How to Make Copycat Chick-fil-A Chicken Tortilla Soup at Home

There are a lot of people who really love Chick-fil-A’s chicken tortilla soup. When sweater weather comes around, people line up for this dish. I can see why: It’s packed with rotisserie chicken, beans, corn, and a blend of cozy spices, making it the perfect comfort food to warm up with. But what if you don’t live near a Chick-fil-A like I do? Making your own is the next best thing. After tasting how good this is, I’d say it gives the original a run for its money. The best part is that you can easily make it fit your family’s tastes when you make it yourself, without having to talk to a cashier. Advertisement – Continue Reading Below.

Tortilla Strips & Assembly

• 4 (5″) corn tortillas, sliced into 1/2″ strips
• 1 Tbsp. (or more) neutral oil
• Kosher salt
• For serving, you can add lime wedges, chopped avocado, fresh cilantro, and shredded cheddar cheese.

• Step 1: Blend or process one can of white beans and their liquid in a blender or food processor until the soup is smooth. You can also use a potato masher or a large spoon to mash the white beans in a medium bowl until they are smooth. Step 2: Heat the oil in a big Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion and stir it around for about 7 minutes, until it gets soft. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the chili powder, cumin, paprika, and garlic. Cook, stirring, and adding more chili powder if needed for about two minutes, or until the food smells good. Add the tomatoes and stir them in every so often. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce gets a little thicker. Season with salt and pepper. Add the black beans, broth, and the last can of white beans and their liquid, along with the pureed beans you saved. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, stirring every now and then, for about 20 minutes, or until slightly thickened and flavors have blended. Step 3: Mix masa harina and 2 tablespoons of water together in a small bowl. Then, add the mixture to the soup and mix it in. Add the chicken and corn and cook, stirring every now and then, for about 10 minutes, until everything is hot. To make it taste better, add salt and pepper to taste and mix in the sour cream and lime juice.
• Tortilla Strips & AssemblyStep 1 Preheat oven to 400°. Toss the tortilla strips with oil in a small bowl. If necessary, add a little more oil and rub the strips all over. Spread on a baking sheet. Step 2: Check on the strips after 7 minutes and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until they are crispy. Step 3 Ladle soup into bowls. Top with tortilla strips, cilantro, avocado, and cheddar (if using). Serve with lime wedges alongside (if using).

How To Make Copycat Chick-Fil-A Chicken Tortilla Soup

Cannellini, Great Northern, Navy, or white kidney beans are all types of white beans that should work in this recipe. Some of them blended or mashed gave the soup base a nice thickness. You could leave them all whole, though. A lot of people know Chick-fil-A’s secret recipe, but I think that blending white beans might be one of them. To make this taste like fast food, use a neutral oil like sunflower or vegetable oil. If you only have olive oil, that will also work great. • Canned Tomatoes: I love the convenience of using fire-roasted canned, diced tomatoes with green chiles because they bring a lot of added flavor without any added effort. That said, if you only have regular canned tomatoes, those will work too. Add a small can of green chiles or black beans with added chiles if you can find them. If you don’t have any chiles, don’t add them at all. • Black Beans: Though I usually would recommend rinsing your beans before using them in a recipe, here you get to skip that step! Keeping some of the bean juice from the can helps add flavor and thickness to this soup. • Low-sodium chicken broth: This will let you better control the amount of salt and flavor in your soup. It’s important to taste before adding salt if you only have regular sodium. You may need less than you think. • Masa Harina: Masa harina is a corn flour commonly used in Mexican cuisine for making various doughs and thickening soups and sauces. You can typically find several brands in grocery stores such as Goya, Masienda, and Bob’s Red Mill. Mixing a little masa harina with water creates a paste, which is added towards the end of cooking to thicken the soup. However, If you don’t have any masa harina, don’t worry—the soup will still be a winner. You can always adjust the consistency by adding more sour cream or mashed beans. Using store-bought rotisserie chicken is a good way to save time, but it still takes a little while to shred the chicken. To save even more time, I like to buy the chicken on Sunday (or a few days before making the soup) and shred it. Then I put it in the fridge for the week. • Frozen Corn: I like the convenience of frozen corn (and it’s certainly what they’re using at Chick-fil-A), but feel free to use fresh if you’ve got it. • Sour Cream: When I was making this recipe, I loved the idea of making a creamy base without heavy cream. I also liked how the sour cream added a nice tang. Feel free to substitute, potentially adding a little more lime juice to compensate. • Lime Juice: A squeeze of fresh lime is my favorite way to add brightness to an otherwise heavy soup, so I add some in at the end of cooking AND pair it with lime wedges for serving. You’ll need ~2 limes for the soup, and however many you’d like for serving, so plan accordingly. Corn Tortillas: You can crush corn tortilla chips for the crunchy topping, but it’s easier and tastes better to make your own strips with my no-fry method.

If you’re not a great multitasker in the kitchen, it’s a good idea to blend the beans for the soup base before you start your soup. If you can handle a pot on the stove and a blender going, feel free to do the first two steps simultaneously. Similarly, you can bake the tortilla strips ahead of time, or do them once your soup is ready.

They’re pretty quick once you get your oven preheated. Simply slice your tortillas into strips, coat them in a little oil, and bake them. Depending on how hot your oven runs, check them early—they will continue to crisp up as they cool.

Like many soups, this one starts by sautéeing your aromatics (i.e., your onion, garlic, and spices). Let the onions go for a few minutes on their own, then add the garlic and spices, making sure to stir so nothing burns.

Once those have cooked all together for about 10 minutes total and your kitchen is smelling good, you’ll add the tomatoes, cooking just until the liquid has evaporated a bit. Season with salt and pepper (start slow; you can always season more once the rest of your ingredients have been added).

Next add the pureed or mashed white beans, the cans of black beans and whole white beans (including their liquid!), and some broth. Bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. Now is a great time to taste for salt, adding more if you went light earlier.

While your soup is simmering, mix the masa harina and a few tablespoons of water until combined.

Once the soup has thickened and the flavors have melded, stir the masa harina in, along with the chicken and corn. Cook it until everything is heated through, then stir in the sour cream and lime juice and taste for seasoning.

Full list of ingredients and directions can be found in the recipe above.

Chick Fil A’s Chicken Tortilla Soup | Copy cat recipe for chicken soup