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This Chicken Verde Soup is one of those soups that warms you from the inside out. It’s slightly spicy from a jar of store-bought salsa verde and packed with onion, garlic, hints of cumin, and oregano. Heartiness comes in the form of shredded chicken, starchy hominy, and white beans. Bonus? It comes together in 30 minutes!
Chicken Verde Soup
If there were ever a soup that…
- Warmed you from the inside out.
- Had the perfect amount of heartiness, but left you feeling light and free.
- Managed to hit the perfect balance between spicy, tangy and salty.
It would be this Chicken Verde Soup.
Have you ever tried chicken verde soup before? Basically it’s like a spicy green salsa, in soup form. But with all kinds of yummy additions like starch hominy, creamy white beans and tender chicken. There’s also a gaggle full of warm spices, most prominently cumin for it’s smokiness. Smokiness that compliments the salsa verde and hominy perfectly.
A squeeze of lime juice before serving, a few thin slices of jalapeño, and a touch of cilantro make this spicy chicken verde soup complete.
I’d compare it to a more brothy and tangy version of this Chicken Chili or this Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup.
Ingredients in Chicken Verde Soup
The broth
Olive oil. Onion and garlic. No matter what cuisine I’m cooking, olive oil, onion, and garlic are what I start 99% of my soups with.
Flour. Adding flour is optional here. I like that it adds just a touch of heft to the soup, but you can certainly leave it out if you like a more brothy soup.
Spices. Ground cumin, coriander, and dried oregano is the perfect spice trip to compliment the flavors in the salsa verde. I always tend to go a little aggressive on the cumin side because I adore the smokiness it adds to dishes, if that’s not your thing, scale by a half a teaspoon or so.
Chicken Stock. Use low-sodium chicken broth or stock so you can control the amount of salt that goes into the soup.
Salsa verde. I had grand plans of roasting a bunch of garlic, onions, tomatillos, and jalapeños and making my own salsa verde for the chicken verde soup. And then life happened, and I needed a shortcut. I’m guessing you guys will appreciate it as well. This is the brand I picked up.
The bulk
White Beans. In addition to the flour, white beans help to thicken the chicken verde soup up just a little bit. They add a creamy element without adding cream, which I always love. And of course, I just adore the taste and texture of white beans in a tex-mex style soup.
Hominy. You may be asking, What is hominy? Well, if you haven’t had the pleasure of trying hominy yet, you’re in for a treat. Hominy looks and tastes similar to corn, and is indeed a derivative of corn. However, the difference between hominy and corn is hominy is processed in a special lime solution so that is puffs up and becomes a bit more soft and starchy than corn. The texture is almost a hybrid between a kernel of corn and a bean, and I just can’t get enough of the stuff.
It does have a semi-high carb concentration, but it also has a ton of fiber, which is going to keep you full longer. I’d call that a win.
Greek yogurt. Like a lot of my soups, I like to stir in a little bit of plain Greek yogurt at the end to add another element of tanginess and creaminess to the chicken verde soup.
How to make Chicken Verde Soup
Sweat the onion and garlic. Heat a large stock pot or dutch oven to a medium-low heat. Add olive oil, onion, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Sweat the veggies until slightly softened, about 2-3 minutes. Add the cumin, coriander, and oregano. Continue to sweat another 1-2 minutes.
Stir in flour. If you’re using flour, stir it in and cook for a minutes or so to cook out the raw taste of the flour.
Whisk in liquid. Slowly whisk in chicken stock a little bit out of time, making sure to whisk out any lumps from the flour. Stir in salsa, chicken, hominy, white beans, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until soup is slightly thickened and beans are soft.
Stir in greek yogurt. Turn the heat down and stir in the yogurt. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with a squeeze of lime, avocado, and cilantro.
Garnishes
I like to garnish this chicken verde soup pretty minimally with…
- a little squeeze of lime juice
- a few slices of jalapeño if you want to kick the heat up a little
- chopped cilantro.
- If you really want to indulge, you could also sprinkle a little bit of Monterey Jack or cojita cheese on top as well.
Can I make Chicken Verde Soup in advance?
Definitely! We made this on a Monday and had it for lunch the rest of the week. Just as good the next day!
Substitutions and Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success
- Swap out the olive oil for butter or canola oil
- Feel free to leave out the flour
- Don’t have Greek yogurt? You can add a splash of cream or sour cream
- If you want a super spicy chicken verde soup, chop up a jalapeño and cook with the onion and garlic
If you love Chicken Verde Soup, you’re probably going to love our
- Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas (terrible photos, awesome enchiladas)
- Our Five Ingredient Salsa Verde Chicken Enchilada recipe is the easiest enchilada recipe on the planet with very similar flavor profiles to today’s chicken verde soup.
- These Slow Cooker Poblano and Honey Lime Chicken Tacos also have a similar flavor profile to today’s soup. The chicken is slow-cooked in the crockpot with honey, cumin, lime and poblano peppers. The shredded meat is then tucked into flour tortillas and served with chopped onion and cilantro. A favorite!
Chicken Verde Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup diced onion
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 3/4 tsp salt, divided
- 2 tbsp flour (optional)
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground corriander
- 1 tsp oregano
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 16 oz jarred salsa verde
- 1 cup shredded chicken
- 14.5 oz can hominy, drained
- 14.5 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- lime, avocado, and cilantro
Equipment
- stock pot
Instructions
- Heat a large stock pot or dutch oven to a medium-low heat. Add olive oil, onion, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Sweat the veggies until slightly softened, about 2-3 minutes. Add the cumin, coriander, and oregano. Continue to sweat another 1-2 minutes. Stir in flour. Cook for one minute.
- Whisk in chicken stock. Pour in salsa, chicken, hominy, white beans, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until soup is slightly thickened and beans are soft. Stir in greek yogurt. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with a squeeze of lime, avocado, and cilantro.
Tonna says
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