My chicken taco soup recipe is loaded with flavor, tender chunks of chicken, beans, and just the right veggies. It’s perfect to take the chill off on a cold night. Because it’s quick to prepare and uses easy-to-find ingredients, it’s a dream dinner for a hectic, busy weeknight. It’s a regular in our dinner rotation!
If you love hearty comforting soups as much as our family does, try these delicious soup recipes next!
Ready to jazz up Taco Tuesday? Let’s make this soup!
What I Love About This Recipe
- Quick, easy, and healthy!
- Customization King
- Cooking with one pot means you clean only one pot!
- TACOS. Need I say more?
How To Make Chicken Taco Soup Recipe
Get ready for the easiest, tastiest chicken taco soup recipe you ever did see!
- Saute your onion, pepper, and jalapeno before adding your garlic.
- Add the rest of your soup ingredients, except the chicken. Boil.
- Finally, add the chicken and heat it through
- Serve with your favorite toppings!
How To Make Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup Recipe
- In a large pot, heat vegetable oil over medium heat. When the oil is warm saute onion, red pepper, and jalapeno over medium heat until soft, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and continue to saute for about 2 minutes or until fragrant. Add cooked vegetables to the crockpot.
- Add the remaining soup ingredients, except the chicken, to the crockpot.
- Cook the soup for 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low, adding the chicken for the last 30 minutes.
Chicken Taco Soup Ingredients
- Vegetable Oil: Use a neutral flavor of vegetable oil.
- Onion: You can use either a yellow onion or a white onion
- Red Bell Pepper: You can use any color of bell pepper. I prefer either red, orange, or yellow.
- Jalapeno Pepper: Most of the heat in a jalapeno comes from the seeds and ribs of the pepper. I remove all the ribs and seeds to make it family-friendly. If you want a spicy version of this soup, you can leave the seed and or ribs in the pepper.
- Garlic: I like to use a garlic press to prepare the garlic.
- Taco Seasoning: I use an envelope of mild taco season, again to keep it family-friendly.
- Diced Tomatoes: I use a can of petite diced tomatoes or Rotel.
- Salsa: My go-to salsa for cooking is Pace.
- Corn: I love the added sweetness that the corn brings to this soup.
- Ranch Style Beans Chili Beans: These aren’t just canned beans! They’re prepared with a delicious sauce that adds great flavor to this soup. Add the beans and every drop of that yummy sauce!
- Chicken Broth: I use the stuff in the carton. Here’s an article, from Epicurious, on the best-tasting commercial broths and stocks.
- Chicken – Another way I make this soup come together quickly is by using pre-cooked rotisserie chicken. If you have leftover chicken this is a great place to use it. If you want to use raw chicken, I suggest poaching boneless chicken breast. See how-to instructions below.
Chicken Taco Soup Toppings
This soup delivers great Mexican flavors all on its own. Toppings aren’t required but really take this soup over the top and make it a heartier meal. Here are our favorites:
- Shredded cheese: I like cheddar, Jack, or pepper Jack
- Cilantro: Cilantro is often grown in sandy soil. Be sure to wash it well to remove any sand. I generally rough chop it to serve with this soup.
- Avocado: I love the creaminess avocados bring to this soup.
- Tortilla Chips or Fritos: Add these for the perfect salty crunch!
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? As with many soups, this chicken taco soup improves with age. It holds well in the fridge (without any toppings) for 3-4 days, and the flavors only get better!
- Can You Freeze This? Yes. Prepare as instructed, allow to cool completely, and transfer to a freezer container. Don’t add toppings before freezing!
- It should hold for about 2-3 months in the freezer. Consider freezing individual portions for a quick lunch or snack.
- Make-Ahead Tips: My best suggestion to get a head start is to prep the veggies and store them in a container or Ziploc until you’re ready for them. That will save you the most time.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
Serving Recommendations
Since this chicken taco soup is loaded with taco flavors, I like to serve it with more Mexican flavors! We like serving it with a tangy Mexican corn salad, my jalapeno bacon cornbread, and my fluffy, flavorful Mexican rice.
More Comforting Chicken Soup Recipes
- Creamy Chicken Potato Soup
- Chicken and Rice Soup
- Lemon Chicken Soup
- Cream of Chicken Soup
- Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
- Crack Chicken Noodle Soup
Chicken Taco Soup
Ingredients
Soup:
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 red bell pepper ribs and seeds removed, and chopped
- 1 jalapeno ribs and seeds removed, and minced
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 envelope taco seasoning
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 (14.5- ounce) can petite diced tomatoes with the juice
- 1 (16-ounce) jar salsa with the juice
- 1 (11-ounce) can corn drained
- 1 (16-ounce) can ranch style beans chili beans with the juice
- 1 (14-ounce) carton chicken broth
- 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
Optional Toppings:
- tortilla chips crumbled
- jack or cheddar cheese shredded
- sour cream
- sliced avocado
- fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat vegetable oil (2 tablespoons) over medium heat. When the oil is warm saute onion (1), red pepper (1), and jalapeno (1) over medium heat until soft, about 7 minutes. Add garlic (1 tablespoon) and continue to saute for about 2 minutes or until fragrant.
- Add the rest of the soup ingredients, except chicken, to the pot. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer gently, uncovered for 30-40 minutes.
- Add chicken (2 cups) and continue to simmer until heated through. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning if needed.
- Garnish individual soup bowls as desired with tortillas chips, cheese, sour cream, avocado, and or cilantro.
Fans Also Made:
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I didn’t even know that taco soup was a thing, but was intrigued, so I tried this the other day… and I’m quite happy with the fact that I did, because this is such a savory treat! Added some crumbled tortilla chips and avocado pieces to it as a topping, just as you recommended, and it was great. My kids enjoyed it, too!
Wow, that sounds so perfect! Thank you for your positive feedback. I’m so happy you like this 🙂
Made this today on typical Montana chilly afternoon. This recipe is hearty and tasty with just the right amount of spicy. My family enjoyed it.
I’m so happy you enjoyed Deb! <3
Comfort food! Yum
I could not find ranch style beans so I picked up pinto, is that OK?
Hi Laurie. Well, the Ranch Style Chili Beans are canned with a sauce and the sauce is a component of the recipe. So, subbing them out will alter the taste a bit. Hope that info helps <3
I made this soup for overnight guests. I doubled the recipe. It was so good! And…with leftovers it gets better and better everyday. Easy and delicious….the perfect combination!
I’m so happy you and your guests enjoyed the soup. <3
This is my kind of soup recipe!! Can’t wait to give it a try !
I enjoy reading your recipes, but most are very high in sodium, fat and calories. But you do have some very good ideas. Some I am able to make healthier
Hi, Debbie. Thanks for asking. Maybe use low sodium version of those canned ingredients. <3 <3