Name: Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 3 garlic cloves, minced; 1 yellow onion, finely diced; 1 red pepper, diced; 1 medium zucchini, diced; 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels; 1 cup beans of choice (black, kidney or butter beans), drained and rinsed; 1 can (400g) diced tomatoes; 3 cups water (or more, depending on the consistency you prefer); 1 cooked chicken breast, shredded; 2 tbsp olive oil or butter; 1/2 tsp ground cumin; 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped; 2 tortillas; Salt and pepper to taste; TO SERVE: grated cheese, full-fat Greek yoghurt, or sliced avocado

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For some time, I avoided making soup for my children. I thought about it constantly, imagining the faces, the refusals, the bowl pushed away before the first spoonful. How would they eat it? Would they even try? Soup felt risky in a way that pasta and rice just didn’t.

I was completely wrong.

The first time I put a bowl of soup in front of my kids, they ate. There definitely was some negotiation. But they ate it, sometimes asking for more.

Soups have since become one of the most reliable meals in our house, and this chicken tortilla soup is one of our favourites. It’s rich, warming, and loaded with protein, fibre and vegetables, but it tastes like something you’d order at a restaurant. And it takes under forty minutes start to finish.

Why Soup Works So Well for Kids

I think my fear was about control. I worried that soup was harder to eat, messier, and that kids needed to see their food clearly to feel safe with it. What I discovered is the opposite is often true.

When everything is in one bowl, there’s less to pick apart. Kids who would negotiate over each vegetable on a plate will often eat the same vegetables without a second thought when they’re soft and swimming in a flavourful broth. The texture is easier too, especially for younger children.

My children also love soup with bread. A thick slice on the side to dip, or just to eat alongside. It turns a bowl of soup into a meal that feels familiar and complete.

One more thing that changed everything: the immersion blender. On days when I want a smoother texture, I blend the soup until velvety before serving. Same ingredients, same nutrition, completely different result.

How to Make Chicken Tortilla Soup

Step 1: Sauté the base
Heat the olive oil or butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent. Add the minced garlic and cook for another minute until fragrant.

Step 3: Add the vegetables
Add the diced red pepper and zucchini to the pot. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened.

Step 4: Build the broth
Pour in the diced tomatoes (with their juice), the 3 cups of water, beans and frozen corn. Add the cumin, salt and pepper. Stir everything together and bring to a boil.

Step 5: Simmer
Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, allowing the flavours to develop and the vegetables to become fully tender.

Step 6: Add the chicken and tortilla
Stir in the shredded cooked chicken breast and sliced tortillas. Simmer for a further 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Step 7: Finish and serve
Stir in the chopped fresh cilantro. Ladle into bowls and let everyone top their own with grated cheese, a spoonful of Greek yoghurt, or sliced avocado.

Why This Tortilla Soup Is a Nutritional Win

This isn’t just a soup that tastes good. It hits the Power of Three that I build every meal around in our house: protein, fat and fibre working together to keep blood sugar stable and energy sustained.

Protein: chicken breast and beans together give you a complete, sustained protein hit per serving
Fibre: beans, zucchini, red pepper and corn. This soup is genuinely high in fibre without tasting “healthy”
Healthy fat: olive oil for cooking, plus whatever toppings you serve alongside (avocado, full fat yogurt)

It’s the kind of meal that keeps children full for hours. Ideal for the 4pm slot, or as a proper dinner on a cold evening.

How to Serve and Top Your Soup

Serve with your choice of toppings and let everyone customise their own bowl:

Grated cheese
Full fat Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
Sliced or mashed avocado
Crispy tortilla strips
A thick slice of bread for dipping

The immersion blender version

After step 5 (before adding the chicken), use an immersion blender to blend the soup to a smooth, velvety consistency. Then stir in the shredded chicken so it stays in tender pieces. This version works especially well for younger children, or on days when you want to minimise the “what’s that?” conversation at the table.

You can also do a partial blend. Blend about half the soup and leave the rest chunky. This gives you a thicker, richer base while keeping some texture.

Tips, Variations and Storage

Tips and variations

Use a rotisserie chicken to make this genuinely weeknight fast. Pull it apart while the soup simmers.
Batch cook this. It doubles well and keeps in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Freeze without the tortilla strips and toppings, then add fresh when reheating.
Make it vegetarian by skipping the chicken and doubling the beans. Use vegetable broth instead of water for more depth.
Adjust the heat for younger children. This recipe as written has no heat at all. If older children or adults want spice, add a pinch of chilli flakes to individual bowls.
No cilantro? Leave it out or swap for flat-leaf parsley. The soup is delicious either way.

Storage

Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Freeze (without toppings or tortilla strips) for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat on the hob. If the soup has thickened, add a splash of water when reheating and stir to loosen.

Why This Has Become a Regular

There are meals I make because they’re nutritious. There are meals I make because the children eat them. And then there are the rare meals that do both things at once, require very little effort, and feel like a genuine win at the end of a long day.

This tortilla soup is firmly in that third category. It comes together in one pot. It’s made mostly from things I keep in the freezer and cupboard. It works at 4pm and it works at dinner. And every time I put it on the table, the conversation stops because everyone is eating.

If you’ve been avoiding soup because you weren’t sure your children would eat it, please make this one first. I think you’ll be surprised.

Christina is a health coach with an MSc in Clinical Nutrition, and a mum of two based in Greece. She writes about practical family food, blood sugar balance and raising adventurous eaters at livewellbychristina.com.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Can I make tortilla soup ahead of time?

Yes, and it actually gets better the next day as the flavours develop. Make the soup up to 3 days ahead and store in the fridge. Reheat the soup gently on the hob or in the microwave.

What beans work best in tortilla soup?

Any beans work well here. Black beans are the most traditional and give the soup a rich, earthy depth. Kidney beans hold their shape and texture well. Butter beans or cannellini beans are milder and great for children who are newer to beans. I use whatever I have in the cupboard.

Can I use raw chicken instead of cooked?

Yes. Add 1 raw chicken breast to the pot at step 4 along with the tomatoes and water. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes until cooked through, then remove, shred with two forks and return to the pot. This adds about 15 minutes to the cook time but means you don’t need to have cooked chicken ready in advance.

My child doesn't like chunks of vegetables. What can I do?

Blend it. A few seconds with an immersion blender and the soup becomes completely smooth and velvety. No visible vegetables, same nutritional profile. This is my standard approach for my eldest one.

How do I store leftovers?

Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat on the hob. If the soup has thickened, add a splash of water when reheating and stir to loosen.

Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Recipe by Christina Tsiripidou

A warming, one-pot chicken tortilla soup packed with protein, fibre and vegetables. Ready in 35 minutes and so good that kids eat it without a single negotiation. Blend it smooth for younger children or leave it chunky; both versions disappear fast.

Course: Mains, Lunch, Dinner, SoupsCuisine: MexicanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

3 garlic cloves, minced
1 yellow onion, finely diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 medium zucchini, diced
1/2 cup frozen corn kernels
1 cup beans of choice (black, kidney or butter beans), drained and rinsed
1 can (400g) diced tomatoes
3 cups water (or more, depending on the consistency you prefer)
1 cooked chicken breast, shredded
2 tbsp olive oil or butter
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tortillas
Salt and pepper to taste
TO SERVE: grated cheese, full-fat Greek yoghurt, or sliced avocado

Directions

Heat the olive oil or butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and minced garlic and cook for 3–4 minutes until softened.
Add the diced red pepper and zucchini to the pot. Cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened.
Pour in the diced tomatoes (with their juice), water, drained beans and frozen corn. Add the cumin, salt and pepper. Stir to combine and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes until the vegetables are fully tender. Optional: for a smooth velvety soup, blend with an immersion blender at this point before adding the chicken.
Slice the tortillas into thin strips and stir them in, along with the shredded cooked chicken breast. Simmer for a further 5 minutes, then taste and adjust the seasoning.
Stir in the fresh cilantro. Ladle into bowls and top with grated cheese, a spoonful of Greek yoghurt, or sliced avocado.