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Santa Fe Taco Soup

Santa Fe taco soup is a Tex-Mex one-pot recipe with a Southwestern-style broth, black beans, corn, green chiles, and shredded chicken simmered until flavorful. Top each bowl with sour cream, avocado, cotija, cilantro, and crispy tortilla strips for big taco-soup texture.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Calories: 430

Ingredients
  

Chicken and soup base
  • 1.5 lb chicken breast Cooked and shredded
  • 1 can (15 oz) black beans Drained
  • 1 can (15 oz) corn Drained
  • 1 can (4 oz) diced green chiles
  • 1 can (10 oz) Rotel tomatoes
  • 1 can (14 oz) fire-roasted diced tomatoes
  • 1 packet (1 oz) taco seasoning
  • 1 packet (1 oz) ranch dressing mix
  • 4 cup chicken broth
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 0.5 tsp smoked paprika
Seasoning and toppings
  • 1 salt To taste
  • 1 pepper To taste
  • 1 sour cream For topping
  • 1 avocado For topping
  • 1 cotija cheese For topping
  • 1 cilantro For topping
  • 1 lime wedges For serving
  • 1 tortilla strips For topping

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch oven

Method
 

Make the taco soup
  1. Combine shredded chicken, black beans, corn, diced green chiles, Rotel tomatoes, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, taco seasoning, ranch dressing mix, chicken broth, cumin, and smoked paprika in a large pot.
  2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until the flavors meld.
  3. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with Southwestern toppings
  1. Ladle the hot Santa Fe taco soup into bowls and top each serving with sour cream, diced avocado, crumbled cotija, fresh cilantro, and lime wedges.
  2. Finish with crispy tortilla strips right before serving so they stay crunchy.

Notes

For best results, use already-cooked shredded chicken (rotisserie works) to keep prep fast. Store leftovers in the refrigerator up to 4 days; freeze the soup base without toppings for up to 3 months and thaw/reheat, then add fresh toppings. To make it dairy-free, swap sour cream and cotija for dairy-free yogurt or omit them and use extra avocado instead.