Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup is the Tex-Mex version of the Mexican soup called Sopa Azteca. It is a delicious soup that can be made with endless variations. This...in my opinion... is truly Chicken Soup for the soul... and not that watered down canned variety with flavorless chicken bits and soggy noodles. I make mine with chicken... but it is totally cool to make a veggie variety... Just substitute a vegetable or a tomato broth for the chicken broth and if you want a little more substance add in some pinto beans, chickpeas of hominy in place of the diced chicken.


I start out by cooking my chicken pieces in water to create the stock. I cook the chicken in a mixture of broth and water rather than taking the time to make true homemade broth... but I'm usually short on time and this is one of my few shortcuts. While that is cooking I saute peppers, tomatoes, tomatillas, onion, and garlic.

When the chicken is cooked I remove it from the broth and cut it into small bites. Then you just return it to the pot with the sauteed vegetables and a handful of chopped, fresh oregano. Cook for 30 minutes or so and wah-la... Now all you need are some add ins to garnish the soup at the table. In my opinion the add ins are what make the soup. Bowls of interesting garnishes ont he table that the family can add as they like make this dish a favorite at my house.


I like to cut up corn tortillas and fry them... but you can use store bought corn chips if you'd like. You'll also want to grate some cheese. Other add ins are cilantro, sour cream, chopped radishes or cabbage, and diced avocado.

Dig in!



9 comments:

  1. Oh, gosh. I am from Phoenix, and as such, am obviously a Mexican food addict. I gotta tell you, tortilla soup is one of those staples that everybody needs to know how to make. Crunchy chips in my soup? Why, don't mind if I do!

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  2. OH MY does that look delicious...and I'm fasting today...so not fair!!

    I'm with Gina I am a Mexican food addict and this will be on my menu...so yummy looking...just not today - ha!!

    Visiting from The Hump Day Blog Hop. Feel free to come visit me...I'd love another entry for my free advertising drawing (about to end) and my very first survey. http://digitalscrapbooklessons.com/articles

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  3. Hello! Stopping by from the Hump Day Blog Hop. I LOVE Soup! I eat it every day, but unfortunately I eat the canned variety...organic..but still canned. I would love to learn how to make my own. I know it's not hard..I've just never done it. My mom never cooked anything healthy so now that I'm married and on my own I have a goal to learn how to cook and eat healthy for my husband and I. I know the benefits of eating raw and organic foods and am determined to learn how to cook using raw and organic foods. This soup looks delicious! I am going to learn how to make my own soup :-)

    Carrie A Groff
    Living a Healthy Beach Life

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  4. Oh, gorgeous. That's one of my favorite soups of all time. I like cubes of avocado and jack cheese in mine.

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  5. Looks yummy! Thanks for following, now I'm following you back!

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  6. Hi Jenn,

    I was reading about a similar recipe on one of the blogs yesterday. I haven't tried this before. It looks very easy to prepare and sounds delish.

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  7. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm that looks so jummy.
    and so easy- I will have this in my head for later this week- and hey: I do the same shortcut with the broth;-)

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  8. Delicious! delicious!! im happy to see Mexican recipe again on ur blog.. ;]

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  9. I'm just loving your blog. Jennifer you are saving me sooo much time. Our shipment has not arrived (in it are my cookbooks) so instead of mindlessly brainstorming dinner ideas or surfing the Internet for hours, I'm checking your blog out! It's great, the kids say. "What's for dinner?" and I say, "Let me see what the Kunz's are having..." Thank you...cream corn tonight with chicken.....I know that's from a later post but the store is out of tortilla chips.

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