This Chuys tortilla soup is the perfect meal for any chilly day. Filled with chicken, veggies, garlic, and plenty of spice, this soup tastes almost just like the Chuy’s version – but healthier!
Have you eaten at Chuy’s yet? If not, here’s all the deets on this popular Tex-Mex eatery.
It’s a favorite on my husband’s side of the family. While I enjoyed it (especially their special sauces), I didn’t quite understand what all the hype was about.
That is, until I tried Chuys tortilla soup. Arguably the best soup I’ve ever put in my mouth.
Traveling from Atlanta to Kentucky during Christmas, I was sick with a stubborn virus that finally led to a fever. Thankfully, we decided to make a pit stop at Chuy’s because it was one of the only restaurants we could think of that serves soup.
It was my first time trying it, and now I know exactly what I’m ordering from now on!
It was so good, in fact, that I couldn’t wait until our next Chuy’s date to enjoy another bowl. I had to recreate it myself.
Dare I say, this copycat Chuys tortilla soup is on a level playing field with the real thing?
Chuy’s Tortilla Soup Ingredients
There are some special ingredients that make this soup extra-yummy:
- Diced avocado – this adds such a unique element that I’ve never had in soup before!
- Fresh jalepeno – spice is necessary, of course.
- Lots of veggies – carrots and celery (classics in most chicken soup recipes) are usually missing from tortilla soups. This recipe welcomes them warmly.
- Tomatoes & peppers – I used a can of mild diced tomatoes with green chiles. It’s perfect!
- Fresh lime juice – this is KEY to the soup’s flavor!
Recipe Notes
- This soup is best made on the stovetop, as sauteing the veggies is an important step. Alternatively, you could make this in an instant pot with the saute setting.
- I used meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken to simplify a step. You could also grill chicken breasts and shred, or use any type of pre-cooked chicken.
- Adjust the amount of jalapenos (or omit the seeds) if you don’t like a lot of spice.
- Use fresh cilantro if at all possible. My grocery didn’t have any (sad), so I had to settle for dried which changed the flavor profile a bit.
- My homemade bouillon cubes added an amazing flavor to this soup – but they’re optional.
- This soup can be made paleo very easily by swapping butter for oil/ghee and omitting the corn, tortilla strips, and cheese.
Tortilla Chicken Soup {Chuy's Copycat}
This Chuy's copycat tortilla chicken soup is the perfect meal for any chilly day. Filled with veggies, garlic, and plenty of spice, this soup tastes almost just like the Chuy's version - but healthier!
Ingredients
- 2 TBSP butter
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 2 jalepenos, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 2 cubes homemade chicken bouillon*, optional
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 can diced tomatoes w/ green chiles, 14.5 oz
- 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
- 1 lime, juiced
Garnish with:
- avocado, diced
- cheddar cheese, grated
- 1/2 cup green onions, diced
- cilantro, chopped
- tortilla strips
Instructions
- Melt butter in a stock pot on medium heat and saute onions, carrots, celery, jalapenos until onions are translucent. Add garlic during the last minute of saute time.
- Add chicken broth, corn, canned tomatoes & chiles, cumin, salt, and pepper to the pot. Boil gently until all veggies are soft, about 15-20 minutes.
- After veggies are cooked, add cooked chicken & lime juice. Add more salt to taste if needed.
- Before serving, garnish with avocado, cheese, green onions, cilantro, and tortilla strips.
Notes
*You can get the recipe for homemade chicken bouillon cubes here!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1 gramsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 214Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 48mgSodium: 1744mgCarbohydrates: 13gFiber: 4gSugar: 4gProtein: 13g
Need some more easy dinner ideas? These recipes are sure to please!
- Best Ever Spaghetti & Meatballs
- Perfect Baked Hot Wings (with buffalo chicken gravy)
- Quick Sourdough Bread Mini Pizzas
- Perfect, Easy Pan-Fried Potatoes
What’s your favorite kind of soup? Tell me in the comments!
With Joy,
PIN IT!
Hi Mary, Best Soup Ever! After I read this blog, I couldn’t wait to get to the store and buy the ingredients. I made the soup yesterday, and let me say you did not over-promise on your soup recipe! We love it!!! Since we are older and trying to reduce our sodium, I did not use any bouillon cubes and even reduced the salt some in the recipe. It still had plenty for us. Every single item in this soup gives it incredible flavor and zip. I had some leftover black beans from the day before, which I added. Great option if you want to try it. Also, I have an amazingly flavorful, very simple, chicken recipe that I make when we are in the mood for chicken burritos. Knowing I wanted to make the soup, I made the chicken earlier in the week, and we had burritos. Then I saved the rest to make the soup yesterday. It really added to the soup’s flavor. Let me know if you want the chicken recipe. One question I have: Can you buy tortilla strips in the grocery store? I have only had them in restaurants. We crunched up tortilla chips, which worked, but the strips would be prettier and neater. Thanks, Mary!
That is awesome Aunt Darla, I am so happy y’all enjoyed it! That chicken sounds really good, I’d like to hear how you made it. I also love the idea of adding black beans! I’m honestly not sure about the tortilla strips, but you could cut corn tortillas with a pizza cutter and that might work. Thanks so much for your sweet comments!
I can usually find tortilla strips by the salad fixings or toppings.
I’m so happy to have found this reciple!! Chuy’s soup is my absolutely favorite- searched for a similar recipe and it did NOT disappoint. This was soooooo easy to make and it was just as yummy as Chuy’s, maybe even better. Thank you so much for an amazing recipe- I have already forwarded it to my mom and dad who also love Chuy’s soup!
Yay, I am so happy you are enjoying it! Thanks so much for the positive review! God bless
Scout’s mom here…she did share the recipe and I made it tonight. FANTASTIC! Just as good if not better than chuy’s! Thank you Mary! This will be a staple in our home!
I am so happy to hear this!! Thanks so much for the kind comments. Enjoy!
I haven’t tried your version yet, but did you see that they actually gave the recipe on a news cooking show? It might be fun one night to make them both and compare.
https://wtvr.com/2014/03/14/chuys-hot-hearty-chicken-tortilla-soup/
Wow, that is really interesting! I wonder what the ingredient for “chicken base” actually is? Thanks for reading.
This soup was so easy and amazing! I just used canned chicken. Major time saver. I will make this again and the kids loved adding the toppings on to “make” their own soup! Thanks again!
I’m so glad y’all enjoyed it!
My son recently had the tortilla soup at Chuy’s. It looked so good and I wanted to try it, so I searched online and found yours. My son said this recipe was better than Chuy’s, and I believe he said it tasted healthier. He did not know that was one of your goals! We, along with my in-laws enjoyed it very much! I did tweak it a little…no jalepenos, but extra can of chili peppers and no bouillon cubes (you kind of scared me on that on 🙂 But still very flavorful!! Thank you!
Very glad you enjoyed it! (I have a homemade bouillon cube recipe on the blog, because I don’t like the store bought ones either.) Nourishing Homemade Bouillon Cubes (from Stock Leftovers)
Thanks for the comment!