Sopa Ranchera, A Southwest Chicken Soup recipe that is hearty and healthy with chicken breast, potatoes, and hominy. Brimming with warming Southwestern spices, this is a bowl of clean-eating comfort food without sacrificing flavor.
We’ve been eating like lumberjacks. It started sometime in mid-September. The calorie and fat flood gates were opened and it’s been a steady river of deliciousness since.
Its come to a screeching halt and it’s time to take a break, eat clean and healthy over the next couple of weeks, so that the Holiday food gluttony be welcomed with confidence and cheer.
If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times, the easiest way to eat clean without skimping on flavor is a big bowl of soup. Lots of broth, lots of vegetables and lean meats make for a satisfying “feel good about yourself” meal.
Here’s a recipe that I found in the January 1999 issue of Cooking Light Magazine and it’s been one of our favorites over the years.
This Southwest Chicken Soup is hearty with potatoes, corn, zucchini, hominy and chicken breast and seasoned with your favorite warming Mexican spices. A flavorful bowl of soup that’s easy to make.
You don’t see a lot of recipes for chicken soup with zucchini, so keep this one in your back pocket for late Summer when zucchini is abundant.
Don’t forget a squeeze of lime just before serving. You’ll love a kick of zesty citrus to brighten flavors and finish the dish.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Chicken Broth
- Canned Chopped Tomatoes: I like Red Gold Petite diced tomatoes for soup recipes. Their small size is perfect for blending well with other vegetables. Disclaimer: Red Gold hasn’t provided me any incentive to mention their product.
- Onion: Sweet or Yellow
- Hominy: I like to use frozen hominy, however it can be hard to find. Use dried posole, soaked over-night and precooked. Or canned hominy.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast: Boneless skinless chicken thighs will work well here.
- Frozen Corn is preferred, but canned corn will work here.
- Potatoes For this recipe, we’re using russet potatoes. The reason is that they are a starchier potato. We’ll be using the cooking water to supplement the broth, which will enhance flavor and texture.
- Zucchini: You can use regular zucchini or a Summer squash.
- Cilantro If you don’t like cilantro, simply omit it from this recipe.
- Spices: Garlic Powder, Ground Cumin, New Mexico Chile Powder, Mexican Oregano
Mexican Oregano is preferred for this recipe. It’s peppery, grassy, earthy flavor is a good compliment for Mexican Food. If you don’t have Mexican Oregano, substitute Marjoram. Known for its aroma and delicate flavor, its related to oregano and will bring a sweet undertone to any recipe.
Step by Step Instructions
- Step 1: Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté 3 minutes. Add oregano, cumin, chile powder and garlic powder; sauté until fragrant, about one minute.
- Step 2: Add cooked potatoes, 2 cups of the starchy cooking water, 4 cups chicken stock, hominy, chicken, corn, salt, canned tomatoes and zucchini; cook 15 minutes. Stir in cilantro; and cook 2 minutes longer.
- Step 3: To serve: Ladle soup into bowls, and top with a dollop of sour cream. Other great toppings are finely chopped raw onion, cilantro, shredded cheese and tortilla strips. Serve with lime wedges.
Seeking out and using New Mexico Red Chile Powder will increase not only the depth of flavor, but the unique spicy element in this Southwest Chicken Soup. The Hatch Chile Store in New Mexico is a good place to shop. A good quality cumin from a quality spice shop like Savory Spice will add a pure cumin experience.
All soups taste better the next day. Why? That overnight rest in the refrigerator allows the ingredients and spices to marry and blend. Even though the soup is no longer cooking on the stove, they are still marinating and breaking down as they rest. Just as they would during a very slow cook.
Tips for Success:
- Potatoes: You can use other waxier potatoes, such as Yukon Gold or Red Potatoes, but they won’t leave as much starch in the cooking water. Russet Potatoes are the starchiest potatoes available and will provide flavor and slight thickening to the soup. If you use Yukon Gold or Red potatoes, you won’t need to peel them. They have a thinner more delicate skin. Russet potatoes must be peeled.
- Don’t overcook the soup. Zucchini is a delicate vegetable. Once added the soup will only need to cook for a few minutes.
- If using dried hominy or frozen posole, you must cook it before adding to this soup. Dried hominy will have to be soaked overnight and then cooked in enough liquid to cover for a couple of hours or until tender. Frozen posole doesn’t need to be soaked overnight, but does require a 2-hour cooking time.
Storage
- Store this Southwest Chicken Soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat stove-top or microwave.
- This soup will freeze, but keep in mind the texture of the zucchini may become compromised (watery) once thawed.
What To Serve With This Soup
A salad is always a great side dish to serve with soup. Take a look at this Southwest Salad, brimming with black beans and southwest flavors. Or a lighter salad like this Baby Kale Salad with Green Apples. And Guacamole Made In A Molcajete is always a good choice for a starter course.
I hope you give this hearty ranch style Southwest chicken soup recipe a try. Perfectly seasoned, perfectly hearty and very healthy.
Southwest chicken soup is a delightful and satisfying culinary experience that brings together the vibrant flavors of the Southwest with the comforting warmth of a hearty soup.
More Southwestern Chicken Soup Recipes
And don’t miss the ever classic and popular recipe for Chicken Tortilla Soup.
And if you love soup as much as we do, don’t miss my Soup Category. You’ll find lots of warming recipes including a couple of the most popular on my site for Anthony Bourdain’s New Mexico Style Beef Chili and Giada’s Ground Chicken Chili. And one of our favorite stew recipes for Green Chile Stew.
And if you’re looking for a soup recipe to cook when you don’t feel like cooking, check this one out for Taco Soup with Ranch Dressing.
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Sopa Ranchera, Southwest Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon oil olive, canola or vegetable oil
- 1 small sweet onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano dried
- 1 teaspoon New Mexico Red Chile Powder or cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 4 Cups chicken stock
- 2 Cups Starchy water from cooked potatoes
- 2 medium Russet potatoes cubed and cooked, water reserved
- 1 15 ounce can Hominy drained
- 2 Cups boneless skinless chicken breasts cooked and shredded or cubed
- 1 Cup frozen sweet corn or 1-15 ounce ounce canned corn. Drained.
- ¾ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 small zucchini quartered lengthwise and and cubed
- 1 15 /12 ounce can diced tomatoes
- ⅓ Cup chopped fresh cilantro
- toppings:
- sour cream
- finely chopped onion
- chopped fresh cilantro
- shredded cheese
- limes wedges
- multi-colored tortilla strips
Instructions
- In a saucepan, cover the cubed potatoes with salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes, reserving the starchy water to add to the chicken broth to make 6 cups liquid.
- Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté 3 minutes.
- Add oregano, cumin, and garlic powder and chile powder. Sauté until fragrant. About one minute.
- Add cooked potatoes, 2 cups of the starchy cooking water, 4 cups chicken stock, cooked hominy, chicken, corn, kosher salt, canned tomatoes and zucchini; cook 15 minutes. Stir in cilantro; and cook 2 minutes.
- Ladle soup into bowls, and top with a dollop of sour cream. Other great toppings are finely chopped raw onion, cilantro, shredded cheese and tortilla strips. Serve with lime wedges.
Notes
- Potatoes: You can use other waxier potatoes, such as Yukon Gold or Red Potatoes, but they won’t leave as much starch in the cooking water. Russet Potatoes are the starchiest potatoes available and will provide flavor and slight thickening to the soup. If you use Yukon Gold or Red potatoes, you won’t need to peel them. They have a thinner more delicate skin. Russet potatoes must be peeled.
- Don’t overcook the soup. Zucchini is a delicate vegetable. Once added the soup will only need to cook for a few minutes.
- If using dried hominy or frozen posole, you must cook it before adding to this soup. Dried hominy will have to be soaked overnight and then cooked in enough liquid to cover for a couple of hours or until tender. Frozen posole doesn’t need to be soaked overnight, but does require a 2-hour cooking time.
Nutrition
Sopa Ranchera, Southwest Chicken Soup …It’s What’s for Dinner.
This chicken soup recipe was first published in November of 2013, and updated December 2023, with new photos and step by step instructions.
Why Trust My Recipes? I am a Culinary School Graduate and a lifelong student of home cooking. I hope to inspire you try to cook as often as you can. I’ve been cooking for 50 years, and my recipes are tried and true tested and tested and then tested again before published. To read more take a look at my About Page.
I am so ready to put the holiday gluttony behind me (laugh). I think I’ve eaten my weight in cookies! I agree there’s is nothing like a big bowl of healthy delicious soup to start the ball rolling in the new year. I did the same thing on my blog post-Soup!
Happy New Year to you! Looking forward to your cooking journey this year.
Best,
Velva
Good basic recipe but I make some adjustments to the original recipe to intensify the flavors. It is one of my favorites! I always get compliments on it!
Hi Judy. And thanks so much for your note. This soup recipe is one of our favorites also. What adjustments did you make? Always looking to switch up flavors.
We love this hearty soup.. I’ve made it several times, but without the zucchini, hubby won’t eat it. A while back Lea Ann did a post about hominy, which we love, and she suggested replacing the corn in this recipe with it. So I always add a can of hominy and we love the flavor and texture it brings. I also use Hunts Fire Roasted diced tomatoes instead of regular diced for a more smoky flavor. This soup is a big winner in our house, I just made it again yesterday, thanks Lea Ann!
Just found this recipe. Looks to have all our favorite ingredients. Am sure it’s a 5 *****.
Is 103 in Ft. Worth, TX, today. But may make the soup later in the week when it’s in the 90’s 🙂
Oh, and being an OKIE from Stillwater, Oklahoma – Pottery Company? FRANKHOMA.
Always look forward to your Sunday Morning greetings.
Hi Mary Jo! Thanks so much for your note. And I hear-ya about those temps. We’ve been above 90’s even here in Denver. I’m one of those odd people who can eat soup anytime of year. But I agree, 90’s would be would make more sense. 🙂 This is one of our favorite soup recipes. Let me know what you think once you make it. Thanks for the compliment about my Sunday Emails. I enjoy creating them as well. My mom collected that Frankhoma pottery. I was so thrilled to inherit it when she passed. Love that pottery. Make it a delicious week.
This looks amazing Lea Ann! I will definitely have to try!
So nice to hear from you Robyn. Let me know what you think.
What a beautiful soup, Lea Ann! Hearty, flavorful, and super comforting! Knowing that you found the recipe in Cooking Light, I know it is guaranteed delicious!
This is one of our favorites Roz. Lean protein and lots of veggies.
Okay, this whole post is ruined because I JUST IMMEDIATELY came from Nan’s blog where she wrote about lumberjack pancakes and now I can only think about what the odds are that two random blogs in a row would mention lumberjacks……..http://www.potsandpins.com/blog/2013/11/lumberjack-pancakes.html
It’s a lumberjack conspiracy I tells ya~!
You are so right about soup, Lea Ann. It is easy to cut back when dinner is hearty and flavorful. I just have to steer away from the cream based soups and then I do OK. I love all the flavors you have combined here.
Thanks Cathy. The more soup I eat, the more pounds I loose and the healthier I feel.
The soup looks great.. and although cleaner and healthier, it still looks mighty filling!!!
That’s what’s great about lean protein and lots of veggies. Satisfying yet healthy.
I HAVE to try this! I’m always trying to spice up my soup-game, and I think this is where I should start! Thanks for sharing, great recipe.
Thanks so much for stopping by and the comment. Let me know how you like it.
This looks like a delicious way to eat clean! Soup is a perfect solution for eating lighter without skipping big flavor.
That’s what I think too Lisa. Big chunks of veggies and chicken and you’re not feeling a bit deprived. And it’s healthy.
I love this way of eating through the winter– soups with added proteins if you need to make a heftier meal. What a pretty bowl and plate and lovely photo!
Me too Holly. yay for soup season.
Well you can’t go wrong with those seasonings – my favorite combo. This looks delicious and what a great photo! (don’t think I’m not noticing that pottery) 🙂
That Pottery was my mom’s. I always loved those little soup bowls and plates. I can’t think of the company right now, it’s from Oklahoma.
What Sam said – it looks amazingly good and would go great with a slice of Mexican cornbread 🙂
Where’s that Mexican cornbread?????? 🙂 Gotta make it this weekend.
I’ve been eating soup for a few days now. Helps take away the chill and like you imply-the holidays are not far away! Great sounding soup that will surely hit the spot!
Thanks Abbe. I think I could eat soup every day
I love soup and this looks satisfying. I love Mexican type soups especially. Thanks for sharing. Will try.
Thanks Jaime. Sure do miss you blogging. Hope you’re back soon.
If this is eating light, bring it on. Beautiful soup Lea Ann and so colorful too. It’s smart to eat healthy before Thanskgiving. Then you can really enjoy without feeling (too) guilty 🙂
Sam
I do call this eating light, in a hearty sort of way. At least it’s healthy.
Nothing satisfies like soup and this looks like one that ticks all the boxes for a a great meal. I will definitely give this one a try this winter.
Let me know what you think Karen.
Looks wonderful. Love all the veggies and flavors.
We like this recipe Karen. As always, thanks for stopping by and the comment.