This vegan tortilla soup might just be the best you ever make! This recipe is healthy, gluten-free and easy to make with simple ingredients.

The Best Vegan Tortilla Soup in two bowls topped with avocado, cilantro and tortillas.

How to Make Vegan Tortilla Soup

First up, chop the onion, garlic and jalapeno and saute them in the olive oil until they’re soft and fragrant.

Onions, garlic and jalapeno cooking in a soup pot for making vegan tortilla soup.
Onions, garlic and jalapeno cooking in a soup pot for making vegan tortilla soup.

After they’ve softened, add the tortilla – yes, a WHOLE tortilla, a small one, like for tacos, chop it up and throw it in.

Add the spices, broth and diced tomatoes too. I like fire-roasted diced tomatoes best! You can use any vegetable stock or broth but I like this bouillon from Better than Bouillon.

Garlic powder, diced tomatoes, garlic, onion, broth and jalepeno in a soup pot for making vegan tortilla soup.

Cook that up for 10 minute or so, a light simmer is perfect. It should be smelling pretty amazing by now!

Vegan tortilla soup in a blue soup post with a wooden spoon.

After that has simmered a bit, add the cilantro and black beans and you’re almost there!

The best vegan tortilla soup in a pot topped with cilantro and black beans and a lime on the side.
Chunky vegan tortilla soup in a soup pot with a wooden spoon and a lime on the side.

After you stir those in, you can either transfer about 2/3 of the soup to a blender and pulse a few times to smooth it out or use an immersion blender right in the pot.

Don’t completely pulverize it, a little chunkiness is good!

Vegan tortilla soup in a blender.
The best vegan tortilla soup in a soup pot topped with cilantro and avocado.

Best Tortilla Soup Toppings

As much as I love tortilla soup, I think the toppings might actually be my favourite part. Try topping your soup with:

  • avocado
  • cilantro
  • lime
  • crispy tortilla strips
  • shredded vegan cheese
  • vegan sour cream

How to Make Crispy Tortilla Strips

To make these amazing crispy, salted tortilla strips, I used my favourite white corn tortillas from La Tortilla Factory. These guys make a mean, authentic tortilla and they’re my go-to for tacos, burritos and other Mexican-inspired dishes.

They’re soft, thick and chewy and when fried in a pan, they puff up and come to a perfect crisp, absolutely perfect for adding to this soup! I also added 1 tortilla right into the soup and I think that really helped bring it all together!

Overhead view into a bowl of tortilla soup topped with avocado, tortilla strips and cilantro.

Vegan Tortilla Soup Recipe

The best part of this tortilla soup? You only need a few simple ingredients and it can be ready in about 20 minutes. It’s super easy to make yet the flavour of this simple, vegan soup absolutely delivers.

More Healthy Soups

Loving this tortilla soups? Here are more delicious and healthy vegan soups to try:

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Bowl of tortilla soup topped with avocado, cilantro and tortilla strips.

The Best Vegan Tortilla Soup

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 26 reviews
  • Author: Deryn Macey
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 20 mins
  • Total Time: 25 minutes
  • Yield: 4
  • Category: Soup
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Mexican
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

This vegan tortilla soup is easy to make in about 20 minutes with simple, everyday ingredients. It might just be the Best Vegan Tortilla Soup there is! Top it with avocado, lime, cilantro and tortilla strips for a comforting, healthy and absolutely delicious meal.


Ingredients

  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 small white onion, diced
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 jalapeño, seeded and diced
  • 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, fire-roasted if possible
  • 2 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 6-8” inch corn tortilla
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 19 oz can black beans, well rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup cilantro, finely chopped
  • juice from 1 lime
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Saute the onion, garlic and jalapeño in the olive oil for 5 minutes, stirring until soft and fragrant.
  2. Add the diced tomato, vegetable stock, tortilla, chili powder and garlic powder. Stir well and simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes.
  3. Stir in the black beans, cilantro and lime and simmer a few more minutes.
  4. Using an immersion blender or by placing most of the soup in a blender, blend just enough to ensure the tortilla has been blended completely into the soup. You want to leave it a little chunky.
  5. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Serve topped with avocado, cilantro, fresh lime and crispy tortilla strips.

Notes

To make crispy tortilla strips, cut 1/2-1 corn tortilla per person into approximately 1/4-1/2 inch strips. Fry the strips in a large pan with 1-2 tsp of olive oil over medium-high heat until browned and crispy. Flip and stir frequently to ensure they don’t burn. It took me about 10-12 minutes to get them nice and crispy. I also added a little salt and pepper to the pan for seasoning. Keep a close eye on them to prevent burning.


Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
  • Calories: 241
  • Sugar: 6 g
  • Fat: 3 g
  • Carbohydrates: 44 g
  • Fiber: 13 g
  • Protein: 12 g

This recipe was originally posted October 18, 2015. It was updated March 29, 2019 with new text and photos.