Chicken Tortilla Soup
I love soup, especially soups with lots of veggies. I’m often disappointed by soups I encounter in restaurants because they’re either chicken noodle soup (meh), or some kind of heavy, creamy concoction that might as well be a smoothie.
Chicken tortilla soup is one of my favorite soups because it has tons of veggies, lots of flavor, and goes well with cheese.
I love cheese.
When making a soup I go with most standard ingredients: onion, celery, carrots, garlic, chicken broth, etc. And then I add basically any other veggie that is hanging out in the fridge!
Soup making is an hour of me sniffing and throwing things into a pot.
Here you’ll find how I made my most recent batch.
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients
1 cup chopped onion (half a large one probably? I don’t know your onion situation)
2 celery sticks, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 fresh jalapeno, chopped (more if you’re not a chicken-shit like me!)
1 Tbsp of tomato paste
3 large cloves of garlic, crushed,
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped,
1 16 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 16 oz can of pinto beans
3 cups of shredded chicken
2 Tbsp or chicken bouillon + 4 cups of water OR 4 cups of chicken broth.
1 tsp of ground cumin
2 tsp of dried oregano
2 tsp of dried cilantro
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 Tbsp of heavy cream (Optional)
Vegetable Oil
Directions
1. Chop everything ahead of time. I get anxiety when I don’t.
2. Heat 2-3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large pot and toss in the onion, carrots, celery, bell pepper, and jalapeno.
3. Season with salt and pepper and let cook on medium high until softened, 7-10 minutes, mixing throughout.
4. Mix in all the dried spices, tomato paste, and crushed garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Garlic burns easily, so be careful!
5. Add in diced tomatoes, chicken, beans, heavy cream, and water (or chicken broth.)
6. Mix well and add more salt and pepper and let bubble, 7-10 minutes.
7. Once soup is fragrant and bubbling, add in chopped cilantro.
8. Serve with desired toppings like cheese, sour cream, avocado, and tortilla chips.