33. Tortilla Soup

I fell behind on posting, so I'll be adding some posts back to back. This recipe is from 365 Favorite Brand Name Chicken Recipes. I’ve made a few very good recipes from this book but this is the first soup recipe.

Tortilla Soup

3 corn tortillas (6 to 7 inch)
Vegetable oil
½ cup chopped onion
1 can (14 ½ oz) tomatoes, undrained
2 cans (13 ¾ oz) ready to serve chicken broth
1 cup shredded cooked chicken
2 teaspoons lime juice
Monterey Jack cheese, cut into cubes
Chopped pitted ripe olives
Cilantro leaves

Cut tortillas in half, then cut crosswise into ½ inch strips. Pour oil to depth of ½ inch in small skillet. Heat over medium-high heat until oil reaches 360 degrees on deep-frying thermometer. Add tortilla pieces, a few at a time; deep fry 1 minute or until crisp and lightly browned. Remove with slotted spoon; drain on paper towels.

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a 3 quart saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until onion is soft. Coarsely chop tomatoes; add to saucepan with juice. Add chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Cover; reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Add chicken and lime juice. Simmer 5 minutes. Serve soup in individual bowls. Top with cheese, olives, tortilla strips and cilantro. Makes 4 servings.

Changes and Shortcuts: Strangely, I didn’t have any cooked chicken on hand so I stopped at the store and bought a package of roasted chicken which I cut up. The recipe calls for a can of tomatoes which you are supposed to coarsely chop. Why not buy diced tomatoes in the first place? I used diced fire roasted tomatoes. We don’t really like cilantro so I didn’t buy any fresh cilantro and I forgot to put dried in at the end.

Results: The thing that takes the longest is frying the tortilla strips. I think these could really be made ahead or they can be made while the soup is simmering. Actually a quick soup to make and is very good.

Keeper? YES!