Chile Relleno Chicken Soup just may be my most popular keto soup recipe EVER. Creamy and cheesy, and chockfull of roasted poblanos and tender chicken.
I no longer even attempt to fool myself that my best recipes ideas are all that original. I used to be suddenly struck by inspiration and would practically go running to the kitchen to make recipe so I could blow people’s minds with my brilliance. Then Pinterest came along and quickly disabused me of the notion that I had thought of something that no one else in the world had ever thought of. Because I can quite literally make an original recipe, and head on over to Pinterest, only to see that someone else has had the very same idea. Often theirs is the high carb version and the execution is very different, but the idea is dead on. Turns out that the Muse of Food Blogging likes visit many of us with the same flashes of inspiration, and often around the same time. It’s kind of scary, how a fellow food blogger can be in your head like that.
This recipe idea, however, was not an original for me. But I recognize brilliance when I see it and when I saw it in the cheesy goodness of this Chile Relleno Soup from House of Yumm. Since I love cheese and I love poblano peppers, I knew this one was ripe for a low carb makeover. I almost instantly got to work revamping it. Among other changes, I added chicken for a more hearty meal, left out the flour (obviously), and used a brick of cream cheese to help thicken it. And it was velvety and cheesy and a wonderful low carb comfort dish. So I took some photos and scheduled it for the blog.
And then two days ago, I spotted the high carb version posted in a low carb group on Facebook with a plea for a makeover. And my friend Sooze from Fluffy Chix Cook was all excited about the idea of revamping it. I just had to laugh, and say “Um, you’re not going to believe this but…”.
So here we are. Nothing is ever truly original, not even our most original ideas. But original or not, this recipe is a keeper. A guaranteed hit with the whole family.
Chicken Poblano Soup
Ingredients
- 4 medium poblano peppers
- 2 tablespoon butter
- ¼ cup chopped onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 4 cups chicken bone broth
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 ½ lb boneless skinless chicken (thighs or breasts) cut into ½ inch pieces
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 8 slices cheddar or pepper jack cheese (thin sandwich slices, ¾ ounce each)
Instructions
- Roast the poblano peppers until the skin is charred and blistered. You can do this over the open flame on a gas stove, or by heating your broiler to high and placing poblanos within a few inches of the broiler (turning to get all sides charred).
- Place the peppers in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let cool, then rub the skin to remove as much as possible. Cut out the seeds and then place in a food processor or blender to finely chop. Set aside.
- In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, and poblanos and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in the chicken broth and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Add the chicken pieces and continue to cook until chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese and the cheddar to the same blend or processor in which you chopped the poblanos. Add about 1 cup of the hot broth from the soup (avoid getting any of the chicken in there). Blend until smooth and then stir back into the soup.
- To serve: Preheat the broiler. Dish the soup into individual ovenproof bowl and float a slice of cheese on top. Set under the broiler, about 6 inches from the heat and broil until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
Video
Gail Morris says
This was soooooo good! I grew my own poblano’s and this recipe is perfect! Everyone including my grand kids loved it.
Pamela Johnson says
Super simple to make and even tastier!
Perfect for a cool, rainy day!!
Deborah M Kloss says
So good! Just eating this for the first time. I absolutely love it and will make it again. Thank you for the fabulous recipe!
Sharon Bingham says
Can’t wait to try this one! I have all your cook books including the Soups & Stews, your chicken/chorizo soup is in the oven right now. Keep ’em coming!
Nancy Williams says
I am a nutriionist, and my nickname is “Soupqueen.” Enough said. Among my low carb repertoire of soups, this recipe is over-the-top delicious! When I want to wow my clients with one more reason to convert to a keto lifestyle, I offer them a cup of this soup to take home and sample (along with the recipe). How do I always have a cup on hand? Because when I prepare this soup, I always double or triple the recipe and freeze it in different sized containers depending on the occasion for its use. You might ask, “But isn’t the dairy addition of the cream cheese before freezing a problem?” No. Not at all. This soup is so flavorful that any “Keto Doubting Thomas” instantly coverts!
Carolyn says
So glad it works!!!
Susan says
Chile rellenos are one of my favorite foods on the planet. Needless to say, I’ll have to make this soup. It’s going onto my menu plan for my next time of cooking (my husband and I alternate 2 weeks on and 2 weeks off with cooking). Just the idea of this soup puts a big smile on my face.
Paulette says
This soup was amazing good!! Easy to make and very flavorful. I used chicken tenderloins. Definitely making this one again !!!
Ameelder says
Loved it. Thank you very much. I am prepping all but the cheeses for a quick freezer to instant pot / dutch oven meal for a friend. Made your focaccia bread to serve with it. ????
Joanna says
Very good recipe. Makes a lot for 2 though. I realize I could half it, but I tend to make and freeze part. How well will the cream cheese freeE?
Carolyn says
With any creamy based soup like this, you risk it splitting during the freezing and thawing process.
Mary says
Are those poblano peppers hot? Is there a substitute for them. Ive never cooked with them.
Vicki V says
This was delicious! I did have one hiccup with the cream cheese, though. It didn’t totally melt in and there were tiny white blobs. Maybe the cream cheese was too cold?
Carolyn says
Probably too cold… also possibly it has a lot of filler that keeps it from melting properly? Did you blend it up?
Diana says
This soup is delicious and very easy to prepare.
Melissa dorsey says
Would it be ok to substitute Anaheim peppers for the poblanos? I’m trying to cut down on the heat a little bit.
Carolyn says
Sure but this is not spicy and poblanos are typically quite mild.
Michelle Goodman says
Could you sub roasted hatch chilies for the poblanos?
Carolyn says
Can’t see why not!
Marilyn says
Chili Relleno is one of my favorites. I just made this tonight for dinner and I can’t wait to have it for lunch tomorrow! Dream Away Carolyn <3
Heather Star says
U.made this tonight and weighed out all the ingredients, and U have to tell you that your carb count is way, way off. I had to cut the peppers and cheese in half to get it under 10 carbs per serving. In that note, 6 servings is a joke, more like 4, which then brings the carbs up to 16 carbs with my adjustments.
The soup was delicious!
Carolyn says
Hi Heather, I am not sure where you get your nutritional info from but it’s very likely yours is off too. Mine was off because when I originally wrote this recipe, the USDA did not have accurate counts for poblano peppers. They do now and so here is my corrected info:
Food energy: 635kcal
Total fat: 39.06g
Carbohydrate: 10.04g
Total dietary fiber: 2.60g
Protein: 48.31g
This is based on 6 servings. You can see with that amount of fat and calories, 6 servings is absolutely a good amount and 4 would be off the charts high.
Please keep in mind that I do not use the online programs like My Fitness Pal, which are NOTORIOUSLY inaccurate. I use software I pay for called MacGourmet and it pulls from the USDA database so it’s likely to be far more accurate than most.
Thanks!
Lissa says
I have a question about an ingredient. What type of flour did you use? I don’t believe regular baking flour is Keto friendly. What can I substitute the ingredient with?
Carolyn says
I am not sure what you are seeing but there is NO flour at all, of any kind, in this recipe. I think maybe you are looking at the original that I took inspiration from? This is the keto recipe: https://asweetlife.org/chile-relleno-chicken-soup/
Tammy says
Carolyn,
I recently made the lemon poppy seed cookies using American cream cheese and it was not thick. Someone had commented about the difference between American cream cheese and Canadian. Will the American version (Philadelphia brand block) work in this?
Carolyn says
I don’t live in Canada, even though I am Canadian. So that’s not the issue at all here. The poppyseed cookies was likely more a flour issue than a cream cheese issue.
Mary Embling says
Carolyn, Thanks for the recipe. Delicious!
Bobbie says
Ummmmmm where’s the actual recipe? Am I missing something? All I see is pics and paragraphs. Lol
Carolyn says
There is a link to the recipe on A Sweet Life.
Christine says
This was divine. A definite winner for Mexican night, and will be making again and again! Creamy and cheesy and warming with great flavour.