I can eat Mexican food every day of the week. Who’s with me?! This Easy Salsa Verde Chicken Soup is all your favorite Mexican flavors in one pot of soup. AND it’s so easy! Stove top, Instapot, or Crock pot, this recipe works for all. Best of all, you control the heat!

If you love these flavors, try Easy Crunchy Tex Mex Salad.

You Control the Heat

I get it, you don’t “do” spicy. Spicy foods tear your belly up. Or you just don’t like it spicy. All good. With this versatile recipe, you control the spice. It goes the other way too. You like ghost pepper chili heat, but your partner doesn’t. You like the spice, but your younger kids don’t. Customize this soup by the bowl.

Salsa Verde

If you were one to take German in high school, instead of Spanish, verde means green. Green Salsa. That may sound hot, however, there is mild salsa verde out there. Or you can make your own! It’s pretty darn easy:

• Char up green veggies: tomatillos, poblanos, jalapenos, onions
• Throw them in a food processor (or blender)
• Add cilantro, garlic, and salt
• Whiz it up until chopped and blended

Whether you make your own salsa or buy it in a jar, you can control the heat. Buy a mild version or only put a little of the medium or hot salsas in the pot. On the other hand, if you, your partner or child doesn’t care for heat, make it mild. Just add in hot salsa verde to the spicy lover’s bowl.

My favorite salsa to use in this recipe, and many others is 505 Southwestern. It’s the perfect amount of spice! Use left over salsa verde in the salad dressing for this Easy Crunchy Tex Mex Salad.

Jalapenos

Did you know the heat from a jalapeno comes from the ribs and seeds? Slice the jalapeno in half, cut out the ribs and remove the seeds to lessen the heat. To add more spice, leave half or all the seeds and ribs in the jalapenos.

Poblanos

Poblanos are a mild, slightly sweet pepper. Did you know, as poblanos dry, they get a darker red color. A dried poblano becomes an ancho chili. At this point, they are a bit spicy.

Seasoning the Chicken

For the best flavor, you should always season your chicken the night before, if possible. However, that takes thinking ahead. As a busy mother of 2, myself, I sometimes forget this step. It’s okay. It will still taste good if you season the chicken right before you add it to the pot.

I use hatch chili powder to also season the chicken. You can use regular chili powder, or none at all. There is also a sprinkle of cumin and salt and pepper, so the chicken will still be tasty without the extra heat.

Health Benefits of Chili Peppers

• Speeds up your metabolism
• Increases pain tolerance
• High in nutrients
• Help fight infections

Add these health benefits to all those warm and fuzzy health vibes of chicken soup. Your belly and soul will be happy.

How to Make this Easy Salsa Verde Chicken Soup

Prepping the Poblanos

Whether using the crock pot, instapot or stove top, char your poblanos first. We do this for 2 reasons: to bring out that smoky roasted pepper flavor, and to remove the skins, which aren’t an appetizing texture.

1. Set the oven on high broil.
2. Put the Poblanos on a small baking sheet, and place on top rack of oven.
3. Check periodically. When blackened on top, using tongs, turn the pepper so it chars on other side.
4. Once charred all around, place poblanos in glass bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. This will steam them and loosen the skins.
5. Let sit for 15 minutes. Carefully peel the skin off the peppers. If too hot to handle, let sit a little longer.
6. Once the skin is peeled off, cut out the stem, remove seeds, and dice up the pepper.

Soup’s On

Once the veggies have sauteed, it’s pretty much dump it all in! So easy, right? I use a 6 quart Le Cruset for pretty much everything. You don’t need one quite this big. A 4 quart pot will do the trick. Here’s how to get your soup on:

1. Season both sides of your chicken with salt, pepper, cumin, hatch chili powder (or regular chili powder). This can be done the day before for extra tasty chicken!
2. Heat up the olive oil to medium heat in your soup pot. Add your chopped onions and jalapenos, saute for a few minutes, until onion are light brown in color.
3. Add the garlic, saute for 30 seconds (don’t burn it)!
4. Pour in your stock in, and place seasoned chicken in the pot with the rest of the soup ingredients: chopped prepped poblanos, corn, tomatoes, black beans, salsa verde, cilantro.
5. Season with salt and pepper, and let simmer until chicken is cooked through, 20-30 minutes. Chicken should temp at 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. Once your chicken is cooked through, take it out of the pot, either chop or shred, put back in pot. Taste soup to check if it needs any more salt.
7. Bowl it up, and top with your favorite toppings!

Toppings for the Salsa Verde Chicken Soup

Does it get any better than Mexican toppings?! I could make a meal out of the toppings alone. Here is what I like to top this Salsa Verde Chicken Soup with:

• Plain Greek Yogurt
• Avocados
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• Crunched up Tortilla Chips
• Cilantro
• Lime Squeeze
• Tajin Sprinkle

Helpful Tips

Crock Pot, Stove Top, Instapot: Choose your Method

In a hurry? Dump all the ingredients in a crock pot, and set for 4-8 hours. Can it get an easier?

Didn’t plan anything for dinner and time’s a tickin’? Dump the ingredients in an Instapot, and have soup in an hour or two.

You’re stove top is always there for you! This old school appliance is my go to for this recipe. It will still be done in less than an hour. However, you can also prepare it earlier and let it simmer for a few hours to help all those flavors merry.

Forgot to Thaw the Chicken: No Problem

Whether you are a fly by the seat of your pants meal planner or a seasoned one, sometimes you need to thaw chicken in a hurry. If using the Instapot or Crock Pot just throw in the frozen chicken! Yes. It will take a little longer, so plan for that. If using a Crock Pot it will be closer to 6-8 hours on high or medium (all appliances are different). Plan on an extra 10-20 minutes for the Instapot to come up to pressure. Always temp your chicken. Boneless chicken thighs internal temperature should be 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

Safely Thawing Chicken

It only takes a few hours to thaw chicken in the a sink full of cold water. Fill your sink until the water covers your package of chicken. This is the safest way to thaw chicken. Don’t leave it on your counter to thaw. The outside thaws quicker than the middle, making it susceptible to multiplying bacteria, and not safe to eat.

More-Warm-You-Up Recipes

Mediterranean Artichoke Chicken

Buffalo Cauliflower Chili

Pizza Chili

Pork Loin Chops with Goat Cheese Crumble

Pretzel Encrusted Schnitzel

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