This delicious Green Chicken Enchilada Soup is the perfect easy weeknight dinner that comes together in one pot in under an hour! If you love enchiladas as much as I do, you’re going to love this soup that serves all the flavors without all the stuffing and rolling.
The combination of juicy and tender shredded chicken, poblanos, and beans in a creamy homemade salsa verde broth is just heavenly! Serve it up loaded with all your favorite toppings like sour cream, avocado, cilantro, tortilla strips, and radishes.
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Chicken Enchilada Soup in Under an Hour
Enchiladas are hands-down one of my absolute favorite comfort foods, but I’m not always up for the work of making the filling, rolling the enchiladas, etc. Sometimes, I want all the flavors I love without all the work and so this green chicken enchilada soup was born!
Unlike chicken tortilla soup, which uses a red chile broth, we make a quick homemade salsa verde as the base of the soup. The tangy tomatillos and spice from the serranos adds such a flavorful kick that is just so good. As much as I love a red chile broth, like in my pork pozole recipe, this salsa verde version might just be my new favorite. Puree-ing half of the soup with some corn tortillas gives the soup its creamy texture and thickness without using cream or flour!
This truly is an easy-to-make soup recipe that you can tackle any night of the week! To know me is to know how much I love soup. Did you know that I have over 30+ soup recipes in my archives? I love soup THAT much–there’s truly a recipe for everyone in there.
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Key Recipe Ingredients
full list of ingredients, quantities & method in the recipe card at the end of the page.
- Chicken. I like using chicken thighs here because they’re tender and so flavorful, but you could swap in chicken breast or even use rotisserie chicken!
- Poblanos. This adds so much flavor to the soup base.
- Salsa verde. I prefer to make my own with tomatillos, onion, garlic, serranos, spices, and cilantro but you could also use a large jar of your favorite store bought salsa verde.
- Pinto beans. I love the texture that they add to the soup and the extra heartiness, but you could swap in another bean like cannellini, white, etc.
- Onion. I like using white onion here, but you can swap in any onion you prefer.
- Corn tortillas. This helps thicken the broth when you blend it!
- Chicken stock. I always prefer using homemade, but store bought works too. I recommend looking for richer chicken bone broth for more flavor.
How to Make Green Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Make the salsa verde. Making your own salsa verde is so easy! All you have to do is combine the onion, serrano, tomatillos, and garlic on a baking sheet and then roast them until they’re blistered. Then, blend up the roasted veggies with cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper.
Jenny’s Tip: As much as I prefer to make my own salsa verde or enchilada sauce from scratch, sometimes I just don’t have the time! You can swap in your favorite store-bought green enchilada sauce or salsa verde easily.
- Sear the chicken until golden brown. This really helps build layers of flavor into the soup. Sear the seasoned chicken on both sides until deeply golden brown.
- Saute the aromatics. As the onion and poblanos cook in the fond left behind by the chicken, they’ll pick up those incredible flavors. Making great soup is all about building layers of flavors!
- Simmer the soup. Add the chicken, salsa verde, beans, and broth to the pot with the onion and poblano and simmer until the chicken is super tender and easily shredded.
- Blend half the soup. This is my secret to making a creamy and thick soup without using any cream or flour! Blending half of the soup with some corn tortillas really adds lots of flavor and you end up with a silky soup. Return the blended portion of the soup to the rest of the soup and add in all the shredded chicken and your soup is done!
Slow Cooker Instructions
Sometimes you need a soup that you can set and forget and I totally get that! While I like to make this on the stovetop, you can easily adapt this green chicken enchilada soup recipe for the slow cooker.
Slow cooker instructions: Make the salsa verde as instructed. If you have the time, sear the chicken thighs and saute the onions and poblanos as this adds tons of flavor. Mix the salsa verde, broth, chicken, onions & poblanos, and beans in a slow cooker. Season with salt, cover, and cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Shred the chicken, blend half of the soup, and return everything to the slow cooker for another 30 minutes. Serve with all your favorite toppings.
If you do give this recipe a try, I love hearing about it! Leave a comment with a star rating below. Be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter and never miss a new recipe! You can also snap a photo & tag @JENNYGOYCOCHEA on Instagram.
More Cozy Fall Soup Recipes to Try
Pierogi Soup
Italian Wedding Soup
Sausage Ravioli Soup
Lasagna Soup
Chicken and Dumpling Soup
Brothy Bean & Pasta Soup
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Green Chicken Enchilada Soup
Ingredients
Salsa Verde
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- 1 1/2 lbs tomatillos
- 1/2 white onion, chopped
- 2 serrano peppers, stems removed and chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 cup chopped cilantro
- 2 limes, juiced
Enchilada Soup
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1/2 white onion, diced
- 2 poblano peppers, diced
- 15 oz can pinto beans,
- 2 corn tortillas, chopped
- 6 cups chicken stock
Toppings
- Sour cream
- Diced avocado
- Radishes, cut into matchsticks
- Cilantro
- Shredded monterrey jack cheese
- Crispy tortilla strips
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 400 F. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.
- Make the salsa verde. Remove the husks from the tomatillos and rinse them under cold water until the outsides are no longer sticky. Cut the tomatillos into wedges. Place them on the prepared baking sheet with the chopped white onion, serranos, and garlic and toss with the oil. Season with salt and pepper and roast for 20 minutes, until the tomatillos are blistered and the veggies are soft. Transfer the roasted veggies and any juices to a blender with the cumin, oregano, cilantro, and lime juice. Blend until smooth and season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
- Sear the chicken. Pat the chicken thighs dry and season all over with salt and pepper. In a 5-6 qt dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Lay the chicken in a single layer (you may need to do this in batches) and brown for 3-4 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
- Simmer the soup. Reduce the heat to medium and add the diced onions and poblanos to the pot. Saute for 3-4 minutes, until the veggies are softening. Stir in the salsa verde, broth, beans and return the chicken to the pot. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Shred the chicken and blend half of the soup. Remove the chicken from the pot and transfer to a plate. Use 2 forks to shred the meat. Meanwhile, transfer half the soup to a blender with the chopped tortillas and blend until smooth. Return the blended soup to the pot and add the shredded chicken. Season to taste with salt and pepper and lime juice and simmer for another 5-10 minutes.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and top with tortilla strips, sour cream, cheese, avocado, cilantro, and radishes.
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