Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup
One of the unpleasant secrets of adulthood is that, when you are sick, the person who most often stays home to feed you Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup, refill your water glass, and make sure you take your medicine on time is….you.
It might sound silly, but I miss grade-school sick days. I’d curl up on the couch to watch Nickelodeon, and my mom would fix my favorite meal: grilled cheese and Campbell’s tomato soup. Sure, I’d have to complete my homework eventually, but being sick when I was younger felt more like a day off…especially that one time I held the thermometer up to the light bulb to heat it above 98.6, and it worked. (Sorry, mom.)
Being sick as an adult feels more like a major inconvenience. “Dear Body, Don’t you know I have a [work deadline, important presentation, 40-million things to do besides lay around pathetically and blow my nose]?”
Currently, I’m battling a wicked cold, which if you follow me on Snapchat (username wellplated), you’ve likely heard via my super stuffed-up, frog-like voice. Whenever I’m sick, the only foods that sound appealing to me are carbs in some form, usually breakfast cereal, and vanilla ice cream. I know, however, that those two along cannot give my body what it needs to fight away the illness.
Effortless recipes like today’s Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup are perfect for when you’re feeling sick, are pressed for time, or just need dinner waiting for you when you arrive home after a long day. Beyond chopping the onions and garlic, this is a “dump and go” crockpot recipe—no precooking of any ingredient required. It takes a few minutes to measure the spices, but they are absolutely worth it. Toss everything into your slow cooker, walk away, and you’ll have a nourishing dinner waiting for you when you return.
I was torn as to whether to name this recipe “Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup” or “Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup,” but I opted for the latter, because the spices and adobo chilis remind me of the smoky flavors of red enchilada sauce. No matter what you call it, Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup is an easy, warming meal that’s ideal for anytime you are feeling under the weather, or for when the weather itself is too chilly for your liking.
Further, both names give us full license to smother the soup in all manners of tasty toppings, which I insist you do, as it really makes the dish. My favorites are sliced avocado, cheese, and plain Greek yogurt (my swap for sour cream), though crushed tortilla chips or even diced jalapenos wouldn’t be remiss.
Finally, if you are looking for a more classic chicken noodle soup, check out the recipe I posted at almost this exact same time last year, Healthy Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup. Why? Because, ironically, I was sick then too. I think my body dislikes the first week of January, and I should head to the tropics at this time next year. The Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup can join. Nasty cold, please stay at home.
Tools I used to make this recipe:
- Slow cooker: I’ve owned this one for years and love that once the timer is up, it automatically switches to “keep warm,” so my food stays hot without over cooking and is ready for me when I get home.
Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup
This slow cooker chicken enchilada soup recipe is easy, cheesy, and healthy too!
Yield: Serves 4-6
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours (on high) or 6 hours (on low)
Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 2-3 chipotle peppers from 1 can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, diced* (use only 2 if sensitive to spice)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons adobo sauce, from canned chipotle peppers
- 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes in their juices
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons ground coriander
- 1 (4 ounce) can green chilis
- 2 (14-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 (14-ounce) can Mexican-style corn, drained
- 3-4 cups reduced sodium chicken stock, divided
- For serving: sliced avocado, plain Greek yogurt or sour cream, chopped cresh cilantro, shredded cheese
Directions:
- Place the chicken thighs in the bottom of a 5 quart or larger slow cooker. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- To the slow cooker, add the garlic, onion, diced chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, diced tomatoes, cumin, coriander, green chilis, drained black beans, and drained Mexicorn. Pour 3 cups of the chicken stock over the top. Cover and slow cook on high for 2 hours or low for 6 hours, until the chicken is cooked through.
- With a fork, remove the chicken thighs from the soup, then shred. Return the chicken to the soup, and add additional chicken stock to the slow cooker if it seems too thick. Recover the slow cooker and cook on high to rewarm for a few minutes as needed. Serve hot with desired toppings.
*Chipotle peppers in adobo can be found in the Hispanic food section of many grocery stores
Did you try this recipe? I want to see! Follow Well Plated on Instagram, snap a photo, and tag it #wellplated. I love to know what you are making!
More comforting soup recipes:
Slow Cooker Jalapeno Cheddar Cheese Soup
Healthy Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
About Erin Clarke
I’m fearlessly dedicated to making healthy food taste incredible. Wearer of plaid, travel enthusiast, and firmly convinced that sweets and veggies both deserve a place at the table. MORE ABOUT ERIN…
This looks great! I have discovered through the TimeHop app that I too seem to get sick a lot this time of year. I’m battling the last of an awful cold that I had going through the New Year. Bleck! I think I should retreat to the tropics as well.
Kori, I’m sorry to hear that you have a cold! I hope you feel better ASAP. The tropics do sound nice, don’t they?
I’m riding the sick struggle bus with you too, Erin! My second one of this winter (GAH why does my immune system stink this year?). I hope you feel better soon, and I know with this soup, I’ll be feeling better too! :D
So true …..much easier being sick when mom or dad are around to take care of things. This soup is right up my alley!! It reminds me of chicken tortilla soup, but slightly different. Love crock pot recipes…..thanks for sharing this perfect winter time soup! Hope you feel better soon!
It really is April! Thanks so much for your kind wishes too. I’m hoping I’m on the mend :)
oooh this sounds incredible! i will have to try it soon! thanks for sharing! :)
Thank YOU. Have a great day!
I never found the recipe for the enchilada soup you talked about just dumping all in but nothing specific
Hi Ruthie! The soup recipe is in the recipe box that a little above the post comments. Is it not showing up on your computer?
This soup is so yummy!! I just had a bowl and knew I had to come let you know how great it is. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank YOU for trying the recipe Michelle. I’m so happy to hear you liked it, and I really appreciate you leaving your review too!
When making this amazing soup I thought, “A Midwesterner probably doesn’t know spicy” so I added a couple more adobo peppers and chucked more sauce in too. Wooooooo baby! My hubby & I sat slurping our soup & wiping our noses at the same time! Obviously the amounts given were plenty. Amazing flavor. I’ll stick to the recipe next time!!
Heidi, I do like my spice, but I bet it was great with a little extra kick. I’m glad you liked the flavor, even if it was hot :) Thanks so much for trying the recipe and letting me know how it turned out for you!
Do you have the nutritional information for this soup?
Great question, Charlotte! Regarding nutritional info, this particular recipe was published just before I started adding the info to all of my new recipes in January 2016 (you’d usually see it in the recipe box at the bottom). Unfortunately, it’s pretty time consuming, so I’m unable to go back and add it to past recipes. If you’d like the nutritional info for any of my older recipes (or really any other recipe or food), you can actually calculate it yourself for free at myfitnesspal.com (this is how I calculate the new recipes on my blog). I’m sorry I can’t give you the information for this specific one, but I hope that My Fitness Pal will be a helpful resource for you.
Hi Erin,
I just made this soup, and it’s SUPER spicey. Any way to cut the heat???? Unfort my daughter won’t eat and a bit too spicey for me. I followed your suggestion to only do 2 peppers if senstitive to spice, but this is really hot. thanks
Hi Kerri, I’d suggest using lots of cool, creamy toppings—avocado, sour cream (or greek yogurt), and cheese will definitely help to tone it down. If you do try the soup again, you can omit the peppers entirely or try using just one or half of one to get to a heat level that you enjoy!