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Clean recipe · smittenkitchen.com

Simple Chicken Tortilla Soup

Original recipe: smittenkitchen.com

Yield:
4 servings
Total:
0 days 0 hr 35 min 0 sec
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Ingredients

  1. 2 tablespoons olive oil
  2. 1 large white onion, finely chopped
  3. 3 garlic cloves, minced
  4. 1 jalapeño, finely chopped (see Note about other heat options)
  5. 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  6. 1 teaspoon ground chile powder (see Note about other heat options)
  7. 4 tablespoons tomato paste
  8. 3 to 4 cups chicken stock or broth
  9. 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs (see Note)
  10. 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  11. 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels (optional)
  12. Kosher salt and black pepper
  13. Juice of half a lime
  14. Cotija cheese, crumbled
  15. 1 medium avocado, sliced
  16. Sour cream or Mexican crema
  17. Second half of lime, cut into wedges
  18. Chopped fresh cilantro
  19. Corn tortillas, cut into thin ribbons, to fry (instructions below)
  20. Hot sauce

Instructions

  1. Heat a large or 4-quart soup pot over medium-high.
  2. Once hot, add olive oil.
  3. Once oil is hot add onion, garlic, and jalapeño and cook, stirring, until softened and beginning to brown at the edges, about 5 minutes.
  4. Add cumin and chile cook one minute.
  5. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until one shade darker, about 2 to 3 minutes.
  6. Add 3 cups chicken broth and stir to combine.
  7. Add chicken thighs and bring the soup to a simmer.
  8. Reduce heat to medium-low and cover, simmering for 15 minutes, until chicken is very tender and cooked through.
  9. Remove chicken with tongs and transfer to a cutting board.
  10. Add beans and corn (optional; still frozen is fine to soup), gently simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.
  11. While it simmers, use two forks to shred chicken into bite-sized pieces.
  12. Season soup well with salt and black pepper.
  13. Return shredded chicken to soup and warm through, 1 minute.
  14. If the soup is too thick for your liking at this point, add all or part of remaining 1 cup broth and bring back to a simmer.
  15. Check seasoning again and adjust to taste.
  16. Remove from heat and squeeze lime juice of half a lime over.
  17. Serve with any finishings of your choice; shown here with avocado, cilantro, cotija, tortilla strips, and hot sauce.
  18. Want to make fried corn tortilla strips?
  19. In a large nonstick frying pan, heat a generous 1/4-inch of a neutral/high heat-safe oil over medium-high until a drop of water flicked in sizzles dramatically.
  20. Add a handful of corn tortilla strips and cook, stirring a bit, until they begin to brown at the edges, 2 to 3 minutes.
  21. Scoop out with tongs or a slotted spoon, shaking off excess oil, and transfer to paper towels to drain.
  22. Season immediately with salt.
  23. Repeat with remaining strips.
  24. I promise, there will be no leftovers, but if there are, they keep in a bag at room temperature for a few days.