Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

This Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup offers a complete meal full of crunchy tortilla strips, tender chicken, beans, and vegetables that can feed a crowd. You’re going to love this hearty comfort food recipe on a chilly day.

 

Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

Chicken Tortilla Soup is a well-established comfort food recipe. It is a well-rounded soup that can be served alone as a meal. Tortilla strips, chicken, vegetables, and legumes are blended with an incredible combination of spices to create a filling meal that will leave you counting down the minutes until dinner on a cool fall or winter day. By preparing this meal in the Instant Pot, this delicious meal is ready in only 12 minutes of cooking time and is easy to make at any cooking skill level!

What You Will Love About this Recipe

• Kid Friendly. A filling soup with great flavor without being too spicy. Kids will get all their food groups without even knowing it. 
• Healthy. It can’t be said for all comfort food, but this recipe blends a lean protein with vegetables and legumes for a filling, healthy meal. It’s pretty allergen friendly as it is gluten-free, nut-free, soy free, and even dairy-free if you don’t garnish with cheese.
• Inexpensive. This recipe is full of pantry staples that won’t require a special trip to the store for an expensive ingredient. It also utilizes several inexpensive canned ingredients. This soup recipe also provides several servings so you can use leftovers to stretch it into a few meals throughout the week. 
• Easy. This recipe is easily doable at any cooking skill level and can be ready in less than 30 minutes. Our recommendation is to prepare ahead of time and reheat. The flavor will be even better after a day or two!

Ingredients for Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

Here are the ingredients you need to make chicken tortilla soup. Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the page to see the exact amounts for each ingredient.

• Cooking oil: Any neutral oil will work. We prefer avocado oil.
• Corn tortillas: white or yellow tortillas. If you want to skip a step, swap these for tortilla chips instead.
• Vegetables: garlic cloves, green bell pepper, and onion
• Beans (drained and rinsed): Pinto beans and black beans
• Canned Goods: crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes with green chilies, corn, and green chilies. These ingredients create the amazing flavor and create a filling, well-rounded meal. If you prefer frozen corn, you can use that instead of canned.
• Chicken: We prefer boneless skinless chicken breasts but you can also use boneless, skinless chicken thighs or tenderloins if you desire
• Taco seasoning: Use your personal preference. I prefer using this homemade mix with a good amount of cumin and chili powder in it.
• Chicken broth: Better quality broth makes for a tastier soup. You’ll get TONS of flavor if you use a homemade chicken stock!
• Lime, juiced: You will only need the juice from one lime for this recipe, but grab a few extras and serve this soup with lime wedges! You could use bottled lime juice to make things easier.

How to Make Chicken Tortilla Soup in the Instant Pot

In addition to the ingredients listed above you will need an Instant Pot. This will work in the 6-quart, but it is quite full. If you have an 8 or 10 quart you will likely find this easier. You will also need a knife and cutting board for the peppers and onions. To make the BEST Chicken Tortilla Soup simply follow the tutorial below. 

Fry the tortillas

Turn the sauté function on low or medium heat. Add the oil to the bottom of the instant pot and when hot add a handful of the corn tortillas to the pot and toss until they are brown on both sides. When the strips are golden and crispy remove them and add them to a paper towel-lined plate. Sprinkle with salt. This may take several batches. 

TIP: If you’re in a rush, you could skip this and use store-bought tortilla chips instead. It doesn’t taste as fresh to me, but it’s a great option if you’re low on time.

Sauté the vegetables

When all the tortillas have been fried leave about 1 tablespoon of oil in the bottom of the Instant Pot and add the chopped onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Sauté over medium heat until the onions and peppers have softened. Turn the sauté function off. 

Add the canned goods

Add the drained pinto beans, black beans, and corn. Then you can also add the tomatoes, undrained tomatoes with green chilies, and green chilies. Anything tomato based is likely to set the burn message off in an Instant Pot, so mix well and be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan as you do.

Add the chicken and pressure cook

Next, place the chicken on top of the ingredients. There is no need to cut or slice the chicken, it will cook as it is. Next, add the taco seasoning and chicken broth. Give the soup one more nice stir. Secure the lid and close the valve. Set the Instant Pot to cook with high pressure for 12 minutes. Remember, it will take about 10 minutes for the machine to come to pressure. When it begins cooking the timer will begin counting down. Once the cooking cycle has ended allow 10 minutes for the pressure cooker to naturally release pressure. After 10 minutes very carefully manually release the remaining pressure.

Shred the chicken

Remove the chicken from the soup and shred it. The chicken will shred easily with two forks. Next, add the shredded chicken back to the soup, along with the juice of one lime and stir. 

Serve

Serve the soup right away with shredded cheese, sour cream, chopped cilantro, and the crispy tortillas. This soup is a complete meal on its own, but it is also amazing when served with Mexican Cornbread! If you want to stretch this to feed a crowd, serve buffet-style alongside Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos, Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice, Seasoned Black Beans, and some Roasted Tomatillo Salsa.

Storage and Reheating Instructions

• Refrigerator Storage: Allow to completely cool. Then store any soup leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 5-7 days. Store the corn tortillas separately. You want to add the tortillas directly to each bowl versus the entire pot or they will dissolve and compromise the taste and texture of the dish.
• Freezer Storage: To freeze this chicken tortilla soup first allow it to cool completely. Next, transfer to a large freezer bag, or soup cube tray. You can store this soup in the freezer for up to 2 months.
• Reheating: To reheat unfrozen soup, microwave in 30-second increments until warm, or reheat in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. To reheat frozen soup remove the soup from the freezer and allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight. Then follow the directions above.

Chicken Tortilla Soup FAQ

Other Instant Pot and Soup Recipes

• Instant Pot BBQ Chicken– Requires just five simple ingredients and less than 15 minutes of cook time! Try my favorite pulled chicken recipe on a salad or wrap, less than 3 net carbs per quarter-pound!
• Chicken Bacon Ranch Soup– A perfect low carb comfort food! Enjoy a bowl of this cheesy chicken soup for about 5 net carbs!
• Instant Pot White Bean Chicken Chili– This Instant Pot White Bean Chicken Chili recipe is so easy! Loaded with chicken, beans, flavorful green chiles and spices, this soup is ready in under 30 minutes and always a crowd pleaser! 
• Broccoli Cheddar Soup with Chicken– Each generous serving of this Keto Broccoli Cheddar Soup with Chicken has about 4 net carbs! This is a delicious, easy, and cheesy low carb soup recipe!
• Instant Pot No Bean Chili– Loaded with ground beef, tomatoes and spices! This keto-friendly chili recipe has just 15 minutes cooking time and about 8 net carbs per serving!