I have been making this soup for years and have shared my recipe with so many people, I was shocked that I hadn’t yet posted in on here. It is one of my favorite soups, it is so simple to make and it’s loaded with so many of my favorite flavors. You could probably easily make it with vegetable broth and just double up on the vegetables and it would still be delicious. I always find this is a great way to use one of the whole chickens we get from the farm since it really makes the soup the best and the more chicken in the soup, the better it is, in my opinion.

Also, if you don’t feel like making the broth from scratch, you can use a good quality organic low sodium chicken broth or stock and pick up a quality simply spiced rotisserie chicken from the market. Just remove any fat and skin from the chicken, take the meat off the bones and shred or dice it, adding it to the soup near the end. It’s that simple.

You could certainly make your own corn tortillas from scratch for the tortilla strips, which I do most times and it is super simple, or you could just buy a package of good quality corn tortillas from the grocery store or a local Mexican market.

The fun thing about this soup, as with many, is the measurements of your ingredients can be really loose and to taste to your preferences. I almost NEVER measure when making a soup like this, I just taste it along the way and add more of things as I see fit, so definitely keep that in mind when making this for yourself. Use my measurements as a guide, but please taste along the way. If you don’t like super spicy, you can leave out the jalapeños, but I would really suggest keeping in the chipotles when making the stock and definitely in the soup, that smokey flavor really makes this soup what it is, in my opinion. If you can’t find dried chipotles, you can use the canned ones in adobo sauce and if you are worried about the spiciness, just skip adding a chipotle pepper all together and simply add a tablespoon of the adobo sauce.

You can also have fun with the toppings on this soup, besides the necessary tortilla strips, I usually like a good squeeze of lime juice, a little cubed avocado, some fresh cilantro and green onions. It’s also good with a little sprinkle of shredded sharp cheddar and if you like sour cream, it is good with a little dollop of that, too.

As usual, when I make this for the two of us, I make the full amount and we just live off of it for a week, it’s great for lunches or on those nights when I am too busy to cook. This time of year, I almost always have some type of soup or stew in the fridge that I made a couple of days prior, it is a must for me in the cooler weather.

Tortilla Soup
Serves 8-10

Chicken Stock
(this soup tastes the best with homemade stock, but if you are in a rush, you can still make it delicious by using boxed organic low sodium chicken broth and adding in the meat from an already cooked rotisserie chicken you bought from the store)

2-3 quarts water
1 whole organic chicken, about 4lbs (rinsed and giblets removed for the dog)
1 whole red onion, peeled and quartered
2 dried chipotles, halved
2 garlic cloves
1 bell pepper, seeded and quartered

In a large stockpot, (use the strainer that fits in your stock pot if you have one) combine all of the ingredients making sure to use enough water to cover your chicken and bring to a gentle boil over a high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 2 1/2 hours, adding more water if necessary to keep the chicken and vegetables covered. Skim the surface occasionally to remove any foam or impurities that forms on the surface. The longer you cook the stock, the stronger the flavor will be, but 2 1/2 hours was more than adequate and the stock had a fantastic flavor to it.

Remove the meat and bones and reserve any meat on the bones that can be separated and added back to the soup. If you didn’t use the strainer in the pot when making the stock, strain the stock to remove all the vegetables and other bits and add the broth back to the pot. Throw out the bones and vegetables. Use the stock immediately or let the stock cool completely, and refrigerate overnight. Skim any fat that forms on the surface. Keep refrigerated in airtight containers until ready to use, up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 2 months. Since I was using the stock immediately, I skimmed any visible fat off the top, made sure that it was strained of everything, and kept it on a low heat while I prepped everything for the soup. You will probably end up with about 48-64 ounces of stock when making it homemade (give or take). Use all of it for the tortilla soup.

Tortilla Soup

6 to 8 cups of low sodium organic chicken broth or stock (I make my stock from scratch with one of our whole chickens from the farm, see above)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large white onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 dry chipotles, roughly chopped
2 to 3 bell peppers (you can use any combo you like, red, yellow, green, whatever), diced
1 (or 2) jalapeños, minced (optional, depending on how much spice you like, you’ll get a little from the chipotle)
2 teaspoons sea salt plus more to taste
2 teaspoons ground chili powder or to taste (you can add more as it cooks)
1 teaspoon ground cumin or to taste (you can add more as it cooks)
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander or to taste (you can add more as it cooks)
1 large can of organic diced tomatoes
The meat from the chicken you made your stock from or the meat from 1 small pre-cooked rotisserie chicken or 2 chicken breasts, already cooked – skin and fat removed, shredded or diced
1 or 2 limes

For Topping:
8 or more corn tortillas, cut into thin strips
lime wedges
fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
fresh green onions, thinly sliced
avocado
sour cream
shredded cheddar

Saute onion, garlic and all your peppers with the olive oil. Cook till slightly soft, but I like to leave a little bit of the crunch there. Add chili powder, cumin and salt, stir. Add broth and canned tomatoes and bring to boil. If you made your stock from scratch and its already in a large pot, just cook up the vegetables in a pan and add to the broth. Bring to a simmer and continue to add seasonings to taste, depending on how spicy you like it. Cook for about 20-30 mins or so to really allow all of the flavors to come together.

Meanwhile, slice 8 or more corn tortillas into thin strips, put on a cookie sheet, drizzle with 1 teaspoon or so of olive oil and lightly salt. Bake at 375 degrees until desired crispiness. (about 10-15 mins) Put aside.

Dice and shred the chicken and add to the soup, simmer until chicken is heated through. Add a few bunches of cilantro and the juice of one to two limes stir and serve.

Serve soup topped with tortilla strips, diced avocado, fresh cilantro, green onions and a few squeezes of lime. You can also top with shredded cheddar, hot sauce, sour cream or whatever else you might like.