Fast Food Substitution – Chicken Tortilla Soup

Maybe reheated soup doesn’t make for the best picture, but, the point is, it’s easy, healthier, and much cheaper than going out for a similar bowl. Get yourself a nice set of glass storage bowls and meal prep for the week. Also, don’t forget the unsweetened iced tea! 😉

Soup isn’t the first thing I think of when I think of fast food, but Chick-Fil-A’s (CFA) seasonal Chicken Tortilla Soup is actually my favorite item on their menu. Unfortunately, it’s only available from mid-November to mid-March and now costs an eye-watering $8.50-$9.50 a bowl depending on your location. Keep in mind this is just for a bowl of soup… no drink included! All that said, my goal for this fast food substitution is to make a healthier alternative at a more affordable price that can be eaten year round.

How I Prepared the Meal

For this one, I’ve actually got my own recipe available here on the site. This is a recipe I’ve been working on for a few years. I started out using a McCormick White Chicken Chili seasoning pack when I originally attempted to recreate CFA’s Chicken Tortilla Soup, but I’ve since come up with my own blend of seasonings to get it closer and that’s now how I make it; sans McCormick pack. At this point, I’m happy with where I’ve landed, but do keep in mind that I’ve tried to make this easy and in the spirit of CFA; it’s not meant to be an exact copy. Also, note that lime is a great flavor to go along with this soup; I recommend pairing the soup with lime flavored tortilla chips just like Chick-Fil-A does.

If you wanted to get closer to Chick-Fil-A’s protein number, you could make the soup with more than a pound of chicken. For me, I like the vegetable to chicken ratio I’ve got going on here. If you’re looking for more fat and calorie content, you could experiment with adding sour cream as CFA does.

Nutrition Comparison (My comments reference the highlighted numbers.)

Fat: This disparity is shocking. I’m thinking this is due to CFA using sour cream and because the chicken they use is listed as debreaded; meaning it was cooked in oil and then the breading was removed.
Sodium: I’m happy with 882 mg because it leaves plenty of space for another meal before hitting the daily limit.
Fiber: It’s a little disappointing to see this number so low for my recipe, but adults are actually only supposed to have 25-38 grams per day, so I’ll let it slide.

Conclusion

I think I’ve nailed my goals for this fast food substitution. As prepared, following my recipe, I’ve hit a price point of $4 a bowl. This is with a number of organic and name brand ingredients. That’s less than half the cost of CFA. The other big goal for me was making the soup healthier for more frequent consumption. A bowl of CFA’s Chicken Tortilla Soup will practically get you to your daily quota for sodium; mine comes in at less than half of theirs and I can eat it without spiking my blood pressure. In terms of flavor and heartiness, I’ve not tried them side by side, but they’re definitely very similar on the palate.

Thanks for reading, Matt

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October 9, 2025 Update: Replaced Nutrition Comparison section to follow an updated table with comments format.

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