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tortilla soup
This is a comforting chicken soup. It may look daunting in preparation, but it’s not. And while it looks like a lot of ingredients, many of them are garnishes. It cooks up relatively quickly and it’s a nice contrast to the typical chicken noodle soup. If you like it spicy add in a little extra adobo sauce at the end.
Ingredients:
Tortilla Strips
8 corn tortillas (6-inch), cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Table salt
Soup
2 split bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds) or 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 1 1/4 pounds), skin removed and well trimmed of excess fat
8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 very large white onion (about 1 pound), trimmed of root end, quartered, and peeled
4 medium cloves garlic, peeled
2 sprigs epazote, fresh, or 8 to 10 sprigs fresh cilantro plus 1 sprig fresh oregano
Table salt
2 medium tomatoes, cored and quartered
1/2 medium jalapeño chile
1 chipotle chile en adobo, plus up to 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Garnishes
1 lime, cut into wedges
1 Hass avocado, diced fine
8 ounces cotija cheese, crumbled, or Monterey Jack cheese, diced fine
fresh cilantro leaves
minced jalapeno pepper
Mexican crema or sour cream
Directions:
1. FOR THE TORTILLA STRIPS: Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 425 degrees. Spread tortilla strips on rimmed baking sheet; drizzle with oil and toss until evenly coated. Bake until strips are deep golden brown and crisped, about 14 minutes, rotating pan and shaking strips (to redistribute) halfway through baking time. Season strips lightly with salt; transfer to plate lined with several layers paper towels.
2. FOR THE SOUP: While tortilla strips bake, bring chicken, broth, 2 onion quarters, 2 garlic cloves, epazote, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to boil over medium-high heat in large saucepan; reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until chicken is just cooked through, about 20 minutes. Using tongs, transfer chicken to large plate. Pour broth through fine-mesh strainer; discard solids in strainer. When cool enough to handle, shred chicken into bite-sized pieces; discard bones.
3. Puree tomatoes, 2 remaining onion quarters, 2 remaining garlic cloves, jalapeño, chipotle chile, and 1 teaspoon adobo sauce in food processor until smooth. Heat oil in Dutch oven over high heat until shimmering; add tomato/onion puree and 1/8 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring frequently, until mixture has darkened in color, about 10 minutes. Stir strained broth into tomato mixture, bring to boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer to blend flavors, about 15 minutes. Taste soup; if desired, add up to 2 teaspoons additional adobo sauce. Add shredded chicken and simmer until heated through, about 5 minutes. To serve, place portions of tortilla strips in bottom of individual bowls and ladle soup into bowls; pass garnishes separately.
Makes 9 cups, 6 servings.
From Cook’s Illustrated, March/April 2005
Notes: My sister-in-law can’t eat tomatoes, so I set aside one quarter of the soup for her. At the point where you puree the tomatoes and other ingredients, I excluded the tomatoes and took one-fourth of the remaining, put them in the food processor along with 1/4 cup of broth and pureed. I set that aside. At the point where you cook the tomato mixture, I put the tomato-less mixture in a separate pot, cooked it about 4 minutes until all the liquid was gone and it had started to darken, and added one-quarter of the remaining broth. I followed the recipe as is otherwise.
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