This green enchilada chicken soup is a PCOS-friendly soup recipe that is delicious and so easy to make! It combines healthy ingredients like chicken, beans, and vegetables in the slow cooker to make healthy eating easier for busy people, like you.
As a registered dietitian who also has PCOS, I appreciate a good soup recipe that will also help manage my own set of symptoms. I find that the biggest challenge people face is finding delicious and non-restrictive recipes that help their PCOS symptoms.
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Why You’ll Love This Green Enchilada Chicken Soup
Polycystic ovary syndrome (aka PCOS) is characterized by insulin resistance, chronic inflammation, and high androgen levels. This can manifest into several different types of symptoms such as weight gain, hirsutism (aka unwanted facial hair), adult acne, irregular periods and heartbreaking female infertility.
The foods you eat though can drastically improve your symptoms of hormone imbalance. That’s where this soup can come into play!
Grab a free copy: A Dietitian’s 7 Day PCOS Diet Plan PDF.
This PCOS friendly green enchilada chicken soup tastes like it belongs in a restaurant. It’s a little creamy with a tasty flavor that your whole household will love.
It uses a mix of fresh ingredients and some pre-packaged convenience foods to speed up the process…making it a quick recipe to get started in your slow cooker.
This green enchilada chicken soup recipe has a whopping 44 grams of protein and 10 grams of fiber per serving to keep your blood sugar levels more stable. Plus, it’s packed with anti-inflammatory nutrients that can help lower inflammation.
More stable blood sugar levels and lower inflammation can ultimately help decrease your PCOS symptoms…making this a great lunch or dinner meal for those of us with PCOS!
Grab a full list of anti-inflammatory foods here.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Okay, here’s what you’re going to need to make this PCOS green chicken enchilada soup recipe:
- Chicken – this is going to be your main protein source. In addition to protein, chicken is a great source of micronutrients such as B vitamins, choline, selenium, and zinc. I used boneless skinless chicken thighs in this recipe but you could also use chicken breast. You can easily substitute lean ground turkey too if you’d prefer.
- White Beans – beans are a great source of fiber, plant based protein, and micronutrients. I used two cans of Great Northern beans and just drained and rinsed them…you could also use dry beans too if you prefer. You can easily substitute canned cannellini beans, black beans, red kidney beans, or even lentils in this recipe.
- Bell Peppers – red bell peppers are packed with vitamin C, a potent antioxidant that can lower inflammation and also improve egg quality.
- Onion – not only do onions provide a unique flavor, but they’re a great source of prebiotic fibers that can improve gut health and metabolic health.
- Chicken Broth – this is the main liquid source of the soup. I prefer to use low sodium chicken broth or bone broth when making soups. I also tend to dilute broth with a bit of water to help decrease the sodium content even further since too much sodium can lead to high blood pressure.
- Green Enchilada Sauce – you can either make your own green enchilada sauce or use a canned option. I used cans of green enchilada sauce to decrease some of the prep time.
- Greek Yogurt – there’s a lot of myths out there about needing to be dairy-free if you have PCOS. This isn’t supported by the research. We know that fermented dairy products, such as Greek yogurt, have incredible health benefits. Fermented dairy can decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes and lower inflammation. Additionally, it’s a great source of quality protein, calcium, vitamin D, and probiotics. Read more about dairy & PCOS here: Best Milk for PCOS – Should You Go Dairy-Free?
- Monterey Jack Cheese – similar to Greek yogurt, cheese has a low glycemic index. It also has quality protein and fat – two nutrients that can mitigate the blood sugar response. I opted to get a block of monterey jack cheese and shred it myself with a cheese grater since this usually melts better than a pre-shredded cheese.
- Salsa Verde – this adds more flavor to the soup. Since salsa tends to have quite a bit of sodium added to it, this is one of the reasons I opted for a lower sodium broth.
How To Make It
This is probably the best part of this recipe: it’s incredibly easy to make. All you’re going to do is chop the bell pepper and onion, then put the chicken, bell pepper, onion, broth, water, and green enchilada sauce into a slow cooker. Cook on the high setting for about 4 hours or the low setting for 6 hours.
Remove the cooked chicken from the slow cooker and shred it using two forks to pull it apart. Place the shredded chicken back into the crockpot and turn the temperature to keep warm.
If you’re not using pre-shredded cheese, this is the time to grate your cheese. Then, add the Greek yogurt, grated monterey jack cheese, and salsa verde to the slow cooker. Gently stir occasionally as the cheese melts.
Serve with your favorite toppings such as a squeeze of lime, diced avocado, jalapenos, green onion, cilantro, or tortilla chips.
You can store any leftover enchilada soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
For the stovetop
If you don’t have a slow cooker or don’t want to use one, you can easily make this healthy soup on the stovetop!
Add the chicken, bell pepper, onion, broth, and water to a large pot over medium heat. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
Remove the chicken and shred it using two forks. Return the shredded chicken to the pot and add enchilada sauce, Greek yogurt, grated Monterey jack cheese, and salsa verde. Allow to simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the cheese is melted.
Serve with your favorite toppings.
Substitutions & Variations
- Dairy-Free? You can skip the Greek yogurt and monterey jack cheese entirely for a more broth-based soup. If you want a creamier soup, you can add a softened dairy-free cream cheese in place of the Greek yogurt.
- Gluten Free? Opt for gluten-free chicken broth as some commercially made broths may contain traces of gluten.
- Omit the chicken and use vegetable broth to make it plant-based.
- Increase the fiber by adding more of your favorite veggies such as bell peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, corn, jalapeños, or diced chiles.
- Top with your favorite toppings like avocado slices, cilantro, a squeeze of lime, lime wedges, green onion, or corn tortilla chips.
Shop This Recipe
Dairy-Free Cream Cheese (if modifying to dairy-free)
Other Delicious Recipes You’ll Love
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Green Enchilada Chicken Soup (PCOS Friendly Recipe)
Ingredients
- 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 16 oz chicken broth reduced sodium
- 8 oz water
- 30 oz green enchilada sauce
- 2 15oz cans great northern beans drained & rinsed
- 1 ½ cup greek yogurt plain
- 2 cup monterey jack cheese shredded
- ½ cup salsa verde
Instructions
- Chop the bell pepper and onion into 1/2 inch pieces.
- Place the chicken, bell pepper, onion, chicken broth, water, and green enchilada sauce into the crockpot. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 6 hours.
- Remove the cooked chicken from the crockpot and shred. Return shredded chicken to the crockpot.
- Turn the heat to "keep warm" and add white beans, Greek yogurt, Monterey jack cheese, and salsa verde to the crockpot. Stir occasionally until the cheese is melted.
- Serve with your favorite toppings such as a squeeze of lime, avocado, green onions, diced jalapeños, cilantro, or corn tortilla chips.
For The Stovetop
- Add bell pepper, onion, chicken, chicken broth, and water to a large pot over medium heat. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
- Remove chicken and shred. Return the shredded chicken to the pot and add enchilada sauce, Greek yogurt, grated monterey jack cheese, and salsa verde. Allow to simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the cheese is melted. Serve.
Notes
Nutrition
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