This hearty soup cooks quickly in the Instant Pot, but can also cook low and slow all day in the slow cooker!
I don’t know what is the best part of this recipe: the fact that it has so much flavor, that both kids and adults love it, or that it is so simple and quick to prepare!
Most of the ingredients are canned so you might have them in your pantry already, which is a bonus. You can save a step by using rotisserie chicken, although cooking the chicken in the Instant Pot takes only a few extra minutes. (You can even use frozen chicken breasts if you are like me and forgot to defrost the chicken before dinnertime.)
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If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can add all of the ingredients including the chicken to a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours. The flavors are the same so either way is a great option for a fast weeknight meal!
My kids love this because of all the toppings. They can add as much or as little cheese, salsa, sour cream and chips as they please! I think getting them involved in personalizing their own food is a key to having them enjoy the meal.
Start by cooking the boneless and skinless chicken breasts. Place the trivet in the Instant Pot bowl, add the chicken and 1 cup of water. Lightly salt the chicken, seal the IP lid, and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
Allow a few minutes for the pot to naturally release pressure, and then do a quick release. Remove the chicken and shred it with 2 forks. Take out the trivet and rinse the pot, and then put the chicken back in.
Tip: To save time, you can use pre-cooked chicken or even a shredded rotisserie.
Rinse the black beans (otherwise you get a strange black color to your soup). Add the beans and all the other canned ingredients to the pot with the chicken. Add 1/2 cup of salsa and water. Seal the lid, and cook 5 minutes on either the high pressure or “Soup” setting.
*Tip: Let the soup naturally release pressure for 10 minutes after it has completed cooking. This is true for any soup in the IP. If not, it can spurt out of the top pressure valve which would create quite a mess.
To make this soup ahead of time
This soup is the perfect recipe to prepare in advance to either serve later in the week, to freeze, or to take as a camping meal. Follow the above instructions up until turning on and sealing the pressure cooker. Pour all the ingredients together in a sealable container and either freeze or refrigerate for a few days until you are ready to serve. If frozen, thaw overnight before cooking. Once you are ready to finish the soup, pour everything into the Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 5 minutes.
Note: Even if it is not fully defrosted, you do not need to adjust the cooking time on the Instant Pot! It may take longer to come up to pressure but will turn out the same.
Toppings (AKA the best part)
After the 10 minutes, complete a quick release and open the lid. Stir the soup and ladle into bowls so everyone can add the toppings they choose. We recommend:
- Salsa. You can use a mild, medium, or hot salsa.
- Shredded cheese. Any kind you like- Mexican, cheddar, pepper jack, or whatever you have on hand.
- Chips like Fritos, tortilla chips, or Doritos.
- Sour cream
- Avocado or guacamole
Other favorite Instant Pot recipes that are quick and easy:
Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
Shredded Chicken
- 2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup water
Tortilla Soup
- 2 15 ounce cans black beans, rinsed
- 2 15 ounce cans stewed tomatoes, Mexican or Italian style
- ½ cup salsa, plus extra for serving
- ½ cup water
- 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 10 ounce can diced tomatoes with green chilies
Soup Toppings
- Shredded cheese, either cheddar or Mexican style
- Sour cream
- Tortilla chips
Instructions
- To make the shredded chicken: Place the trivet inside the Instant Pot bowl. Add the chicken breasts and water with a dash of salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes on high pressure, allow a natural release for 5 minutes and then release the rest of the pressure. Remove the chicken onto a plate and shred with 2 forks. Simple!
- Drain the water out of the pot and remove the trivet. Put the shredded chicken back in the pot.
- Add in the black beans, stewed tomatoes, ½ cup salsa, water, diced tomatoes with green chilies, and tomato sauce.
- Seal lid and cook for 5 minutes on high pressure. Allow to naturally release pressure for 10 minutes.
- Once you can open the lid, give the soup a good stir and you are ready to plate it up! Ladle the soup into a bowl and top with shredded cheese, a dollop of salsa and sour cream, and tortilla chips. Enjoy!
- If you don't have a pressure cooker, you can also cook this in a slow cooker on low for 8 hours. The ingredients are the same, just omit the 1 cup of water you would use to pressure cook the chicken.
Cheers!
This looks awesome!! Thank you!!!