Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup

It’s that time of year! The fall season is coming to an end and it is finally cooling down here in Austin, Texas. I love the cool weather as long as it doesn’t ice or snow. (Typical Texan!) I decided to cook up some soup to go along with the amazing weather we have had recently.   Plus, we need to get back to our regular eating habits. I have not been very good at my healthy lifestyle with such a busy schedule the past two weeks. Time to get back to it! No excuses!!

This recipe is very big because everything is big in Texas! It is perfect for a large family or a very hungry husband like mine. The recipe calls for a rotisserie chicken. The easiest, cheapest and less time-consuming option is to buy a cooked rotisserie chicken at your local grocery store. The best, biggest and cheapest we have found is at Costco. Sprouts Farmers Market has some good options as well. Our other grocery store is HEB. Theirs are quite good but are more expensive than the rotisserie chicken at Costco.

Here is the recipe! Give it a try and let me know what you think!

You can cook the soup in a crock-pot for 2 hours or just cook on the stove on high heat in a large pot. You can limit the Serrano peppers and use half the chipotle peppers if you don’t like as much spice in your life. We all need some spice in our lives!

Ingredients

1 whole rotisserie chicken shredded

2 cartons or 8 cups of chicken stock (I use Kirkland Organic Chicken Stock)

2 cups of chopped cilantro

1 can of chipotle peppers (3.5 oz)

1 can diced green chilies (4 oz)

1 can black beans

1 chopped large tomato or 1 can of diced tomatoes

¼ c chopped white onion

2 finely chopped medium-sized Serrano peppers

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. ground pepper

2 tbsp. fresh lime juice

2 finely chopped garlic cloves

½ tsp. chili powder

1 tbsp. olive oil

Toppings

Avocado

Mexican blend cheese

crushed Tortilla chips (if that is all you have lying around at home) or tortilla strips

Cilantro

Lime juice

Directions

• Blend or chop the chipotle peppers if they are not diced. I used a bullet blender.
• Heat a small skillet on medium heat. Add olive oil, onion, Serrano peppers, garlic, green chilies, and chipotle peppers. Sauté until onion and peppers brown.
• In the large pot over the stove (or the crock-pot) add the chicken stock, shredded chicken, sautéed onion and pepper mix, tomatoes, lime juice, cilantro, cumin, ground pepper and black beans. Heat on medium-high until the soup begins to boil. Set the temp to low-medium and place a lid on the pot.  Allow the soup to soak in all the flavors for about 10-15 minutes.  If you use a crock-pot, it should be set on high for about 2 hours.
• Serve in a bowl and top with avocado, Mexican blend cheese, tortilla strips (or crushed tortilla chips), cilantro and a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

Cheers!

~Nancy Rae 🙂