This homemade chicken tortilla soup is healthy and low carb! You won’t even realize you are eating a low calorie soup. I promise! The broth is colorful and fresh. There are many textures and flavors to keep your taste spuds interested!
This hot soup is topped with cool salsa and sour cream. As well as the lime and cilantro that comes through pleasantly and taste so fresh! The chewy chicken and corn tortillas give your teeth something to sink into.
This recipe is only 4 servings, as a family of four, I usually double or triple it so that we can have seconds. Or even better… leftovers for the next day. The nutritional values for each serving is about 150 calories with 14.9 grams of carbs and 15.6 grams of protein.
This is not a new recipe. I found it years ago in the “Eating For Life” cookbook by Bill Phillips. This cookbook is full of great recipes that are healthy and help with weight loss. He has many recipes I have gone back to for years because, low calorie or not, I just enjoyed them so much!
How to Make Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup – Healthy and Low Carb
There are several steps when preparing Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup. I will share some short cuts below, if you want to save on time.
Let’s begin….Prepare the rice as instructed by it’s packaging. Consider cooking the rice in the microwave to save time. While the rice is cooking you can focus on the chicken.
In a shallow dish, cover the chicken with the lime juice by squeezing the lime wedges over the chicken, front and back. Now sprinkle the taco seasoning on both sides of the chicken as well.
This seasoned lime chicken alone has so much flavor! I like to make a big batch (1 to 4 pounds) and use some for this soup and save some for tacos (I usually freeze the excess seasoned chicken). It is so simple and so delicious!
Use any taco seasoning you prefer. Lately, I have been making my own. I use the Pioneer Woman’s recipe HERE. I have also used pre-packaged taco seasoning from the grocery store, which works fine as well.
How Should I Cook the Chicken?
At this point, the recipe says to grill the chicken. Although that yummy grilled flavor is so nice in the soup… I don’t always have time to grill. More specifically… I usually ask my husband to grill it for me and I don’t always have time to wait on him to do it 😉 Ha! So in these instances, I bake the chicken in the oven or cook it on the stovetop. Either method you use, make sure the chicken is no longer pink in the middle.
You could also try shredded chicken. Cook the chicken in an insta pot, Dutch oven, or crock pot… these methods will create more moisture with your chicken. I would add the remaining liquid from your insta pot or crockpot to the soup (so you don’t lose any of the flavoring from the taco seasoning). Strain the broth if there are any undesirable pieces or flakes left in the slow cooker/insta pot.
I prefer to bake the chicken if grilling is not an option. After the chicken is cooked, cut the chicken into strips and set aside.
Preparing the Tortilla Strips for Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup
The recipe calls for corn tortilla shells, that are sliced and then baked. Honestly, I love the flavor and texture but as an easy way to save time I usually buy corn tortilla chips and crunch them up instead. The baked tortilla shells do taste a little better and have a chewy-crunchy texture that is nice. “Sigh” I just don’t always have the time for this step.
If you want to bake your own tortilla strips as the recipe indicates…. then preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper or cooking spray. Slice the tortillas with a sharp knife or pizza cutter, about 1/2 inch wide. Bake for 10 to 15 min. or until they are golden and crispy. While they are baking you can work on the following step. Make sure to set your timer!
How to Make the Broth for Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup
Heat the olive oil in a medium to large pot to medium heat. Add the chopped onion and minced garlic, saute for 5 mins. Then add the rice and green chiles, saute for 2-3 minutes. Stir occasionally during the cooking process.
Now add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the chicken and bring down to a simmer. Cooking time….Simmer for 25 minutes and done! Another way to save time would be to prepare some of the ingredients ahead of time: bake the tortilla strips, chop the veggies, and cook the chicken prior to soup day.
Toppings!!!
Time to eat! On your bowl of soup….Add a spoonful or two of salsa. Regular salsa or salsa Verde would work. Then crunch up a few tortilla strips/chips. You can also lay a few chips in the bottom of your bowl before you put the chicken soup in and add more on top of the soup.
Now for a dabble of sour cream OR plain Greek yogurt to save even more calories. Top it off with a sprinkle of chopped cilantro. The cilantro is so fresh and interesting…. I wouldn’t skip it!
Store this soup in an airtight container in the refregerator for up to 5 days. Such a great recipe, it will taste even better the next day!
You can freeze the soup in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Make sure to freeze the tortilla chips separately. You can freeze chips or tortilla shells. From frozen, thaw the soup in the refrigerator for a couple days and re-heat gradually. Make sure you have the remaining ingredients (the toppings) on hand for the thawed soup.
Substitutions for Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Store bought corn tortilla chips OR bake and slice the corn tortilla shells yourself
- Grill, bake, pan fry, or use insta pot/crockpot to cook the chicken
- Plain greek yogurt instead of sour cream… to save extra calories
- Cauliflower rice OR brown rice
- White onions OR yellow onion
- Regular salsa OR Salsa Verde
Additional Thoughts
- Prepare the chicken, chop the veggies, and bake the tortilla strips ahead of time to save on time
- Consider the taco seasoning and salsa you buy as this will determine the level of spice in the soup
- If you do not need this soup to be low carb…. you can increase the amount of rice and corn tortillas/chips
- Omit the rice and/or corn tortilla chips altogether if you want almost zero carbs
I hope this will be a new favorite for you and your entire family! It’s one of the best low-carb soups I’ve ever had!
Let me know below how well you liked it!
More Dinner Ideas Below…..
Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas with Red Sauce
Cheeseburger Soup Recipe (in the crockpot)
Creamy Tuna Pasta (made in one pot)
“People can’t drive you crazy if you don’t give them the keys.” – Mike Bechtle
Homemade Chicken Tortilla Soup – healthy and low carb
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup brown rice uncooked
- 1 lb chicken breast
- 1 lime halved
- 2 tsp taco seasoning
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 clove garlic mincecd
- 1/2 onion chopped
- 4 oz canned green chiles diced
- 6 cups chicken broth fat-free
- 4 tbsp salsa
- 1/4 cup sour cream fat-free
- 2 tbsp cilantro chopped
- 6 corn tortilla shells or corn tortilla chips
Instructions
- Cook the rice as directed by the packaging. While the rice is cooking, cover the chicken evenly with the lime juice and then the taco seasoning.
- Cook/bake/grill chicken as desired. Make sure the chicken is no longer pink in the center. Cut the chicken into short strips. Set aside.
- If using corn tortilla shells begin preparation now… Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper or grease with cooking spray. Cut corn tortillas into 1/2-inch strips with a sharp knife or pizza cutter. Bake for 10 to 15 min. or until crsipy. Set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large pot to medium heat. Add onion and garlic, saute 5 min. Then add the rice and green chilies and saute for 2 – 3 mins.
- Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Now add the chicken strips and lower to a simmer. Simmer for 25 mins. Stirring ocasionally.
- SERVING DIRECTIONS: Lay corn tortilla strips/chips in bottom of bowl. Add soup, then crunch up a few more tortilla strips/chips on top of broth. Top with a spoonful or two of salsa, then a spoon full of sour cream. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro.
Notes
I love your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you make this website yourself or did you hire someone…
Hello Steven, Sorry for the delayed response. Thank-you for the compliment. I took the blogging course at FarmhouseOnBoone.com. Hope this…