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A bowl of cafe rio chicken tortilla soup topped with tortilla chips, cilantro, and lime wedges
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5 from 39 votes

Cafe Rio Tortilla Soup

If you love Cafe Rio's Chicken Tortilla Soup, but don't want to go out - don't worry! We've got you covered with this AMAZING copycat recipe!
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Simmering time2 hours
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Mexican/Spanish
Keyword: Cafe Rio Soup, chicken tortilla soup, Copycat Recipe
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 642kcal
Author: Erica Walker

Equipment

  • Skillet
  • Crockpot Slow Cooker

Ingredients

Chicken

Toppings

Instructions

  • In a small skillet, saute onion in oil until onion becomes slightly soft. Stir in cumin, cayenne, and chili powder. Saute an additional 1-2 minutes.
    Sauteed onions in a pot with spices
  • Crock Pot Method: Transfer seasoned onions to a small-medium crock pot. Add chicken broth, cilantro, lime juice, pepper, and pinto beans to onions and simmer on low heat for at least 2-3 hours.
    Stovetop Method: Transfer seasoned onions to a large pot or saucepan. Add chicken broth, cilantro, lime juice, pinto beans, and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then simmer on low heat for at least 30 minutes.
    Chicken broth, onions, cilantro, pinto beans, and spices in a pot
  • In the meantime, when you are close to serving, combine taco seasoning and paprika. Brush chicken with oil and rub with seasoning mixture.
    chicken breasts rubbed with spices
  • Grill chicken over medium heat until cooked through. (Try to turn only once during the grilling process.)
    grilled chicken breasts
  • Remove from grill and shred.
    A bowl of shredded grilled chicken
  • In small individual bowls, layer chicken, a few tablespoons pic de gallo, ⅓ cup diced avocado, and ⅓ cup pepper jack cheese.
    A white bowl with shredded chicken, avocado, cheese, and pico de gallo
  • Ladle about 1 ½ cups of broth directly over the layers. Top with tortilla strips and garnish with cilantro and lime wedges.
    A bowl of cafe rio chicken tortilla soup topped with tortilla chips, cilantro, and lime wedges

Video

Notes

  • You can cook this soup in a slow cooker instead of simmering it on the stove. Put the sauteed onions and the remaining soup ingredients in a medium-sized slow cooker on low for at least 2-3 hours. You can throw the chicken in the slow cooker with the broth and it will taste rich and delicious but personally, I love the smoky grilled chicken taste. Grill it if you can. 
  • I added pinto beans to this recipe. It's not Cafe Rio's original way of doing things, but it is totally worth doing. The meaty beans give it a deeper flavor and actually make the soup go further. If you want to keep it exactly like Cafe Rio, feel free to leave them out.
  • Instead of adding a scoop of guacamole as I know Cafe Rio does, I just diced avocado, which saves the time of having to make a separate little thing of guacamole. Plus I love having the chunks of cool avocado in there. 
  •  

Nutrition

Calories: 642kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 39g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 118mg | Sodium: 1647mg | Potassium: 1243mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 3057IU | Vitamin C: 29mg | Calcium: 659mg | Iron: 4mg