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Creamy Vegetarian Tortilla Soup

Creamy vegetarian tortilla soup with smoky, warm spices simmered in one pot and finished with silky heavy cream. Topped with crispy tortilla strips for crunch and fresh cilantro, it’s a bold Tex-Mex bowl that’s freezer-friendly.
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Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Calories: 280
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

diced tomatoes
  • 2 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
black beans
  • 1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained
corn kernels
  • 1 cup corn kernels
onion
  • 1 small onion, diced
garlic
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
vegetable broth
  • 4 cup vegetable broth
heavy cream
  • 1 cup heavy cream
ground cumin
  • 1 tsp cumin
chili powder
  • 1 tsp chili powder
tortilla strips
  • 1 cup tortilla strips
cilantro
  • 2 tbsp chopped cilantro

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch oven

Method
 

Sauté aromatics
  1. Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes, with the vegetables turning translucent and fragrant.
Build the soup base
  1. Add the diced tomatoes, black beans, corn, vegetable broth, cumin, and chili powder to the pot. Stir until everything is evenly combined and the spices look uniformly distributed.
Simmer
  1. Bring the soup to a simmer, then reduce to maintain gentle bubbling. Simmer for 20 minutes so the flavors meld, with the broth slightly thickening and the vegetables tender.
Finish with cream
  1. Stir in the heavy cream and cook until the soup looks silky and smooth. Simmer just until warmed through, about 2 to 3 minutes, without boiling hard.
Serve
  1. Ladle the soup into bowls. Top each bowl with tortilla strips and chopped cilantro so the tortilla strips stay crisp.

Notes

Pro tip: For the best texture when reheating, freeze the soup in portions before adding the heavy cream, then thaw and stir in the cream while warming until silky (about 2–3 minutes). Add tortilla strips right before serving so they remain crunchy. Refrigerate leftovers in a covered container up to 3 days; freezing is yes (cream-added or not), but cream-before-freezing can slightly dull the texture.