Texan Tortilla Soup

I’m originally from Texas, where a good, homemade tortilla soup recipe is mandatory. After many incarnations, I think I’ve found the perfect level of heat and depth of flavor by using two different types of pepper, simmering with bay leaves, and seasoning the chicken with cayenne and cumin before adding it to the soup.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Kosher salt
• Pepper
• 1 tsp cayenne
• 1 tsp plus 1 tbsp cumin, divided
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 poblano chiles
• 2 Anaheim chiles
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1/2 large onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 15 oz tomato juice
• 2 qts chicken stock/broth
• 1 1/2 c corn, fresh, frozen and thawed, or canned
• Shredded monterey jack cheese and blue corn tortilla chips, to serve
• Avocado, diced (optional)

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Season the chicken on both sides with salt, pepper, cayenne, and 1 tsp cumin.

Bake on a foil-lined baking sheet for about 30 minutes, or until it’s no longer pink in the middle. Cool on a cutting board, then shred using two forks. Set aside.

Heat the broiler on high. Arrange peppers on another foil-lined baking sheet and place 1 inch from the broiler flame. Broil until the skins start to burn and bubble, about 10-12 minutes, flipping once halfway through.

Let cool, then cut the stems off, peel, remove the seeds, and dice. Leave some of the seeds in if you want to add some extra heat to the soup.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot. Add the diced peppers, onion, and garlic and sauté until the veggies are soft. Add the diced tomato and sauté another minute.

Add the broth, tomato juice, remaining 1 tbsp cumin, bay leaves, shredded chicken, and corn to the pot. Bring everything to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

Taste at the end and season with salt and pepper. The reason you don’t want to season any soup before letting it simmer for a while first is that the flavors of the stock, bay leaves, peppers, or whatever is in there haven’t developed and blended together yet, so you don’t yet know the balance of flavors you want to strike.

Ladle into bowls and serve topped with broken tortilla chips and lots of cheese. Diced avocado is also a great addition.

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