro for garnish
- Lime juice for garnish
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Season the chicken thighs with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken to the pot. Sear until golden, which should take about 2 minutes per side. The goal is to create a nice crust that locks in the juices. Remove the chicken to a plate but make sure to keep the drippings in the pot.
- While the chicken is searing, whisk together all your seasonings: chili powder, ground cumin, ground coriander, smoked paprika, salt, and dried oregano. Set this spice mix aside. The aroma of this blend will elevate your soup.
- In the same pot that held the chicken, add one additional tablespoon of olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion and all the seasonings you prepared. Sauté for about 4 minutes, stirring often and scraping up the golden bits from the bottom of the pan. This will give your soup a wonderful depth of flavor.
- After the onion has softened, stir in the tomato paste and minced garlic. Sauté for an additional 60 seconds. The key here is to let the tomato paste caramelize slightly; it adds incredible flavor to your soup.
- Next, reduce the heat to low and return the seared chicken back to the pot. Reserve about 2 cups of the chicken broth (eyeballing it is fine) and add the remaining broth to the pot. Stir in the cocoa powder, sugar, cinnamon, black beans, corn, fire-roasted tomatoes, and green chilies. This mixture should start to bubble and smell heavenly.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the masa harina with the reserved chicken broth until no lumps remain. Stir this mixture into the soup; this will help thicken your broth beautifully.
- Cover the soup and let it come to a gentle simmer. Displace the lid so that it’s partially covering the pot and leave about a one-inch opening. Simmer for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken is tender enough to shred. The flavors will meld together beautifully during this time.
- Once the chicken is tender, remove it from the pot and let it rest on a cutting board for about 5 minutes. After resting, shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. It should pull apart effortlessly.
- Meanwhile, reduce the heat to low and stir in the cream cheese until melted, followed by the shredded cheddar cheese until it’s smooth and creamy. This step adds a rich texture that makes the soup incredibly indulgent.
- Finally, stir the shredded chicken back into the soup. Add chopped cilantro and adjust with lime juice to taste. If the soup is too thick for your liking, feel free to add more broth to achieve your desired consistency. Taste and season with additional salt, pepper, or hot sauce if you wish. Serve the soup hot alongside tortilla chips and your favorite toppings!
Notes
Rotisserie chicken: sub chicken thighs with about 3 cups shredded chicken to the soup at the end of cooking with the cilantro and heat through.
Masa harina: should be easy to find at your grocery store in the flour aisle or Latin aisle. Look for finely ground as opposed to coarse ground which is used in tamales. The most common type is white masa harina, which is made from dried white corn or you can also use yellow masa harina, which is made from dried yellow corn. The white is a bit sweeter, but both will work. You may or may not see “instant” on the label – both will work great.
CHILI POWDER INTERNATIONAL WARNING: American Chili powder is a blend of chilies, cumin, garlic powder, and herbs with a ratio of one-part cayenne to seven parts the other spices. Chili powders sold in other parts of the world, however, are 100% chile pepper and 8X hotter than chili powder! So, please use American-style chili powder to make this recipe or your mouth will be on FIRE!
Prep Ahead. You can trim the chicken, chop your onions, garlic and cilantro in advance and store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can prep all your topping ahead of time or while yours soup is simmering.
Make it less thick. I love my soup thick BUT the consistency of this Chicken Enchilada Soup is totally up to you! For a thinner soup, simply add additional chicken broth.
Use soft cream cheese. In order for your cream cheese to melt seamlessly, it needs to be very soft. Cube the cream cheese and microwave for 20-30 seconds until very soft.
Make it less creamy. You can use more or less cream cheese depending on how creamy you would like your soup. You can even omit it completely and add some sour cream and extra cheese.
Cheese: Use freshly shredded cheeses as opposed to pre-packaged cheeses so the cheese will melt seamlessly. Packaged cheeses are treated with anti-clumping chemicals which prevents the cheese from melting as well.
Double the recipe. This soup is fabulous for crowds and can be easily doubled ahead of time and reheated later.
Season to taste. Spice it up with hot sauce or cayenne pepper, add lime juice for more tanginess, add salt to enhance the flavors.
Omit dairy. Prepare soup according to directions but omit the cream cheese and cheddar.
Cool. Cool Chicken Enchilada Soup completely before freezing.
Package soup in a freezer safe container. You can use sandwich size plastic bags for individual soup portions, quart size bags or freezer bags. To easy fill these bags, place them in a container that you can wrap the top around the edge of – for example, place a sandwich size bag in a mug then cuff the edges around the mug. This keeps the bag open and prevents it from collapsing when you are pouring in your Chicken Enchilada Soup. Final packaging tip, make sure to let out any excess air before you seal.
Label. Make sure to label your bags so it doesn’t become a freezer mystery. You also want to label so you can be sure to use your soup within 3 months.
Freeze. Once the bag is solid you can lay it flat in a single layer so it’s stackable to save space.
Defrost/Reheat. The easiest way to thaw your soup is in your refrigerator overnight then reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Add dairy. Once the soup is warm, stir in cream cheese until melted followed by cheese until melted.
Masa harina: should be easy to find at your grocery store in the flour aisle or Latin aisle. Look for finely ground as opposed to coarse ground which is used in tamales. The most common type is white masa harina, which is made from dried white corn or you can also use yellow masa harina, which is made from dried yellow corn. The white is a bit sweeter, but both will work. You may or may not see “instant” on the label – both will work great.
CHILI POWDER INTERNATIONAL WARNING: American Chili powder is a blend of chilies, cumin, garlic powder, and herbs with a ratio of one-part cayenne to seven parts the other spices. Chili powders sold in other parts of the world, however, are 100% chile pepper and 8X hotter than chili powder! So, please use American-style chili powder to make this recipe or your mouth will be on FIRE!
Prep Ahead. You can trim the chicken, chop your onions, garlic and cilantro in advance and store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can prep all your topping ahead of time or while yours soup is simmering.
Make it less thick. I love my soup thick BUT the consistency of this Chicken Enchilada Soup is totally up to you! For a thinner soup, simply add additional chicken broth.
Use soft cream cheese. In order for your cream cheese to melt seamlessly, it needs to be very soft. Cube the cream cheese and microwave for 20-30 seconds until very soft.
Make it less creamy. You can use more or less cream cheese depending on how creamy you would like your soup. You can even omit it completely and add some sour cream and extra cheese.
Cheese: Use freshly shredded cheeses as opposed to pre-packaged cheeses so the cheese will melt seamlessly. Packaged cheeses are treated with anti-clumping chemicals which prevents the cheese from melting as well.
Double the recipe. This soup is fabulous for crowds and can be easily doubled ahead of time and reheated later.
Season to taste. Spice it up with hot sauce or cayenne pepper, add lime juice for more tanginess, add salt to enhance the flavors.
Omit dairy. Prepare soup according to directions but omit the cream cheese and cheddar.
Cool. Cool Chicken Enchilada Soup completely before freezing.
Package soup in a freezer safe container. You can use sandwich size plastic bags for individual soup portions, quart size bags or freezer bags. To easy fill these bags, place them in a container that you can wrap the top around the edge of – for example, place a sandwich size bag in a mug then cuff the edges around the mug. This keeps the bag open and prevents it from collapsing when you are pouring in your Chicken Enchilada Soup. Final packaging tip, make sure to let out any excess air before you seal.
Label. Make sure to label your bags so it doesn’t become a freezer mystery. You also want to label so you can be sure to use your soup within 3 months.
Freeze. Once the bag is solid you can lay it flat in a single layer so it’s stackable to save space.
Defrost/Reheat. The easiest way to thaw your soup is in your refrigerator overnight then reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Add dairy. Once the soup is warm, stir in cream cheese until melted followed by cheese until melted.