Saturday, November 21, 2009

Chicken Tortilla Soup


As I'm sure you have noticed by now, we are huge fans of anything with Mexican flavors. And now that I have begun to be able to handle more spice, I have been enjoying experimenting with more jalapenos, chipotles, etc.

What can I say about this soup, other than it is my new favorite tortilla soup? I previously was partial to Ina's, but this one takes the cake. It should come as no suprise, given my previous successes with the Pastry Queen.

I love the idea of roasting the tomatoes before pureeing them with canned tomaotes. This forms the most flavorful broth. The original recipe calls for dried ancho chiles, but I didn't see any in my local Publix. I just substituted a chipotle chile in adobo sauce.

Have fun with the garnishes. I kept it simple with tortilla chips, cilantro, and Monterrey Jack cheese, but then I ate leftovers with some avocado, extra diced tomatoes, and salsa. Delicious both ways!!

Texas Tortilla Soup
adapted from The Pastry Queen, by Rebecca Rather

serves 8

  • 8 plum tomatoes
  • 4 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 4 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
  • 1 chipotle chile, diced
  • 1 15-oz can peeled tomatoes
  • salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 3 cooked, shredded chicken breasts
  • 3 ears of corn, or 1 (8-0z) package frozen corn (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350. Spread 1 Tablespoon of oil on a baking sheet. Slice the tomatoes in half, and lay them skin-side up. Drizzle with another tablespoon of oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast 25-35 minutes, or until the skins wrinkle and the tomatoes are beginning to brown around the edges.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a dutch-oven or 4-quart soup pot over medium heat. Sautee the onion, garlic, and bell pepper for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables become soft. Stir in the chili powder and cumin, and cook for an additional minute. Add the chicken stock and chile. Bring to a boil, and simmer about 15 minutes.

Transfer the canned tomatoes with their juices and the roasted tomatoes to a food processor. Pour an additional 1/2 cup of chicken stock on the baking sheet that you cooked the tomatoes on, and scrape up any browned bits. Scrape into the food processor. Puree about 1 minute, until smooth.

Add the tomato mixture to the soup, and continue simmering, covered, about 1 hour. Add salt and pepper to taste, the shredded chicken, and corn. Simmer an additional 5 minutes.

To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top with desired ganishes.


5 comments:

Anonymous said...

This soup looks amazing! I'm definitely going to have to try it this winter.

ashley said...

yum! love the pastry queen! looks tasty!

Natalie said...

This soup looks really delicious. And as a Texan, I would say you are right on!

Jennifer said...

Even though it was like a million degrees in Los Angeles yesterday, I decided to make this soup! It was absolutely delicious. My boyfriend made a great suggestion of putting in little meatballs next time. I think it's a great base to support pretty much any type of protein. Thanks for the great recipe!

Mark said...

Seems like a Mexican plate. tortillas are very often on their soups, which by the way, I think are the best ones in the world!
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