We finally gave in and got an Instant pot a few months ago! We absolutely love it. It’s shortened cook times for us significantly and has been incredibly useful for quick cooking rice, soups, and stews. One of our favorite types of soup is a classic chicken tortilla soup. We tend to make it on the weekends, because it usually requires a long cook time to cook the chicken through and develop flavor. Enter the Instant Pot! This soup cooks for 30 minutes under high pressure and is ready to go. This Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup is an excellent option for lunches all week or simply for a family to enjoy for a healthy dinner option even on the busiest of weeknights.
There are so many variations on tortilla soup, but we like to keep things simple. We use onion, garlic, tomatoes, and jalapenos as the base, adding in chicken stock, some spices, and of course some chicken breast. We do like to get creative with our toppings though! Let’s be honest, tortilla soup isn’t the same without crunchy tortilla strips on top. Instead of crumbling up tortilla chips on top, we opt to make our own strips. We bake them to keep it on the lighter side. In addition to the strips, we add avocado, cilantro, lime, and some Mexican crema or Cotija cheese. The mixture of hot and cold, crunchy and brothy makes for an incredible meal.
One of the features we love the most about the Instant Pot is the sear feature. This allows you to brown or cook veggies or meat directly in the Instant Pot rather than dirtying another pot or pan. For this recipe, we cook the veggies in some oil on the sear mode until translucent before adding in the broth, tomatoes, and chicken and cooking on high pressure for about 30 minutes. Then you simply shred the chicken using a fork and serve with your chosen toppings.
You can take any topping variations you like on yours. Occasionally, we add black beans for an extra dose of protein and fiber. If we’re out of Cotija cheese, we’ll use cheddar. You can go with sour cream over Mexican crema, you get the picture. Overall, it’s an incredibly versatile recipe and comes together quickly with the help of the trusty Instant Pot.
We hope you enjoy this Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe. We hope it’s the first of many more Instant Pot recipes to come.
Note: If you want to make this Chicken Tortilla Soup but don’t own an Instant Pot, it can easily be adapted to the stovetop. Simply follow the same instructions, but allow to simmer for about 1 hour or until chicken is cooked through and tender and liquid has reduced slightly.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Turn on the Instant Pot and place on "Saute" setting. Heat up the canola oil.
- Add diced onion, garlic, and jalapenos for about 5 minutes until tender.
- Next, add the chicken stock, diced tomatoes, and spices. Stir to combine. Then add the chicken breasts and cilantro.
- Cover with the lid. Set the vent to "sealing" and place on high pressure mode for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 450F
- While the soup cooks, make the tortilla strips. Slice the tortillas into long strips. Evenly spread onto a baking sheet and spray with cooking spray lightly.
- Bake for approximately 10 minutes until golden and crispy. Can store in airtight jar for up to 1 week.
- Once the pressure cooker is finished, you can allow the pressure to release naturally or use the manual release. Remove the lid and take out the chicken to shred using 2 forks.
- Return the chicken to the pot and serve soup with tortilla strips and toppings of your choice.