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Spicy Smokey Chicken Tortilla Soup

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I was having lunch at True Foods last week with my friend, Susan and we both fell in love with their thick, rich and spicy tortilla soup. She likes to cook as much as I do and we tried to figure out how they made it. 
 
Luckily for us, the waitress just happened to have the list of ingredients that she happily shared. I was surprised when she said corn tortillas were added to the broth and then blended at the end.
 
Well, it did make sense. They would act as a thickening agent. I wasn’t convinced, but thought I’d give it a try. And WoW!!! It was really good. 
 
When I made the soup a few days later I remembered most of the ingredients and experimented with a few of my own. The result was this totally “blog-worthy” spicy and smokey tortilla soup.
 
SPICY SMOKEY CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP
INGREDIENTS
  • 2 roasted chicken breasts–or easier, a store bought roasted chicken
  • 2 TBS olive oil for the chicken
  • Kosher salt for the chicken
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 small green pepper, chopped
  • 5 corn tortillas cut into 1″ pieces
  • 2 TBS. olive oil
  • 1 tsp. cumin 
  • 1 tsp. chili powder
  • 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce– I used Embasa brand (They are spicy, but use 1 for the smokey taste)
  • 4 oz. fire roasted diced green chiles
  • 15 oz. Mexican stewed tomatoes
  • 6 cups chicken broth
  • salt & pepper to taste

TOPPINGS:

  • grated Jack cheese
  • sliced avocado
  • crushed tortilla chips
  • chopped fresh cilantro
  • lime
I used Ina Garten’s recipe for the breasts, but next time I would buy a whole roasted chicken at the market–I couldn’t really tell the difference. Here’s a link to Ina’s Chicken.
 
Basically just rub chicken with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put on a baking sheet with sides and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
 

Chop the garlic, onion and green pepper. 

Cut the tortillas into 1″ squares.

Heat olive oil in large pot and add garlic, onion, green pepper, cumin and chili powder. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes.

Add the tortillas.  Stir.

Stir in the canned tomatoes, diced green chiles and chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes.

Add 6 cups chicken broth and bring to a boil. Immediately lower heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.

Use an immersion blender (or a real blender if you don’t have one) to make it smooth and creamy.

It should look like this. Simmer uncovered on low for 10 minutes.

Shred the chicken and add to the soup.

Ladle into bowls and add your favorite toppings. I like cheese, avocado and chips with just a small squeeze of lime.

Like many of my soups, this one freezes well…if you have any left over. I don’t think I will–Jake’s home and hungry.

Remember you can always read this first every Friday in the Dining Section at Stu News.

Categories: Soups & Salads

Tags: , , ,

1 reply ›

  1. Robby
    August 19, 2013 • 3:55 pm

    Saw this on Tasty Kitchen and can't wait to give it a whirl. Well, maybe I can wait until we're not going to hit 90*. Thanks for experimenting and sharing it.

    Reply ↓

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