Chicken Tortilla Soup
I first tasted this delicious soup in Georgetown, Texas, while visiting my cousins. It is, to me, a perfect soup – chewy from all the vegetables, tangy from the lime, creamy from the cheese, filling and comforting that needy stomach-hole with shredded chicken, and crunchy from the tortilla chips. This soup would go well with a salad or perhaps quesadillas. My cousins consider this soup to be Tex-Mex, but it is originally a Mexican soup that is easily found in Mexico City. The simplified cooking process and a few ingredients more readily available in the United States transform this dish into something Tex-Mex.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 3 large cloves garlic minced
- 1 -2 jalapeños diced and seeded, or 1/8 tsp. chili flakes
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder (the kind you use for chili con carne)
- 14.5 oz crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 14.5 oz can black beans rinsed & drained
- 1 cup frozen or canned corn, drained if canned
- 2 chicken breasts boneless, skinless
- 1/4 cup cilantro chopped
- 1 lime juiced
- 1 avocado sliced
- 1 cup grated cheese, such as cheddar or colby jack
Crispy Tortilla Strips
- 6 6- inch corn tortillas cut into 1/4-inch strips. If you can’t get them, use corn tortilla chips, broken up, and omit the olive oil and salt.
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- salt
Instructions
- Heat 1/4 cup olive oil over medium-high heat a small pan. Add tortilla strips in small batches and fry until crisp. Drain and salt.
- Heat olive oil In a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and jalapeños and cook until onion is softened.
- Add remaining ingredients and simmer 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
- Remove chicken and shred. Add back to the pot and simmer for 3 minutes.
- Spoon soup into bowls and and top with tortilla strips, lime wedges, grated cheese and sliced avocado.
