Creamy Chipotle Chicken Soup (Instant Pot) is sure to warm you up with smoky chipotle peppers, green chili, fire-roasted tomatoes, and shredded chicken all in a creamy broth. So flavorful, creamy, and super easy to throw together!
Soup in the Instant Pot makes for an easy weeknight meal. This chipotle chicken soup recipe is made with chicken breasts that shreds like a dream, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, green chilis, and smoky chipotle peppers. I love that you can just put the ingredients in the Instant Pot and let it do its magic. The result; a wonderfully flavorful and creamy soup recipe.
Chipotle Chili Peppers
What are chipotle chili peppers? Chipotle chilis are large jalapenos that are left to ripen on the bush until they turn red. Jalapeno farmers pick green jalapenos for the market but some farmers allow jalapenos to ripen red which are chipotle chilis. They are usually harvested towards the end of the season. After being picked they are then smoke-dried. This gives the peppers a wonderful smoky flavor. The Aztecs used this smoking process so they could preserve food for long periods of time.
Americans are most familiar with canned chipotle chilis in adobo sauce which is what is used in this recipe. Adobo sauce originated in Spain as a marinade or food preservative. Different brands will have varied ingredients so feel free to use any brand of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce for this recipe.
I used La Costena brand which is made with chipotle peppers, onions, vinegar, tomato paste, salt, dried peppers, soybean oil, and spices. Although, I had to pick out all the onions because I have an intolerance to them. After making this, I went to the grocery store and found that the Kroger brand does not have onions. So I am excited to try the Kroger brand the next time I make this soup. And I will be making this soup again really soon because it’s so good! If you like this recipe, check out my Chipotle Chicken Pasta.
I developed an intolerance to onions when I was a teenager but didn’t realize it until I was in my 20’s. When I was a teenager, my mom would cook with onions all the time. She would put onions in ground beef and other dishes. The smell caused really bad headaches and eating onions wrecked my stomach. It took me years to figure it out. I wonder how many of us have reactions to food and don’t even realize it?
Ingredients in Chipotle Chicken Soup
- chicken breasts
- chicken stock
- fire-roasted tomatoes
- diced green chilis
- chipotle chilis
- adobo sauce
- lime juice
- garlic
- cream cheese
How to Make Instant Pot Chipotle Chicken Soup
- Place all ingredients except the cream cheese and garnish in your Instant Pot. Chicken breast, chicken stock, tomatoes, green chilis, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, lime juice, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Close and lock the lid and place the valve to “Sealing.” Push the “Pressure Cook” button and adjust the cooking time to 20 minutes.
- Once the cooking is complete, let it depressurize naturally for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes you can manually release the pressure by switching the valve from “Sealing” to “Venting.” The total time to pressurize, cook, then depressurize will be about 45 minutes.
- Once it has depressurized the red floating valve will be down. Turn off the Instant Pot by pressing “Cancel.” Remove the chipotle peppers and discard.
- Remove the chicken breasts with tongs and place them on a clean plate to shred. Place the block of cream cheese in the Instant Pot.
- Shred the chicken on a clean plate with two forks.
- Stir cream cheese until fully melted. Whisk cream cheese if necessary to make sure all the chunks dissolve. Place shredded chicken back into the pot, stir. If soup needs additional heating you can press the “Keep Warm” button, otherwise, it’s ready to serve.
Serve with some shredded cheese, fresh cilantro, and a squeeze of lime if desired.
Variations
You can adjust the heat level by adding more chipotle peppers or reducing the amount. I used two peppers and thought it had medium heat.
Can I use Frozen Chicken?
Yes, you can use frozen chicken for this recipe. Just increase the cooking time to 25-30 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken. You can also use chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts if desired.
How to Serve Chipotle Chicken Soup
- Tortilla chips
- Tortillas
- Warm bread
- Salad
Can this Creamy Chipotle Chicken Soup be Made in a Slow Cooker?
I absolutely love my Instant Pot, but if you don’t have one this recipe can be made in a Slow Cooker. Place all ingredients except the cream cheese in the Slow Cooker on low heat for 5-7 our or high heat for 3-5 hours. Once the chicken is fully cooked, remove and shred. Place diced cream cheese in the slow cooker and whisk to melt. Once incorporated, add the chicken back in and stir together.
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Creamy Chipotle Chicken Soup (Instant Pot)
Equipment
- Instant Pot
- tongs
- plate and 2 forks
Ingredients
- 3 large boneless, skinless chicken breast
- 2½ cups chicken stock
- 1 14.5 ounce can fired-roasted tomatoes diced
- 1 4 ounce can green chilis diced, mild or hot
- 1½-2 chipotle chili peppers, canned whole
- 1 tbsp adobo sauce from the can of chipotle chilis
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- ¼ tsp salt and pepper each
- 1 8 ounce block cream cheese
Garnish
- shredded cheese
- cilantro
- lime juice
Instructions
- Place chicken, chicken stock, tomatoes, green chilis, chipotle chilis, adobo, lime, garlic, salt, and pepper in the Instant Pot.Close the lid and switch the valve to "Sealing."Push the "Pressure Cook" button and adjust the cooking time to 20 minutes.
- After the cooking is complete, let the pressure naturally release for 5 minutes, then manually release the pressure by switching the valve to "Venting."
- Once the pressure is released and the red floating valve goes down, press the "Cancel" button. Remove the lid then remove the chipotle chilis from the soup and discard.
- Remove the chicken using tongs and place the chicken breasts on a clean plate to shred. Shred the chicken using 2 forks. Add the block of cream cheese to the soup.Stir or whisk the cream cheese until fully melted and incorporated.
- Once the cream cheese is fully mixed, add the chicken back into the Instant Pot. Serve hot with shredded cheese, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime juice if desired. Reheat the soup by pressing the "Keep Warm" button and serve when ready.
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 4-5 days.
I’ve made this a few times. It’s become part of my rotation. I cut up the chipotle peppers and stir them in. Why waste a good pepper?
Thanks so much for your review Bethany! If you can handle the extra spice from the peppers, its a great idea to cut them up and put them in.