Southwest Chicken Soup (Detox)
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Mar 22, 2024 
Detox Southwest Chicken Soup Recipe is a healthy low-fat, low-carb, gluten-free soup with tons of bold flavor and nutritious ingredients! This Southwest Chicken Soup is super clean and healthy.
Why We Love This Southwest Chicken Detox Soup
Over a year ago I shared a Chicken Detox Soup recipe that our family uses as a dietary reset after vacations or long seasons of unhealthy eating.
It’s a lean, healthy chicken and vegetable soup with several detoxifying ingredients to help flush toxins from your body and boost your metabolism. This soup is meant to be eaten for several days in a row to get your system back on track.
Chicken Detox Soup is low-fat, low-carb, paleo, gluten-free, and it works like a charm when using the soup as a cleanse! We have come up with another variation of our detox soup recipe that is just as healthy, just as tasty, and offers just as many cleansing ingredients, but with a bold Southwest flavor!
If you’ve tried our original detox soup cleanse, this Southwest Chicken Detox Soup is a zesty way to mix things up. Combining the Old El Paso green chiles and the spices, enhances the natural flavor of the chicken and veggies for a bold tantalizing flavor.
What is a detox soup?
The idea behind a detox soup is to cleanse the body by eating nutrient-rich vegetables and broths that are easy for the body to digest. Generally, detox soups are low in calories and high in vitamins and minerals to help the body get as many nutrients as possible!
Eating a meal like this Southwest chicken detox soup will help to release toxins and is especially good for you after a lot of indulgences, like after the holidays!
Plus, the release of toxins from this detox soup helps your body work more efficiently, meaning:
- Purging water retention
- A metabolic boost
- More energy
- And better sleep!
Ingredients For Southwest Chicken Soup
To make this Southwest Chicken Soup, I used green chiles to give the broth a smoky undertone, then loaded it with veggies and spices! Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chicken Breast – great for a lean protein source
- Onion – diced
- Garlic – freshly minced
- Olive Oil – a bit of olive oil to sauté the veggies
- Chopped Green Chiles – for a smoky, Southwest flavor!
- Crushed Tomatoes – I used fire-roasted crushed tomatoes to add an extra smoky flavor. You can also use diced tomatoes.
- Chicken Stock – if using low-sodium chicken stock, taste for salt at the end.
- Ground Cumin – for added flavor
- Crushed Red Pepper – for a kick of spice
- Turmeric – adds flavor and kick starts the metabolism
- Carrots – sliced
- Cabbage – sliced thin
- Broccoli – chopped into small florets
- Avocados – to serve
- Salt and Pepper – to taste
How to Make Southwest Chicken Soup
Set a large 6-8 quart pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil, chopped onions, and garlic. Sauté for 5-6 minutes to soften. Then add whole raw chicken breasts, Old El Paso Chopped Green Chiles, crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, all the spices, carrots, and 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt.
Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 20+ minutes, until the chicken breasts are cooked through. Then remove the chicken with tongs and set them on a cutting board to cool.
Add the chopped cabbage and broccoli to the pot. Continue to simmer to soften the broccoli. Meanwhile, shred the chicken breasts with two forks, and stir them back into the soup. Once the broccoli is tender, taste, then salt and pepper as needed. Serve warm with a generous amount of diced avocado on top!
If the soup base boils down too much, add 2-3 cups of water to the broth. Then taste for seasoning.
You can store this recipe in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Tips & Tricks
- For added flavor, serve with freshly chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice!
- If you have leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken on hand, add that chicken in towards the end of the cooking process for ease!
- You can substitute the chicken breast for chicken thighs if you prefer, but keep in mind that chicken thighs have more fat so the soup will not be as lean!
Frequently Asked Questions
Definitely! To make a vegetarian option, omit the chicken and replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth. You can add additional ingredients for added protein, such as black beans.
Generally, Southwest chicken soup is made with chicken, tomatoes, beans, corn, chiles, and bold spices like cumin. This soup is a little different since it is a detox soup recipe, so it doesn’t contain beans and corn, and instead has lots of nutritious veggies!
Store any leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days! You can make this at the beginning of the week and use it as meal prep. The soup cleanse works best when you eat the soup several days in a row. To freeze, place in the freezer in a large zip bag for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat in a saucepan or the microwave!
Get the Full (Printable) Detox Southwest Chicken Soup Recipe + Video Below. Enjoy!
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Old El Paso. All opinions are my own.
Looking for More Detox Recipes? Be Sure to Also Try:
Check out the printable recipe card below for the nutrition information including calories, carbohydrates, protein, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, potassium, fiber, vitamin C, and calcium percentages. Make sure to share this recipe on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Detox Southwest Chicken Soup
Video
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cans Old El Paso Chopped Green Chiles (4.5-ounce cans)
- 14.5 ounces “fire roasted” crushed tomatoes
- 3 quarts chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
- 2 1/2 cups sliced carrots
- 4 cups chopped cabbage
- 3 cups small broccoli florets
- 2 avocados, peeled and diced
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Set a large 6-8 quart pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil, chopped onions, and garlic. Sauté for 5-6 minutes to soften. Then add whole raw chicken breasts, Old El Paso Chopped Green Chiles, crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, all the spices, carrots, and 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt.
- Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 20+ minutes, until the chicken breasts are cooked through. Then remove the chicken with tongs and set them on a cutting board to cool.
- Add the chopped cabbage and broccoli to the pot. Continue to simmer to soften the broccoli. Meanwhile, shred the chicken breasts with two forks, and stir it back into the soup. Once the broccoli is tender, taste, then salt and pepper as needed. Serve warm with a generous amount of diced avocado on top!
Notes
Nutrition
Oh my! I wasn’t sure about how I was going to like this but it was amazing! I have tried detox soup before but it didn’t have chicken or chili in it. This was tasty enough that I won’t mind leftovers. Thanks for sharing!
I LOVE this soup. Been making it for a few years. Always delicious. I cut back on the cumin just because I don’t care for cumin. Thanks for this keeper!!!
Great tasting soup base-works well with a variety of different vegetables. Turmeric is a good call in this one.
I made this- it was terrific! But I went back and looked at the nutrition info and it says the serving is 252k calories. What exactly does that mean?
Hi Sarah,
Sorry for the confusion… That is just the scientific way to say 252 calories.
I’ve made this soup about 4 times now, my husband and I LOVE it… So flavorful, spicy, and delicious. It’s packed with nutrients and a kick of that spice him and I love. Makes a lot of soup but we don’t mind working out way through it during the week for lunches. Especially after quarantine junk food eating, I’m looking forward to feeling good about the food I will be eating this upcoming week. Thank you for this awesome recipe!
I thought I would really get sick of this but it is really yummy. I think the stock made the difference. I added cilantro.:)
Yes I did and it’s wonderful. Thank you.
Can I add tofu and or mushrooms?
Can this be done in an Instant Pot?
Hi Taylor,
I’m sure it can be. However, I have not personally tested this recipe in the Instant Pot, so I’m hesitant to give instructions. Maybe someone in our community has tried it in the IP. Any takers???
I was very happy, Jennifer H.. to see your instant pot variation and followed it quite closely and it was SOOO good – the recipe itself is amazing but this made it easier for me – this time around I made my own broth from a carcass so I will have the chicken from that to use and feel good about the homade broth – my husband even asked for me to make another batch. NOW to stick to just that this week for my lunch!
Can this soup be made in a crock pot?
Hi Katie,
Yes, you should still sauté the onions and garlic on the stovetop first. Then slow cooker on low for 4-6 hours, or on high for 2-3 hours. I would add the broccoli florets in at the end, when you shred the chicken and add it back in. They will only need a few minutes in the hot soup base to soften.
This makes ALOT (12 cups of broth is needed) but it is delicious. I substituted broccoli with cubed zucchini and squash b/c I didn’t have broccoli in the house. I also added some kale too. Delicious! This recipe will be in permanent rotation now! Thanks
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I like this soup but there is no way all the ingredients fit into my 6 qt dutch oven. I could only fit 2 qts of the broth and it was up to the top. I couldn’t add the cabbage at the end. The soup is delish and more spicy since I couldn’t fit the last qt of stock or cabbage. I ended up adding a dollop of plain yoghurt on top since I can’t eat avocado.