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Absolutely delicious and easy to make crockpot Chicken Enchilada Soup is loaded with hearty, bold flavors, simple ingredients, and lots of comfort. Put it together in the morning, and come home to a bowl of warm and filling soup.
This Chicken Enchilada Soup, prepared in a slow cooker, captures all the fantastic flavors of enchiladas in a comforting soup form. It’s packed with tender chicken, juicy tomatoes, hearty black beans, tasty enchilada sauce, and sweet corn, making it an ideal, easy, and delicious meal for any occasion. What I appreciate most about this recipe is its simplicity—just toss all the ingredients into your slow cooker in the morning, and by evening, you’ll be greeted with a delicious soup.
Why I Love This Chicken Enchilada Soup Recipe
- Easy: You can just add the ingredients to your slow cooker and let it do the work, freeing up your day for other activities.
- Flavorful: The chicken enchilada soup packs the rich, familiar flavors of enchiladas into a hearty, comforting bowl of soup.
- Perfect for Busy Days: Chicken soup made in the crockpot is a stress-free option that delivers a warm, homemade meal at the end of the day.
- Versatile and Customizable: Easily adjust the spice level or add your favorite ingredients, like bell peppers or fresh tomatoes, to make the enchilada soup uniquely yours.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Gather these pantry ingredients to bring the robust flavors of this creamy chicken enchilada soup recipe to life! Topped with cheese, cilantro, and a dollop of sour cream, this is a very tasty and filling meal the whole family will love.
- Olive Oil: Used for sautéing – it also provides a flavorful base and helps to release the aromatics.
- Yellow Onion: Adds a sweet, caramelized flavor plus texture.
- Garlic: You could also use garlic powder. 1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder is equivalent to one clove of garlic.
- Seasoning Mix: A blend of salt, fresh ground pepper, chili powder, sweet paprika, ground cumin, and garlic powder. This mix infuses the soup with its distinctive, warm, and Mexican-inspired flavors.
- Red Enchilada Sauce: Provides the rich, chili-based sauce that is characteristic of enchiladas.
- Vegetable Mix: A hearty combination of corn, black beans (or red kidney beans), and diced tomatoes.
- Low Sodium Chicken Broth: You can also use vegetable broth. I opt for low sodium variations because I like to have more control over the salt.
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts: Chicken thighs are a great alternative that’s often juicier and more flavorful. You could also use a turkey breast, leftover shredded chicken, or make my air fryer rotisserie chicken.
- Bay Leaf: Adds a subtle layer of flavor. If you don’t have any, use about a teaspoon of dried thyme or dried oregano to replace it.
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese: Provides a creamy, melty texture and rich flavor.
- Heavy Cream: Adds creaminess to the soup, making it slightly thicker.
- Toppings: Garnish your soup with sour cream, fresh cilantro, green chiles, and slices of lime. Optional additions include sliced avocados for creaminess and crushed tortilla chips for a crunchy texture. This mix of toppings allows each bowl to be customized to taste.
How To Make Chicken Enchilada Soup In The Crockpot
This soup requires very little prep work. I usually give the onions and garlic a quick sauté in a skillet before tossing them into the crockpot. But, if you’re short on time or just not feeling it, you can totally skip that step and throw the onions in there raw.
- Prep. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté onions until soft, then add garlic and seasonings, cooking for an additional minute.
- Stir. Transfer the onion mixture to the slow cooker. Add the enchilada sauce, corn, beans, diced tomatoes, chicken broth, bay leaf, and chicken in the crock pot.
- Cook. Set the slow cooker on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 3 hours.
- Shred. Once the chicken is cooked, remove it, shred it, and return it to the pot.
- Finish. Stir in cheese and heavy cream just before serving. Ladle the chicken enchilada soup into bowls and top with garnishes or your favorite toppings, such as tortilla strips, cheese, fresh herbs, etc.
Recipe Tips And Variations
- Rotisserie Chicken Shortcut: For an even quicker prep, use shredded rotisserie chicken. Just stir it into the soup towards the end of cooking to warm through. This saves time and adds a depth of flavor. You could also use leftover chicken.
- Thickening the Soup: If you prefer a thicker texture, lightly blend the enchilada soup with a hand blender for a few seconds. This incorporates some of the solids into the broth, thickening it without diminishing the soup’s hearty feel.
- Stovetop Method: To make chicken enchilada soup on the stovetop, first sauté the onions and garlic in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the seasonings, then the rest of the ingredients (except for the cheese and cream). Bring to a boil, then simmer until the chicken is cooked through. Shred the chicken, return it to the pot, and finish with cheese and cream.
- Spice Adjustments: Tailor the soup to your taste by adjusting the amount of chili powder or adding diced jalapeños for an extra kick.
- Vegetarian Version: Swap the chicken for a mix of additional beans, lentils, or cubed tofu to make a vegetarian version of the soup. Use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
Serving Suggestions
Take inspiration from my taco bowls and serve this comforting chicken soup with a variety of garnishes to allow everyone to customize their bowl to their liking. Offer a side of warm tamale pie or crusty focaccia bread and a basket of tortilla chips or wonton chips for dipping and added crunch. This soup also pairs nicely with a simple green goddess salad – it’s light, fresh, and delicious.
How To Store Leftovers
- Store leftover soup in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days, or transfer it to freezer bags and freeze it for 2 to 3 months.
- To thaw, remove it from the freezer and place it in the refrigerator overnight. When you’re ready to serve, reheat the soup in a pot over medium heat until it’s thoroughly warmed through.
Delicious Soup Recipes
- Crock Pot Lemon Rice Soup
- Crockpot White Chicken Chili
- Slow Cooker French Onion Soup
- Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken Zoodle Soup
- Ham and Sweet Potato Soup
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Chicken Enchilada Soup
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 19 ounces can of red enchilada sauce
- 15 ounces can of corn, rinsed and drained
- 15 ounces can of black beans or red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 28 ounces canned diced tomatoes
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 bay leaf
- ⅓ cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus more for serving
- ¼ cup heavy cream, or to taste
- sour cream, for serving
- fresh chopped cilantro or parsley, for serving
- sliced lime, for serving
- other toppings may include sliced avocados and crushed tortilla chips
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a skillet; add onions and cook for 3 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and season with salt, pepper, chili powder, paprika, cumin, and garlic powder.
- Pour in 1/3 cup of the enchilada sauce; scrape up all the bits at the bottom of the skillet and pour it all into the bowl of your slow cooker.
- Combine the remaining enchilada sauce, corn, beans, diced tomatoes, chicken broth, and bay leaf in the crock pot; stir.
- Arrange the chicken breasts on top.
- Cover with a lid and set on LOW for 6 hours or until the chicken is cooked through. You can also set it on HIGH for 3 hours or until the chicken is done.
- Remove the chicken from the crock pot and shred it. Stir it back into the slow cooker.
- Stir in the cheese and heavy cream.
- Ladle the chicken enchilada soup into bowls and top with sour cream, cilantro, limes, and cheese before serving.
Notes
- Use leftover shredded chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken for convenience.
- If you want a thicker consistency, slightly blend the soup with an immersion blender.
- For stovetop cooking, sauté the onions and garlic in a soup pot. Add the seasonings, then the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, then simmer until the chicken is cooked through. Shred the chicken, return it to the pot, and finish with cheese and heavy cream.
- Refrigerate leftovers in airtight containers for up to 4 days or freeze the soup for up to 3 months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge and reheat it over medium heat.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
What size crock pot should you use?
HI!
6-quart or larger.
Thank you!! Do you think it can stay in 9 or 10 hours if it automatically switches to warm? I am out of the house all day for work but I really want to try this!
Hi!
Yep, that will definitely be OK. Keep it at warm and it will be perfect.
This recipe is amazing! So good! It makes 8 servings, but can you please tell me what the serving size is.
Tried this tonight in the instant pot (thanks for the tips on that, btw). Soup came out great! All four family members, including the two picky kiddos, loved it. Going on the “will definitely make again” list.
Just stumbled on this blog last week. This is my first recipe. Have honey garlic steak bites and balsamic pork roast on the marquee for this week. Thank you!
This was the perfect dinner this week while it’s been sooo cold. It was so easy and the taste was perfection!
Oh this looks incredible! I know what I am making for dinner!
The soup was a little bit too spicy for my kids. Could you substitute green enchilada sauce instead? What else can you do to tone down the spiciness?
Well obviously to tone down the spice…. you dont use as much of what makes it spicy…. like the chili powder, and use a mild enchilada sauce… butttttt i mean this is a mexican style dish soo its bound to be a bit spicy… in my opinion not spicy enough. i use hot enchilada sauce instead.
This is one of our favorite all time soups. Going to whip it up this weekend!
LOVE this super easy recipe!
This is such a flavorful soup and I love that this can be made in the IP too!!!
Can you do this in the instant pot
Hi! Yes, you can, but you have to reduce that liquid down to 2 cups. It’s very important that you do not overfill your Instant Pot.
So, once all your ingredients are in the Instant Pot, secure the IP lid and press the manual or pressure cook button and set the timer to 10 minutes. Set valve to “sealing.” Cook for 10 minutes, and then let pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. Move the valve to “venting.” Remove the lid; shred chicken and stir it back into the pot. Put the IP on sauté and stir in the cheese and heavy cream; cook for a minute to melt the cheese, and that should be it. 😀
I have got to get an Instant Pot if that’s as long as it takes to make this recipe. Cuts the time in more than half.
Just made in crock. The 4 cups stock has made this very soupy. Think I’ll need to thicken it up. Didn’t have enchilada sauce so I made one from scratch which came out super yummy!!! Was hoping that would aid in thickening since I had to make a rather large roux.
Regardless, a yummy meal with plenty of leftovers to freeze for a later date
I use and instant pot and have no problem using the 4cups broth in it but i guess that depends on what size instant pot you have. If you cut down to 2 cups you’ll really not have enough broth… bc i always make another portion of broth after because its simply not enough with the 4cups. but i use more than a lb of chicken … if you want to have enough to freeze you’ll want to double this recipe.. i have a family of 4 and we never had enough left over to freeze until i tweaked the recipe
Thanks so much for chiming in and sharing your tips! ❤️
Delicious looking soup.
I rarely leave a review, but this soup deserves one! So delicious! Perfect Fall meal. Thank you!
I’m very happy you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for chiming in! 🙂