Instant Pot Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup
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This easy spicy chicken tortilla soup recipe is filled with vibrant flavors that blend perfectly together! It’s a comforting and satisfying bowl of soup that everyone will love.
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Tender chicken, juicy tomatoes, spicy jalapeno peppers and back beans never tasted so good! That’s because electric pressure cookers (aka Instant Pot) make soups like chicken tortilla soup and mushroom barley soup taste amazing.
What you’ll love about this recipe
Here is what you will need to make spicy chicken tortilla soup
This is a summary of the ingredients needed to make this recipe and a convenient shopping list from my Instacart affiliate link. For a printable recipe card with exact measurements and detailed instructions, scroll down to the recipe card section.
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Ingredients
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless chicken thighs
- Diced tomatoes – fresh or canned
- Red bell pepper, orange or yellow will work too
- Green bell pepper
- Fresh jalapeno pepper, pickled jalapenos or cayenne pepper
- Medium onion
- Garlic
- Cumin
- Chili powder
- Dried oregano
- Black beans, pinto or kidney beans
- Corn, fresh, frozen or canned
- Fresh cilantro
- Freshly squeezed lime juice
- Water
Here is how to make instant pot chicken tortilla soup
Prepare the Ingredients: Chop the vegetables, and cilantro, measure the spices, drain and rinse the beans, squeeze the lime juice, and measure the tomatoes. Set the electric pressure cooker to the saute setting and add the oil.
STEP 1. Once the instant pot is hot, add the chicken and cook for a few minutes until it turns brown, flip it over and brown the side.
STEP 2. Turn the saute setting off, and add spices, chopped peppers, onions, garlic and corn.
STEP 3. Pour the tomatoes and water over the ingredients that are in the Instant Pot.Cover the pressure cooker and cook on high setting 15 minutes and slow-release for 5 to 8 minutes.
STEP 4. With the pressure cooker on the warm setting, remove the chicken from the soup and shred it with two forks.
STEP 5. Return the shredded chicken back to the instant pot.
STEP 6. Stir in the beans, cilantro, and lime juice; cover loosely to keep warm until it’s time to serve. To serve the soup, ladle it into a bowl and top it with crushed tortilla chips and your favorite toppings.
Fresh Cilantro – Not a lover of cilantro? You can leave it out but will change the flavor of the soup.
How to make chicken tortilla soup on top of the stove
- Place the chicken into a large saucepan and add water. Cover and bring the chicken to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
- While the chicken is cooking, saute the garlic, onions, peppers and spices until they begin to soften. Set them aside until the chicken is cooked.
- Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pot and shred it. Add the shredded chicken back to the pot with the water and stir in the sauteed vegetables, tomatoes, corn, and beans.
- Reduce to low heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in the cilantro, crushed chips, lime juice and serve.
Serving suggestions
A hearty bowl of chicken tortilla soup is perfect for a quick and healthy dinner. We like to serve it with a side salad like this loaded chopped salad or spinach salad.
Don’t forget the toppings! Our favorites are crushed tortilla chips, corn tortillas, slices of avocado, lime wedges, a dash of hot sauce, guacamole, and a spoonful of sour cream or Greek yogurt and shredded cheese.
Storing and reheating leftovers
Refrigerate leftover chicken tortilla soup in an airtight container for up to 5 days, and freeze it for up to three months. Defrost it in the refrigerator overnight and reheat top of the stove or in the microwave.
Tips
- Adding the canned beans at the end of the cooking process will prevent them from becoming too soft and soggy
- To control the sodium, use low-sodium ingredients (tomatoes, beans and corn) and add salt to taste just before serving.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. Replace the water with chicken or vegetable broth for flavor and add the shredded chicken once the vegetables have been sauteed and mixed with the broth and tomatoes.
Yes, you can easily make this soup ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days – until you are ready to serve it.
Have you tried these soup recipes Yet?
- Turkey Chili Soup
- Sausage and Kale Soup with White Beans
- Vegetable Minestrone Soup
- Mushroom Barley Soup
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Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup – Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker or Stove-Top
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon of olive or [avocado oil]
- 3/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3 cups cold water
- 1 1/2 cups diced tomatoes
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 diced green bell pepper diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper small dice
- 1 onion medium chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon [chili powder]
- 1 1/2 teaspoons [oregano]
- 2 15 ounce cans [black beans] drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup cilantro fresh, chopped
- 2 tablespoons lime juice (fresh)
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Prepare the ingredients: chop the vegetables and cilantro, measure the spices, drain and rinse the beans, squeeze the lime juice, measure the tomatoes.
- Set the Instant pot or pressure cooker to the saute setting. Once it's hot add the chicken and cook for a few minutes on each side to brown the chicken.
- Turn off the saute setting and add the corn, chopped onions, peppers, garlic, spices, water and tomatoes.
- Cover the Instant Pot and cook the soup on high pressure for 10 minutes and slow-release 5 to 8 minutes.
- Carefully release any remaining pressure and remove the top. Take the chicken out and shred it with two forks.
- Place the shredded chicken back into the instant pot along with the beans, cilantro and lime juice.
- Keep the soup warm until it's time to serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and can vary based on cooking methods and ingredients used
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Made this recipe and it turned out so well! Very excited for the leftovers 🙂
This was so good! I love how easy it is to make in the pressure cooker.
The flavor is perfect with the fresh cilantro and lime juice! Yum!