• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
Mamá Maggie's Kitchen
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Beef
    • Breakfast
    • Chicken
    • Desserts
    • Drinks
    • Pork
    • Seafood
    • Side Dishes
    • Soups
    • Vegetarian
    • Healthy
    • Mexican
    • Holiday Recipes
    • Learn
  • Cookbooks
  • Shop
  • Courses
    • Tamales
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
  • Courses
  • Shop
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • Recipes
    • Cookbooks
    • Courses
    • Shop
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Mexican » Sopa de Conchas + VIDEO

    Sopa de Conchas + VIDEO

    Last Updated June 6, 2022. Originally Posted September 20, 2018 By Maggie Unzueta

    This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Sopa de Conchas, or Mexican Shell Pasta Soup, is as classic as Mexican rice and tamales. Ready in minutes and perfect for picky eaters.
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    Mexican Shell Pasta Soup, or Sopa de Conchas, is a classic Mexican recipe. An easy-to-make soup and perfect for picky eaters. By Mama Maggie's Kitchen

    Sopa de Conchas, or Mexican Shell Pasta Soup, is as classic as Mexican rice and tamales. This easy-to-make soup is comfort food at its best. Ready in minutes and perfect for little picky eaters. Watch the VIDEO or see the step-by-step pictures to recreate this Mexican food favorite.

    Sopa de Conchas, or Mexican Shell Pasta Soup, in a white bowl and topped with a few slices of green onions.

    You know you’re Mexican if you grew up eating Sopa de Conchas. This goes right up there with Sopa de Fideo and Frijoles de la Olla. My mom would make this for us when we got home from school. And now, I make it for my redhead when he comes home from a long day of adding and subtracting, science experiments, and girls.

    Ingredients for Sopa de Conchas on a white surface.

    The ingredients are simple: 2 Roma tomatoes, ¼ onion, garlic, chicken bouillon, conchas pasta, oil, and water. This is a basic recipe for Sopa de Conchas. You can add more ingredients if you like. My mom would add a pinch of cumin and a pinch of oregano. Sometimes potatoes and veggies were added too.

    Chopped tomatoes and chopped onions on a cutting board.

    I rough chopped the tomatoes before adding them to the blender.

    Chopped tomatoes ina  blender

    My handy dandy blender here is a Nutribullet. It’s nothing fancy, but it gets the job done.

    Chopped tomatoes and chopped onions in a blender.

    Also add the onion and garlic to the blender. Some people will dice up the onions and cook them with the shells. That way, the Sopa de Conchas will have sauteed onions. YUM! Either way works fine.

    Water pouring into the blender.

    Add water to the blender.

    Tomato sauce in a blender.

    Blend everything until smooth. Set aside until ready to use. You can totally bypass this and go straight for a can of tomato sauce. That works just as well, and in a pinch, I’ll confess that I use canned tomato sauce too.

    Hand holding a bottle of olive oil with a stock pot in the distance.

    Heat up the oil in a large stock pot. Don’t skimp on the oil. We are about to “toast” our pasta. To make Sopa de Conchas, you will need a pot. We need room to groove.

    Conchas, or Shell Pasta, on a wooden surface with a pasta package in the background.

    The star of the show is this Conchas pasta, or pasta shaped like shells. It is commonly found in the Hispanic aisle at the grocery store. Or, you can purchase it online. If your store carries fideo pasta, it more than likely will sell this pasta.

    Shell Pasta in a stock pot.

    Once the oil is nice and hot, add the conchas. Get out your spatula and start stirring. Here’s the thing: you don’t want this to burn. If you end up burning it, you will have to start all over again. That’s not fun. My advice is to stir, stir, stir.

    Shell pasta in a stock pot that has been browned and toasted.

    You gotta be on the lookout for when the pasta starts to toast and it’s about to burn. That’s the time to add the rest of the ingredients. This isn’t it! Lol. Do you see how it’s starting to change colors? Look at these golden beauties. A few of them are really toasted. They are almost, almost burnt. That’s totally ok. As long as they aren’t burnt, it’s all good in the hood.

    Now add the rest of the water. Some people will use chicken broth, and if you have it, awesome! If you opt use chicken broth, don’t add the chicken bouillon.

    Tomato sauce in a metal stock pot.

    Time for the tomato mixture. Pour all of it in. I like to leave one cup of water to get all the tomato sauce out of the blender. However you do this is fine too.

    Hand holding a cube of chicken bouillon.

    Chicken bouillon is a common ingredient in our Mexican cuisine. You can omit, and as I mentioned, use chicken broth instead. Both work well when making the Sopa de Conchas.

    Stock pot with lid on the stove.

    Lastly, cover up the pot for 20 minutes. Check the pot at around 18 minutes. All you want is to make sure the pasta is soft and fully cooked. The shells will puff out, almost 3 times bigger than their dried version.

    A ladle full of Sopa de Conchas over a stock pot of the soup.

    Serve your Sopa de Conchas in a large bowl. I call this Mexican comfort food. It warms your belly and your soul. Childhood memories swarm with each spoonful and many more to be had. Hope you enjoy!

    Sopa de Conchas, or Mexican Shell Pasta Soup, in a white bowl.

    Don’t forget to watch the Sopa de Conchas Video

    Sopa de Conchas, or Mexican Shell Pasta Soup, in a white bowl and topped with a few slices of green onions.

    Sopa de Conchas

    Sopa de Conchas, or Mexican Shell Pasta Soup, is as classic as Mexican rice and tamales. Ready in minutes and perfect for picky eaters.
    4.95 from 69 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Mexican
    Cuisine: Mexican
    Prep Time: 5 minutes
    Cook Time: 25 minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 521kcal
    Author: Maggie Unzueta

    Ingredients

    • 2 Roma tomatoes chopped
    • ¼ onion
    • 1 garlic clove
    • 1 cup water + 4 cups water divided
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1 16- ounce package of conchas
    • 1 chicken bouillon cube

    Instructions

    • To a blender, add tomatoes, onion, garlic clove and 1 cup of water. 
    • Blend until smooth. 
    • Set aside until ready to use. 
    • Heat oil in a large stock pot.
    • Add package of conchas pasta. 
    • Stir frequently until golden brown. 
    • About 5 minutes. 
    • Do not let this burn, or you will have to start all over again. 
    • Add 4 cups of water, tomato mixture, and chicken bouillon.
    • Stir to combine. 
    • Cover and bring to a low simmer.
    • Cook for 20 minutes, or until pasta is soft and the conchas have puffed up. 
    • Serve and enjoy

    Video

    Notes

    Optional toppings: Queso Fresco and lime. 

    Nutrition

    Calories: 521kcal | Carbohydrates: 92g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 248mg | Potassium: 352mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 258IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 2mg
    Tried this recipe?Mention @MamaMaggiesKitchen or tag #MamaMaggiesKitchen!

    Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.



    More Mexican Soups & Stews


    Birria de Res, or Mexican Beef Stew
    Mexican Fish Soup, or Caldo de Pescado
    Pozole Rojo
    Roasted Poblano Corn Soup
    Mexican Lentil Soup, or Sopa de Lentejas
    Mexican Star Soup, or Sopa de Estrellitas
    Caldo de Verduras, or Mexican Vegetable Soup
    Caldo de Pollo, or Mexican Chicken Soup
    Caldo de Camarón – Mexican Shrimp Soup
    Caldillo Durangueño, a Traditional Beef Stew from Durango, Mexico

    Filed Under: Mexican, Popular Recipes, Recipes, Soups, Vegetarian

    About Maggie Unzueta

    Maggie Unzueta is the writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer, videographer, and creator of In Mama Maggie's Kitchen. She has been developing easy and authentic Mexican food, Mexican-inspired recipes, and traveling tips since 2010. From family recipes to her extensive travels throughout Mexico, she brings traditional Mexican flavors from South of the Border and into your kitchen. Maggie has been featured in notable culinary websites and other media outlets. For more details, check out her About page.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kelly Braner

      April 1, 2022 at 10:48 am

      5 stars
      From age 17-22 I lived with my best friends mother and her 5 children. She was born in Mexico & her family moved to the States when she was 3 years old. She taught me a lot when it came to cooking and because she had a big family, she generally would start cooking something around 1pm so that her hungry kids would have something hot and ready when they came running through the door on school days. This was always one of my favorites that she made every week and she taught me how to make it as well. The only difference with her sopa recipe is that she made it with peeled and cut potatoes as well which I highly recommend! She’d also add a Sazon packet to each pot of sopa. But it was ALWAYS made with conchas (medium size shell pasta) and for some reason it’s a must for me as well or it just doesn’t feel the same with other pasta varieties.
      This recipe was spot on and reminded me of the forgotten recipe that I hadn’t made in close to 5 years. Thanks for posting!

      Reply
      • Maggie Unzueta

        April 18, 2022 at 10:41 am

        I love food memories. Thank you for sharing this story.

        Reply
        • Mellissa

          June 14, 2022 at 7:44 pm

          5 stars
          THANK YOU! I CAN’T THANK YOU ENOUGH! I had no idea this was a traditional dish! Mi abuelita made this every day after school for us after school. We’d top it with as much cheese as we were allowed. My cousins could always make it, but I’m a wedita, and I never got the recipe. I didn’t know about the toasting part! My father is now in hospice, and my brother took me to a local restaurant and secretly ordered it for me. I was shocked. I rushed home, found your order, and made it with a tres leches cake with peach filling. Thanks again, I simply had no idea.

        • Maggie Unzueta

          June 17, 2022 at 11:06 am

          Awww.. I love food memories! Thank you for sharing. 🙂

    2. Myrna Rodriguez

      November 14, 2022 at 12:00 pm

      5 stars
      Love the recipe but my conchas soak up too much water and I’m left with huge conchas and little water. Any help to remedy this?

      Reply
      • Maggie Unzueta

        November 28, 2022 at 7:26 am

        That happens to everyone. My advice is to add the tomato sauce right before serving the sopa de conchas. Once it’s heated up, then serve immediately. Hope this helps.

        Reply
    3. Carly

      November 29, 2022 at 2:43 pm

      5 stars
      This is the 2nd recipe I tried and my husband said this was perfect. I don’t have to look any further. Thank you!

      Reply
      • Maggie Unzueta

        November 29, 2022 at 2:51 pm

        Awww! That just made my day. I love hearing that people love this sopa de conchas recipe.

        Reply
    « Older Comments

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About Maggie
    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • PR/ Advertise
    • Email maggie @ mamamaggieskitchen.com