With my chicken posole recipe, you’ll never need your other chicken soup recipes again! Chicken posole is one of the dishes I order most often at Mexican restaurants because I was always afraid I couldn’t replicate that deep, slow-cooked flavor at home. But making Mexican chicken recipes isn’t as intimidating as I thought!
All that punchy, rich flavor is just as accessible to replicate as other chicken recipes, and I’m here to show how you too can have chicken posole for dinner tonight!
Put aside your other pasta recipes — we’re having soup tonight!
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What I Love About This Recipe
Any time I manage to recreate a restaurant favorite at home, I rejoice! That’s what I love most about my chicken posole recipe, but I also love:
- Simple ingredients
- Bold flavor
- Uses the whole chicken – no waste!
- Crowd-pleasing yumminess
How To Make Chicken Posole Recipe
My chicken posole recipe may seem overwhelming, but I promise you, it’s not!
You’ll start by boiling a whole chicken. Then remove the chicken and add hominy to the cooking water, and boil until tender. Meanwhile, cool the chicken, and shred into pieces. When the hominy is done, add the chicken back to the pot, and you’ve got soup!
Recipe Notes
There are only a few ingredients in this chicken posole recipe, so you want to make sure you get the right ones for each. Read on!
Ingredient Notes
Chicken: You’ll use a whole roasting chicken for this chicken posole recipe, which is great for your wallet, as whole chickens tend to be much cheaper than the butchered pieces. But be sure to handle your raw chicken carefully! Follow all proper washing guidelines to prevent illness.
Hominy: What, exactly, is hominy? Hominy is a type of processed corn that gives the corn a different flavor and utterly unique texture! Fluffy and chewy, once you try hominy, you’ll love it!
Garlic: Do you really chop a whole head of garlic in half? Yes! This is a common way to infuse garlic flavor into a broth. Chop, drop, and let simmer!
Herbs: Making herb bundles can be slippery and difficult. Luckily, there’s an option called sachet, where you make a little baggie to store your herbs in the broth. I love this step by step on how to make one!
Storing Tips
Treat this chicken posole recipe as you would any other chicken soup! Read on for my storage tips.
Can You Freeze This?
Yes! You can freeze my chicken posole recipe for up to six months. Your flavor will be just as good as it was when you made it!
But be sure to thoroughly cool your soup before you store it so you don’t get any condensation. Condensation leads to freezer burn, which will definitely funk up your soup.
Make Ahead Tips
Much of this chicken posole recipe relies on the long-simmering times to infuse flavor into the broth. But to speed things along, you can always transfer this dish to an Instant Pot, and then finish it off on the stovetop.
How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge?
Once finished and cooled, you can store your chicken posole recipe in the fridge for up to four days. I actually think the soup tastes better the second day — the flavors have had a chance to really deepen and settle together, so each bite is a burst of herbs and chicken!
Recipe Variations
Adding noodles to my chicken posole recipe is one easy shake-up to make your dish even yummier. What are some other ways to vary your soup? Read on!
Can I Turn This Into Enchiladas?
Looking for a chicken enchilada soup option? I hope to publish one very soon! Until then you might like to try my white chicken enchiladas recipe, or even twisting it to the sour side with sour cream chicken enchiladas. Our Beef Enchiladas are off the charts delicious made with shredded beef and rich, red chile gravy. Cheesy chicken enchiladas are a constant in my dinner rotation and if I don’t make my shrimp enchiladas often enough the family is likely to revolt!
Can I Make This With An Asian Twist?
Want Asian soup instead of Mexican? Chicken lo mein is a beloved favorite while chicken ramen is also well known for its chicken soup properties. Cantonese chow mein brings more of a crunch to your dish, so that’s great when you don’t want something too soup-like!
Can I Make This In A Crockpot Instead?
Yes! Crockpot chicken noodle soup is meant to be. When it gets really cold outside, I love making Crock pot beef and noodles — this hearty, warm dish is stick-to-your-ribs good! But let’s not forget the classic Crockpot chicken and noodles. Those tender noodles are cooked to perfection in that chicken broth!
Can I Make This In An Instant Pot?
Of course! Instant Pot chicken noodle soup is a great way to bring deep, bold flavor in a short time. And when you make Instant Pot beef and noodles, you still get all the hearty filling of the Crockpot version, but faster! For a unique twist, try Instant Pot pho — keep that international taste going strong!
What Other Mexican Chicken Recipes Can I Cook?
There’s something extra yummy about Mexican chicken soup. Whether it’s the added spices or the fresh bit of citrus in dishes like cilantro lime chicken, you’re in for a treat! But if you want a non-soup option, go for my chicken fajitas! Top with cheese and sour cream for added deliciousness.
Chicken Posole
Ingredients
- 1 3-4 pounds roasting chicken, rinsed, giblets discarded
- 1 white onion, peel removed, cut in half
- 2 heads garlic, cut in half
- 1 tablespoon salt
- water, or Caldo de Pollo
- 1 (25-ounce) can hominy, drained
- 1 bunch fresh thyme, rinsed, tied in a bundle with butchers twine
- 1 bunch fresh oregano, rinsed, tied in a bundle with butchers twine
- 2 tablespoons chicken flavor Better Than Bouillon
Toppings:
- avocados cubed
- white onion chopped
- cabbage finely shredded
Instructions
- In a large pot add chicken, onion, garlic, and salt. Pour in only enough cold water to cover (about 3 quarts); too much will make the broth taste weak. Over medium heat bring to a boil then reduce heat and gently simmer for 1 to 1½ hours, partially covered, until the chicken is done. Skim off foam while simmering. Add more water as needed to keep chicken covered while simmering.
- Carefully transfer chicken to a cutting board. Remove onion and garlic and discard. Allow to cool.
- Add hominy, thyme, oregano, and better than bouillon to the chicken stock. Bring back to a simmer and cook until hominy is soft about 1 1/2 hours.
- When cool enough to handle shred into bite-sized pieces. Discard bones and skin.
- When hominy is soft, remove thyme and oregano bundles and add chicken back to pot. Heat through. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into individual bowls, top as desired and serve.
Nutrition
More Chicken Soup Recipes
You’ve got months of cold nights ahead of you — you need plenty of chicken noodle soup recipes to keep you warm! Here are some favorites:
- Chicken Noodle Casserole – Soup made even easier in a casserole!
- Chicken And Egg Noodles – Egg noodles bring twirly slurpy fun.
- Turkey Noodle Soup – A great use for leftover turkey.
- Chicken Noodle Soup – The one, the only!
- Crack Chicken Noodle Soup – Yes, it’s that good!
Conclusion
My chicken posole recipe zests up your dinnertime routine with impactful Mexican flavors and that hearty, warming chicken flavor you’d expect from a chicken soup. I hope I showed you how easy it can be to make this restaurant favorite soup at home!
What topping do you most love on your chicken posole? Let me know in the comments!
BURNEY DRAWE says
January 14, 2020 at 6:50 pmWorst recipe I’ve ever seen. Your from California right?
Kathleen says
January 15, 2020 at 12:29 amWell, I’m guessing you’re objecting to the herbs. I understand that this recipe is a bit unusual in that way. The recipe was given to me by a friend who immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico. This is how her Mexican mother made it. If you think its a bad recipe, I suspect you haven’t even tried it! It’s absolutely delicious.
Donna Oliphint says
January 11, 2020 at 10:36 pmI use Better Than Bouillon all the time, but for an even deeper flavor that rivals restaurant style, use Knorr Homestyle Stock. You can usually find it at Walmart. It’s a sleeve about 6 inches long by 2 inches high that holds 4 little pots of a gelatinous concoction that turns soups and gravies into heaven. They used to have it in beef, too, that made out of this world gravy, but for some unknown reason they discontinued that flavor. Anyway, try the stock pot next time you make this recipe.
Kathleen says
January 14, 2020 at 1:26 amOooh thanks for the tip, Donna! I’ll definitely give it a try! ❤️