Mexican Sweet Potato Chicken Soup

This hearty Mexican sweet potato chicken soup is loaded with veggies, lean protein and has a smoky, sweet flavor from dried guajillo Mexican peppers. It’s grain/gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo and whole30 friendly.

Okay, I’m going to come right out and admit something I’m kind of embarrassed about… cooking with dried peppers has always intimated me. I used to walk past them in the store and think, what the heck do people do with those things? This is naive, but I honestly thought that all dried peppers were super spicy and I had no clue how I could use them in my cooking.

How to Cook With Dried Peppers

It wasn’t until I attended a cooking demo during a yoga retreat at the Veritas Farmhouse where the chef used dried guajillo Mexican peppers in a creamy sweet potato soup that I realized they’re actually pretty easy to work with and they’re awesome for adding a unique depth of flavor and spice.

I’d never heard of guajillo Mexican peppers before, but I quickly learned that they are one of the most popular chiles used in Mexican cuisine. They’re a little on the sweeter side with a hint of tang (similar to a cranberry) and a mild smokiness. I wouldn’t consider these peppers spicy so if you’re not a huge fan of spicy foods this would likely be a good pepper to test out.

After trying the amazing soup at the retreat I decided it was officially time to conquer my unnecessary fear of cooking with dried peppers at home and ordered a bag of guajillo Mexican peppers. I remade the sweet potato soup that we had at the retreat, which was thick, rich and oh so creamy.

We enjoyed it, but I wanted to experiment with making a chunky soup with more veggies and protein so that it could be eaten as a meal. And that’s how this Mexican sweet potato soup with cauliflower, spinach and chicken came to be.

Why Eat Dried Peppers

If you’re like me and haven’t really experimented with dried peppers before I highly recommend grabbing a bag and hopping to it. They’re such a great way to add a ton of flavor and spice to a dish without adding a ton of extra calories! Plus, despite their burning taste, chili peppers have long been considered a healthy spice. They are very high in antioxidant carotenoids and rich in various vitamins and minerals (Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Potassium and Vitamin A). Studies have even shown that chili peppers can help with pain relief and promote weight loss by reducing appetite and increasing fat burning. (Source)

Sweet Potato Chicken Soup Ingredients

• chicken breast – boneless, skinless chicken breast is seasoned and chopped into cubes for this soup.
• vegetables – yellow onion, garlic, sweet potato, baby spinach, cauliflower.
• guajillo Mexican peppers – I got mine from nuts.com!
• chicken broth – the liquid base of this soup, provides tons of flavor! You can also use vegetable broth.
• olive oil – to simmer the chili pepper puree and vegetables in.
• seasonings and spices – dried oregano, sea salt, ground pepper, cumin and cloves.
• optional toppings – avocado, radishes, cilantro, lime, etc.

How to Make Sweet Potato Chicken Soup

Season Chicken – Season chicken with oregano, 1 teaspoon sea salt and black pepper. Cut into cubes and set aside.

Rehydrate peppers – Remove the stems and dump out all the seeds from inside the peppers. Place the peppers in a saucepan with water. Bring them to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes or until they’ve softened. That’s it! At this point they’re rehydrated and ready to be used! Be sure to save the water for the next step.

Blend – Add peppers and ¾ cup water from the saucepan into a high-powered blender. Add onion, garlic, cumin, cloves and ½ teaspoon salt and then blend until smooth.

Simmer – Add oil to a large saucepan on medium heat. Add chili pepper purée into the pan and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Add broth, seasoned chicken cubes, sweet potato and cauliflower into the saucepan. Cover and simmer until chicken is tender and cooked through and sweet potatoes are fully cooked, this should take about 10-15 minutes. Stir in baby spinach until wilted and season with additional salt, if needed.

Serve – Portion soup into bowls and top with toppings of choice. I love serving mine with avocado, sliced radishes, cilantro and a lime wedge for squeezing over the top.

How to Serve Soup

This soup is a hearty enough recipe to be a meal in one! Having said that, I love eating it with my pumpkin cornbread muffins. It’s also delicious served with bread, crackers (I love my almond crackers) or even tortilla chips. It can also be served with a salad… I have a ton of salad recipes to choose from, but something light and fresh like this garlicky kale salad would be perfect.

How to Store Leftovers

Let the soup cool completely before transferring to an airtight container. Store in your refrigerator for up to 5 days. If you need to store it longer, let the soup cool completely in the fridge and then transfer to the freezer for up to 3 months.

More Soup Recipes to Try

• Taco Soup
• Chicken Enchilada Soup
• Healthy White Bean Chicken Chili
• Slow Cooker Quinoa Vegetable Soup
• Vegetable Soup
• Chicken Tortilla Soup
• Easy Black Bean Soup
• Chicken Wild Rice Soup
• Sausage Kale Soup
• Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili

Be sure to check out my full collection sweet potato recipes as well as all of the soup recipes here on EBF.

Mexican Sweet Potato Chicken Soup

5 from 8 votes

This hearty Mexican sweet potato chicken soup is loaded with veggies, lean protein and has a smoky, sweet flavor from dried guajillo Mexican peppers. Grain/gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo and whole30 friendly.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 1 ½ lbs boneless skinless chicken breast, chopped into bite-size cubes
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 ½ teaspoons sea salt, divided into 1 teaspoon and ½ teaspoon
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 5 dried guajillo Mexican peppers, stems and seeds removed
• ½ yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 4 cloves garlic
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 32 oz carton vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and chopped into bite-size chunks
• ½ small head cauliflower, broken into bite-size florets
• 1-2 cups baby spinach
• for topping: avocado, radishes, cilantro, lime

Instructions

 

• Season chicken with oregano, 1 teaspoon sea salt and black pepper. Set aside.
• Add dried guajillo peppers into a saucepan and cover with water (at least 1 cup). Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the peppers have softened.
• Add peppers and ¾ cup water from saucepan into a high-powered blender. Add onion, garlic, cumin, cloves and ½ teaspoon salt; blend until smooth.
• Add oil to a large saucepan on medium heat. Add chile pepper purée into the pan and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Add broth, seasoned chicken cubes, sweet potato and cauliflower into the saucepan. Cover and simmer until chicken is tender and cooked through and sweet potatoes are fully cooked, this should take about 10-15 minutes. Stir in baby spinach until wilted and season with additional salt, if needed.
• Portion soup into bowls and top with avocado, sliced radishes and cilantro. Serve with a lime wedge for squeezing over the top.

Notes

Recipe adapted and inspired by this Mexican Spice Chile Soup.

Nutrition

Calories: 427kcal Carbohydrates: 26g Protein: 47g Fat: 14g Saturated Fat: 3g Cholesterol: 131mg Fiber: 5g Sugar: 10g

Author: Brittany Mullins

Course: Soup

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: mexican sweet potato chicken soup

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