Slow Cooker Black Bean and Chicken Sausage Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 large onion chopped, diced small
- 4 medium cloves garlic finely minced
- 1 tablespoon chile powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 tablespooon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 6 6- inch corn tortillas
- 12 ounces precooked chicken sausage** sliced in half lengthwise then cut into ⅓-½-inch slices
- 45 ounces cans black beans 3 15-ounce cans, drained and rinsed well
- 28 ounces can petite diced canned tomatoes 2 14-ounce cans
- 14 ½- ounces can crushed tomatoes 1 14.5-ounce can
- 1 cup roasted red peppers diced
- 4 cups chicken broth or chicken stock or vegetable broth divided
- ½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1 14- ounce bag tiny frozen corn thawed
- For the oven-fried tortilla strips:
- 6 6- inch corn tortillas
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil melted (you could also use sunflower or canola oil)
Instructions
-
Combine coconut oil, onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, basil and brown sugar in a medium size microwave-safe bowl. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and place in the microwave . Cook on high power for 1 minute. Remove and stir well. Return to microwave and cook for another 3 minutes on high power. Careful remove plastic wrap (contents of the bowl will be very hot) and transfer aromatic mixture to the slow cooker.
-
Rinse bowl. Stack corn tortillas, then cut in in half. Cut each half into thin slices widthwise. Place tortilla slices in the bowl with 2 cups of the chicken broth. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and cook on high power for 5 minutes. Carefully remove plastic wrap (broth will be very hot) and add contents of bowl to slow cooker.
-
Add chicken sausage black beans, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, roasted red peppers, remaining broth, cilantro, salt and pepper to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
-
Add corn, stir well and serve. Top with any of the following: oven-fried tortilla chips, sour cream, Greek yogurt, sliced radishes, sliced avocados, cheese, black olives, jalapeños, queso blanco, cilantro leaves,
-
For the crispy oven-fried tortilla chips, preheat oven to 400˚F and line a sheet pan with foil for easy clean up. Stack corn tortillas and cut in half. Cut into thin strips. I like to cut the lengthwise for longer strips but you can also cut them widthwise. Place on prepared sheet pan and drizzle with the melted coconut oil. Toss carefully but well with your hands until all the strips are coated with oil. Sprinkle with salt and toss once more. Bake for 3 minutes then remove from oven and toss with a tongs or spatula to redistribute. Bake another 4-6 minutes or until tortilla strips are a pale golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
Recipe Notes
*A word on cilantro. Like many other foods, cilantro takes on a totally different flavor profile when it's cooked. I know there are some who have a strong dislike for the taste of cilantro, however don't skip it! Think of the difference between raw onions and golden, sautéed onions. You might not care to have a big pile of raw onions on your burger or pizza but when sautéed, there's a huge difference. Same with cilantro. I promise that even cilantro haters will love this soup. If you don't believe me, check out some of the comments from readers of our Chicken Tortilla Soup.
** I really like the chicken sausage from Trader Jo's. It's lean (only 100 calories per sausage with 11g of protein!) and the flavor is delicious. For this recipe I used their Spicy Jalapeño (it's not really super spicy) but any pre-cooked chicken sausage with good flavor will do.