Chicken Tortilla Soup

Step-by-Step video on YouTube

My All-Time Favorite Soup (Maybe, Favorite Food)

I have to admit the inspiration for this recipe comes in part from my middle school in Houston, Texas. The cafeteria occasionally served a chicken tortilla soup that was middling in flavor, but perfect in texture. My mother on the hand, served a version that was perfect in flavor, but more of a broth with pieces of chicken and chopped veggies. My version puts my own spin on the best of both to create something that is, in my view, both perfect in flavor and texture (not to toot my own horn).

Ingredients

4-5 servings | 15 mins. prep | 40 mins. active cooking

• 1 large yellow onion, roughly chopped

• 1 poblano pepper, stemmed, seeded, and roughly chopped

• 1 serrano or jalapeño, stemmed and roughly chopped (optional, remove seeds for less heat)

• 3 chipotles in adobo, roughly chopped

• 1 28 oz. can of whole peeled tomatoes (just the tomatoes, not the sauce)

  • In the summer, use 5-6 fresh Roma tomatoes, but canned are a better option in the winter when tomatoes aren’t in season

• 1 tbsp avocado oil (or, enough to thinly coat the bottom of the pan)

• 2 chicken breasts (or, 2 1/2 chicken thighs)

  • You can also shred a store-bought rotisserie chicken, or make a larger batch of the soup and cook an entire chicken in it

• 1 ancho chile

• 1 pasilla chile

• 1 guajillo chile

• 5 bay leaves

• 1 qt. chicken stock (preferably homemade, but nothing wrong with boxed)

• 1/2 stick of butter

• Spices: salt, cumin, coriander, chile powder

• To Serve: tortilla chips, crumbled cotija, cilantro, lime

Put It All Together

1. Season chicken with a pinch of salt and a pinch of chile powder on each side

2. Add avocado oil to a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat

3. Sear chicken until browned on each side, remove from pot (do not wipe the pot - the drippings and leftover oil are flavor)

4. Add chopped onion, poblano, and serrano to pot, season with a very healthy pinch of salt, a heaping teaspoon each of cumin, coriander, and chile powder, sautée until soft and aromatic

   1. You may choose to add more of the spices later when you combine everything with the stock (I usually do, but it’s up to personal preference)

5. Add chipotles in adobo and tomatoes, sautée about two minutes

6. Add chicken stock, season with a healthy pinch of salt

   1. Don’t be shy about salt! I prefer to use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt, which is the least salty salt on the market (i.e., the most forgiving) because of the size of the salt crystals. If you get the salt right, it won’t make the dish taste salty, it will make the ingredients taste more like themselves

7. Return chicken to pot

8. Submerge the dried chiles and bay leaves in the stock

9. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer for about 30 minutes

10. Chicken should be cooked through at this point, remove from pot and shred using two forks, set aside

11. Remove dried chiles and bay leaves from pot, discard

12. Transfer soup to a blender, drop in butter, and blend until super silky smooth

    1. Traditionally, corn tortillas are used to thicken tortilla soup (hence the name!), but I prefer to use the French trick of mounting the soup with butter to achieve a superior texture

13. Return soup and shredded chicken to pot over a low flame until warmed through

14. Serve in bowls topped with tortilla chips, crumbled cotija, torn cilantro, and a lime squeeze

    1. These are my favorite toppings, but have fun with it — try avocado, a dollop of sour cream, sliced jalapeños, or pickled red onions

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