Published January 4, 2017. Updated November 3, 2018
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Chicken Enchilada Soup made easy thanks to the slow cooker! This protein rich recipe is a breeze to prep and the end result is brimming with well seasoned, fresh Mexican flavors. All the goodness of chicken enchiladas transformed into a hearty bowl of soup!
Chicken Enchilada Soup with Nutritious Quinoa
So I guess it’s time to get back to real food instead of sharing desserts all week. December was nice with the cookies nearly every day and the sweets galore but I guessit’s a good thing it only happens one month out of theyear.
Now to get back to easy, healthy dinners. Lately I’m loving this Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Soup, I’ve made it probably 6 times already!
The first few times I madeit with chicken thighs and corn tortillas then I decided I didn’t love the texture of the chicken thighs so I switched to chicken breasts and I wanted to make it even healthier so I swapped the corn tortillas for quinoa.
I also added in some avocados because avocados always go well in Mexican soup right?
This is a recipe you’ll want to have every week it’s so good! You can’t go wrong with a big cozy bowl of it.
Ingredients You’ll Need for This Recipe
- Cans – low sodium chicken broth, red enchilada sauce, diced tomatoes
- Spices – chili powder, cumin, S&P
- Chicken breasts
- Veggies – onion, garlic, corn, avocado, cilantro
- Quinoa
- Toppings – cheese, sour cream, tortilla chips
Equipment You’ll Need
A 6 or 7 quart slow cooker will be needed for this recipe.
How do You Make Enchilada Soup?
- To a slow cooker add canned ingredients and spices.
- Add in chicken, onion and garlic.
- Cover and cook on low heat until chicken is tender, about 6 hours, while adding in quinoa during the last 30 minutes of cooking.
- Discard onion. Shred chicken.
- Add corn and black beans to soup and heat through.
- Return chicken to soup and stir in avocado and cilantro.
- Serve warm with toppings.
A Dump and Go Recipe!
This is one of the easiest soups ever! It requires minimal prep it’s mostly a dump and cook kind of recipe. You don’t even need to chop the onion!
And I actually recommend that you don’t chop the onion because not only does it save time to just split it in half but after only 6 hours of cookingthe onions didn’t seem to be fully softened yet when I did chop them up. So by halving it you still get all thenice depth of flavor from the onion without the extra effort or added crunch.
Can I Use Left Over Cooked Quinoa?
If you’ve already got cooked quinoa on hand you can use that instead of using dry, I’d add 2 cups and also I’d reduce the broth by 1 cup, and wait until the end to add it.
Is this Soup Spicy?
Do note that even by using a mild enchilada sauce some of you may still find it a little spicy, some are more sensitive to chili powders than others. My family still loves it, even my kids it’s not to spicy for them but I thought I better note just in case.
More Mexican Soup Recipes You’ll Love
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Creamy Mexican Corn Chowder
- Chicken Avocado Lime Soup
- Mexican Lentil Soup
16 Quick & Easy 30 Minute Recipes! (plus weekly recipe updates)
5 from 8 votes
Print Recipe
Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Soup
This protein rich recipe is a breeze to prep and the end result is brimming with well seasoned, fresh Mexican flavors. All the goodness of chicken enchiladas transformed into a hearty bowl of soup!
Servings: 5
Prep15 minutes minutes
Cook6 hours hours 5 minutes minutes
Ready in: 6 hours hours 20 minutes minutes
Ingredients
- 2 (14.5 oz) cans low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups canned mild red enchilada sauce
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
- 1 1/2 tsp ancho chili powder**
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/4 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 medium onion, halved from root to tip and peeled (also barely chop root off so onion stays intact)
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic crusher
- 2/3 cup dry quinoa
- 1 1/2 cups frozen corn***
- 1 (14.5 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 avocado, diced
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- Toppings:
- Shredded Mexican blend cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips
Instructions
To a 6 - 7 quart slow cooker add chicken broth, enchilada sauce, tomatoes, chili powder, cumin and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add in chicken, onion and garlic.
Cover and cook on low heat until chicken has cooked through and is tender, about 6 hours, while adding in quinoa during the last 30 minutes of cooking (so at about 5 1/2 hours add quinoa).
Remove onion and discard. Remove chicken and dice or shred.
Add corn and black beans to soup and heat through.
Return chicken to soup and stir in avocado and cilantro.
Serve warm with cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips.
Notes
- I've tested La Victoria and Las Palmas since they were chili based sauces. I liked La Victoria but not Las Palmas it tasted almost bitter. Next I'd like to try Old El Paso, if you do try it please let me know how you like it. I think it may need more chili powder though as it is tomato based.
- Adjust this to taste. You may want a little more depending on the brand of enchilada sauce used some are more chili pepper based than others.
- You can warm this in the microwave in water first then drain if you don't wait to wait for it to warm in the soup. Fresh corn can be used instead, add with quinoa.
- Nutritional info does not include toppings.
- Recipe source: Cooking Classy
Nutrition Facts
Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Soup
Amount Per Serving
Calories 481Calories from Fat 90
% Daily Value*
Fat 10g15%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 72mg24%
Sodium 1349mg59%
Potassium 1460mg42%
Carbohydrates 60g20%
Fiber 13g54%
Sugar 10g11%
Protein 40g80%
Vitamin A 1045IU21%
Vitamin C 23.1mg28%
Calcium 98mg10%
Iron 5.8mg32%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition values are estimates only. See full disclaimer here.
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: Chicken Enchilada Soup
Author: Jaclyn
