Try this delicious, healthy Chicken Fajita Soup made with tender chicken, bell peppers, onions, and spices. A perfect meal for the cold weather made easily in the instant pot or stovetop! Gluten-free and low-carb.

Chicken fajita soup served in a bowl topped with sour cream
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Let me start by saying that if you like fajitas, you will love this soup and my fajita pasta recipe. This chicken soup contains bell peppers, onions, jalapeño, diced tomatoes, lemon, and spices.

This Fajita Soup is easy to make and is a great way to use leftovers. Whether you have leftover fajitas, rotisserie chicken, or leftover Thanksgiving turkey, add them to this soup and make it a brand-new meal for the family.

Healthy Low-Carb Chicken Fajita Soup

This soup is gluten-free and keto-friendly. I have kept this soup low-carb by not adding any beans or rice. But you can easily add them to the recipe if you like.

This soup is easy to make on the stovetop, instant pot, or slow cooker. So choose the method you prefer.

I love to make a large pot of this Mexican fajita soup and have it multiple times. It tastes great the next day and freezes well, which makes it perfect for meal prep!

Fajita Soup Ingredients

Chicken: I prefer to use chicken thighs when making soup, as they are inherently juicier. But you can use chicken breast if you prefer. Make sure not to overcook them, as they can get dry.

Onion: Use yellow onions

Garlic: Adds a lot of flavor to the soup. You can also use garlic powder if you don’t have fresh garlic.

Jalapeno: I love to add some jalapeno for a spice kick to this soup.

Bell Pepper: Use a combination of red, yellow, and green bell peppers for color and flavor.

Tomato: Use a can of crushed or diced tomatoes. You can also replace it with salsa if you prefer.

Broth: Use chicken or vegetable broth, whatever you have on hand.

Seasoning: Use basic spices such as cumin, paprika, chili powder, and oregano. Or replace it with taco or fajita seasoning.

Black Beans: I use canned black beans. Skip for low-carb variation.

Lemon juice: Don’t miss adding some lemon juice at the end to amp up the fresh flavors in the soup.

Toppings: Use sour cream, sliced avocado, jalapeno, cilantro, scallions, or tortilla chips.

How to Make Chicken Fajita Soup?

  • Heat a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions, garlic, jalapeño, and bell peppers, and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients. Then, bring to a boil.
  • Cover with a lid and simmer the soup for 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
  • Take the chicken out and shred it using forks. Then, add the chicken back to the pot. Add the canned black beans and simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Add the lemon juice and stir it in.
  • Garnish with cilantro leaves, and serve. Add toppings of choice.

Instant Pot Method

This fajita soup is easy to make in an electric pressure cooker. The same method and cooking time will also work in a Ninja Foodi.

Soften the veggies: Start with sauteing onions, garlic, jalapeño, and bell peppers for this soup. You can skip the saute step. However, I feel it is a good kickstart and heats the pot and ingredients, which also helps to get the instant pot to pressure sooner.

Add remaining ingredients: Then add the tomatoes, broth, and spices. Place the chicken thighs in a single layer and press them gently to cover them in liquid.

Pressure cook: Set to pressure cook. I prefer chicken thighs as they are much juicier (yes, fattier too). But chicken breasts work just as well in this recipe. If you use smaller chicken pieces, reduce the cooking time to 8 minutes. Once pressure cooking is done, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. Then, release any remaining pressure by turning the valve to venting. Open the lid.

Chicken fajita soup in a ladle on top of the instant pot.

Shred the chicken: The only main work in this recipe is chopping and shredding. So, the next step is shredding the chicken after it is cooked. It took me hardly 3 minutes to shred the chicken. Then, add it back to the soup. Add the black beans and simmer the soup for 5 minutes.

Garnish & Serve: Add the lemon juice and stir it. Add the garnishes, and the soup is ready to be served!

Chicken fajita soup served in two black bowls topped with sour cream and cilantro

Crockpot Method

  • Add all the ingredients except garnishes to the slow cooker.
  • Cover with lid, and cook for 4 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low. Take out and shred the chicken with forks. Then transfer it back to the slow cooker.
  • Stir in the lemon juice. Garnish and serve the soup.

Variations

Add black beans: I kept this soup low-carb and did not add any beans. But a can of black beans could be a great addition to the soup if you like. Add them along with the shredded chicken.

Vegetarian Fajita Soup: You can keep this soup vegetarian by skipping the chicken and just adding a can of black beans. This would be just as delicious, similar to my taco soup recipe. This soup is vegan if you use oil and don’t add any sour cream to it.

Add rice or quinoa: Add some carbs to make this soup a complete meal. Add 1/2 cup raw rinsed rice or quinoa before pressure cooking the soup. Also, add 1 cup of extra broth.

Make it creamy: Add cream cheese at the end while stirring continuously to make the soup creamy.

What to Serve with Fajita Soup?

We love to add a variety of toppings to this soup, just like my vegetarian taco soup. Enjoy the soup topped with some scallions. Other great toppings could be shredded cheese, sour cream, avocado, or tortilla strips.

You can also top it with guacamole or avocado cilantro sauce.

Serve with a quesadilla, cilantro lime rice, or Spanish rice.

You will love this homemade Chicken Fajita Soup. It is so cozy and comforting to enjoy on a cold winter evening!

Chicken fajita soup served in a black bowl topped with sour cream

How to Store?

This soup will store well in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Let the soup cool completely, then store it in airtight containers in the refrigerator.

You can also freeze this soup for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator. Then reheat in the microwave or a pot on the stovetop. Add your favorite toppings and enjoy!

Common Questions

Can I use rotisserie chicken in this fajita soup?

Yes, you can use already-cooked rotisserie chicken. Shred it and then add it to the soup. Then simmer for 10 minutes so the flavors of the soup meld with the chicken.

Can I use leftover fajitas to make chicken fajita soup?

If you have leftover fajitas, they would work well in this soup. Add them in place of the freshly cut onions and peppers. Skip sauteing as they are already sauteed.

Can I add grains to the chicken fajita recipe?

You can add rice or quinoa to make this soup a complete meal. I suggest adding 1/2 cup rice or quinoa along with tomatoes when cooking. Also, add 1 cup of additional broth or water.

Can I add beans to fajita soup?

Yes, you can also add black, kidney, or cannellini beans to the soup. Add in a can of beans along with the shredded chicken.

More Soups You’ll Love

4.84 from 24 votes

Chicken Fajita Soup (Instant Pot & Stovetop)

Try this delicious, healthy Chicken Fajita Soup made with tender chicken, bell peppers, onions, and spices. A perfect meal for the cold weather made easily in the instant pot or stovetop! Gluten-free and low-carb.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 3

Ingredients 

  • 1 lb Chicken Breast, boneless (can also use thighs)
  • 1 tablespoon Oil , or butter
  • 1 cup Onion, finely diced
  • 1 Jalapeno, diced (optional)
  • 4 cloves Garlic , minced
  • 1 1/4 cup Red Bell Pepper, chopped
  • 1 1/4 cup Green Bell Pepper, chopped
  • 1 can Diced Tomatoes, 14 oz (can also use fire-roasted diced tomatoes)
  • 2 1/2 cup Chicken Broth
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • 1 tablespoon Fajita Seasoning , or Taco seasoning (add 1/2-1 tablespoon more to taste)
  • 1 can Black Beans, rinsed and drained, about 1.25 cups, skip for low carb
  • 1 tablespoon Lemon juice
  • 1-2 tablespoon Sour Cream , (optional)
  • 1 Scallion or Green onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoon Cilantro leaves

Instructions 

Stovetop Method

  • Heat a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions, garlic, jalapeño, and bell peppers, and saute for 3 minutes.
  • Add tomatoes, broth, salt, and fajita seasoning. Stir it all up. Place chicken pieces in a single layer and gently press them under the liquid. Bring to a boil.
  • Cover with a lid and simmer the soup for 15-20 minutes.
  • Take the chicken out and shred it using forks. Then, add the black beans and chicken back to the pot. Simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Add the lemon juice and stir it in. Garnish with cilantro leaves, and serve. Add toppings of choice.

Instant Pot Method

  • Start the pressure cooker in SAUTE mode and heat it. Add oil, onions, garlic, jalapenos, and bell peppers. Stir and saute for 3 minutes.
  • Add tomatoes, broth, salt, and fajita seasoning. Stir it all up. Scrape anything stuck to the bottom of the pot. 
  • Place chicken pieces in a single layer and gently press them under the liquid. Press Cancel and close lid with vent in sealing position. 
  • Set on Pressure Cook mode at high pressure for 12 mins. Do a 10 minute NPR, which means open the instant pot 10 mins after it beeps.  
  • Remove chicken pieces and shred them. Put the shredded chicken back in pot. Add the black beans. Simmer on Saute mode for 5 minutes.  
  • Add the lemon juice and give it a stir. Garnish with scallions and/or cilantro.

Crockpot Method

  • Add all the ingredients except garnishes to the slow cooker. Cover with lid, and cook for 4 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low. Take out and shred the chicken with forks. Then transfer it back to the slow cooker. Add the black beans and give a stir. Stir in lemon juice. Garnish and serve the soup.

Optional Toppings

  • Add your favorite toppings – tortilla chips, avocado, cilantro, shredded cheese, sour cream or guacamole.

Video

Notes

Taco Seasoning: If you don’t have taco or fajita seasoning, then add the below spices:
    • 1 teaspoon cumin powder
    • 1 teaspoon mild chili powder 
    • 1/2 teaspoon oregano 
    • 1 teaspoon salt 
    • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 
Chicken: If you use smaller chicken pieces, reduce the cooking time to 8 minutes.  
Tomatoes: If you don’t have canned tomatoes, use four fresh tomatoes finely diced. After adding the tomatoes to the pot, saute the tomatoes for 3-4 minutes before adding other ingredients. 
Add black beans: I kept this soup low-carb and did not add any beans. But a can of black beans could be a great addition to the soup if you like. Add them along with the shredded chicken.
Vegetarian Fajita Soup: You can keep this soup vegetarian by skipping the chicken and just adding a can of black beans. This would be just as delicious, similar to my taco soup recipe. This soup is vegan if you use oil and don’t add any sour cream to it.
Add rice or quinoa: Add some carbs to make this soup a complete meal. Add 1/2 cup raw rinsed rice or quinoa before pressure cooking the soup. Also, add 1 cup of extra broth.
Make it creamy: Add cream cheese at the end while stirring continuously to make the soup creamy.

Nutrition

Serving: 456gCalories: 318kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 37gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.02gCholesterol: 103mgSodium: 1950mgPotassium: 1220mgFiber: 5gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 2596IUVitamin C: 158mgCalcium: 96mgIron: 3mg

Additional Info

Course: Soup
Cuisine: Mexican
Diet: Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Low Carb, Paleo
Tried this recipe?Mention @pipingpotcurry or tag #pipingpotcurry!

About Meeta

I strongly believe that each one of us has a chef inside us, we just need to explore the ingredients and create great food. My passion is to share easy, healthy, and wholesome recipes made using Instant Pot & Air Fryer, that are well tested, so you can cook with confidence.

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11 Comments

  1. I don’t have red peppers. Can I substitute with orange peppers or should I just leave that out? I do have green peppers.

  2. Hi there, this sounds delicious. How can I made it in a regular pot on the stove- or in the crockpot? I don’t have a pressure cooker. Thanks!

    1. Hey Lee – You should be able to do the same steps in a pot on the stovetop. Lower the heat after adding the chicken. Cover with a lid while the contents are cooking. Stir in between at 3-5 minute intervals. It will just take longer, about 20 minutes for the chicken to cook. Then shred the chicken and add it back to the pot of soup. Hope you enjoy it!

  3. Hello,
    I love your recipes, and the narrative that you provide with some of them.
    My mom used to make soup or daal with fish head. If possible, could you please a recipe using fish head for making soup or daal or any other dish at your convenience.

    Thank you in advance.

    1. Hey Somak – Thank you so much for trying and reviewing the recipes. Unfortunately I don’t have much experience cooking lentils with fish. However if I find a good recipe, will definitely share with you 🙂

  4. This was delicious! I used chicken breasts instead of thighs (personal preference) and before I added the chicken back in after I shredded it, I used an immersion blender to blend the veggies up some and to thicken the soup base. It was SOOO good. I will be making this again!

    1. Hey Jeanette – Sorry I missed your comment before. Glad you enjoyed the soup. Thank you for sharing back your review!