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If you have had the pleasure of ordering the Chicken Enchilada Soup at Chili’s Restaurant, then you are well aware of its deliciousness. It has a nice thick base (not too brothy and not too creamy, but a happy spot between the two) and is loaded with spicy enchilada flavor. I have been looking for a great copy cat version to make at home and have finally made one that I love. Not only is it super similar to the restaurant version, but it only takes 30 minutes to prepare! That’s something to be happy about, yes?
Hope you get a chance to try it, friends. It a great little recipe to help keep you warm this winter.
Let me show you how to make it happen!
1. Heat a large, deep pot over medium high heat. Add 3 Tb olive oil and allow it to heat through. Add 1 medium onion (chopped) and 3 cloves garlic (minced). Cook until the onions are translucent and a bit golden.
2. Grab some Masa Mix. This is a corn-based dough mix that can be found easily on the Mexican food aisle of your grocery store. It really gives the soup a nice, authentic flavor.
Add 1 C Masa Mix to the onion mixture.
Give it a nice stir and allow it to cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.
3. In a separate bowl combine 8 tsp of chicken bullion granules and 6 cups of hot water.
3. Add 3 cups of the chicken broth to the soup pot and stir to combine, making sure all of the masa mix has been incorporated. Add the remaining 3 cups of chicken broth and stir to combine.
4. To the pot add 2 (14 ounce) cans of black beans (drained), 2 (10 ounce) cans red enchilada sauce and 1 (4 ounce) can green chilis (un-drained).
5. You’ll want to add 2 (14 ounce) cans of Mexican tomatoes as well. However, it’s a good idea to chop the tomatoes up a bit with a pair of kitchen scissors, then add the whole can (juices included) to the pot.
6. Add 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, 1 1/2 tsp chili powder, 2 1/2 tsp cumin and 1 Tb butter. Stir to combine.
6. Add 3 C cooked chicken, chopped into bite sized pieces. I used rotisserie chicken. Allow the soup to simmer for 10 minutes.
7. Add 4 C freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese and stir. It should melt pretty quickly for you.
8. Remove the pot from the heat and serve with tortilla strips and more cheddar cheese if you so choose.
Here’s the handy printable…
Ingredients
Instructions
Recipe highly adapted from All Copy Cat Recipes and Gimme Some Oven
Can it be frozen?
I froze this and it tasted perfect the second go round.
Will try this but maybe half cheddar cheese and half Velveeta, Last time I used all Velveeta, but it was too much that way.
This recipe looks delicious! I will be trying this very soon. At our local Chilis, the enchilada soup is smooth. No beans or tomatoes. No big pieces of anything. Only the chicken. And then the cheese and tortilla strips on top. Regardless, can’t wait to try this at home.
I notice the serving size is 6. However, it seems to be quite a bit. Would I need to double the recipe or does this amount go a long way? Looking forward to making this!
I personally think it’s a lot of soup and would not double the recipe.
When you say Mexican style tomatoes are you referring to rotel?I can’t find Mexican canned tomatoes,what can I substitute? Thankyou
Absolutely THE best chicken enchilada soup recipe!! Made it again tonight for the 2nd time. Also, freezes very well for later!
Hi Jamie:
I have made this soup a few times and love it just as much this time as I have all the other times. I made it tonight for my parents and my Dad (who can be a bit of a picky eater sometimes) went back for seconds! That is always a good sign. Thank you so much for sharing!
Perfect copycat recipe! Turned out amazing!! Thank you for the recipe 🙂