Friday, January 17, 2014

spicy tortilla soup

You guyyyyyys.
We cannot stop eating tortilla soup.
Like, I make it once a week and if it's not on the menu, Joe requests it.
Every week for at least a month now.

I suppose things could be worse.
If the biggest problem I have is an addiction to tortilla soup, life is going pretty well.

Back in March, I shared a crockpot tortilla soup with you.
Truth be told, we lived off that recipe for a good while.
But sometimes a girl just doesn't have time to prep all the ingredients she needs for a crockpot meal.
I mean, yeah, the crockpot is still one of my favorite appliances and makes undoubtedly some of the best meals that come out of my kitchen.
But what's a girl to do when her boyfriend/now fiance is begging for tortilla soup an hour before dinner?

Easy.
Make a one-pot tortilla soup that can be ready in 30-45 minutes instead of 6-8 hours.

This soup gives the crockpot version a run for it's money, I will tell you that.
It's warming, makes a delicious broth {which I'm obsessed with lately, if you didn't notice}, and is a tad bit spicy.
Courtesy of the jalapeno and cayenne, of course.
We do it big at our place.

If you're not into the spice though, feel free to leave one {or both} of those ingredients out.
Soup is all about making what comforts you the most.
For us, the more spice the better.

recipe adapted via
Things you'll need:

2 tbsp olive oil
1 red pepper, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1/2 onion, diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1 tbsp cumin
dash of cayenne pepper
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of pepper
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken cutlets
32 oz. low sodium chicken broth {or 5 1/2 cups of water!}
3/4 can of red enchilada sauce
1 can chopped green chiles
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Prep your veggies.
Wash, dice, seed, mince...you know, the works.

In a pot on medium heat, heat olive oil.
Saute peppers and onion until slightly tender, about five minutes.
Add garlic and jalapeno, and saute for another minute.

Add cumin, cayenne, salt, and pepper, and give it a quick stir.

Now add the chicken.
While I was chopping the veggies, I boiled two pieces of chicken for 15 minutes and then shredded it in my Kitchenaid.
However, if you don't have time for this, you can also just cut your chicken into cubes, toss it in the pan now, and cook it for about 8 minutes, until it's browned on all sides.
I've tried both ways, and both are equally delicious!
{Side note - I think it would also be amazing to stop here and put this mixture on top of some nachos with some beans and cheese...just saying.}

Pour in broth/water, enchilada sauce, and green chiles.
Now is also a great time to add the cilantro, but I forgot to do that so I added mine at the end.
Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer on low for 20-30 minutes, however long floats your boat.

Twenty minutes later, all the flavors will be married and your apartment will smell incredible.
Assuming you like the smell of Mexican soup, which we do.

Then, if you're like me, you can stir in the cilantro you should've added earlier.

Serve up and garnish with shredded cheese, a dollop of low fat sour cream, sliced avocado, a squeeze of lime...the sky's the limit!
But whatever you do, do NOT forget to crush some tortilla chips on top.
That part is mandatory.
Sorry.

So there you have it!
A quick and easy tortilla soup that is perfect for a weeknight when it's too late for the crockpot to feed you dinner.

This soup is seriously delicious, and I would know because soup is literally all I'm making these days.
Trust me.
I wouldn't steer you wrong when it comes to anything soup/Mexican/cumin related.

What are you up to this weekend?

Joe and I have no plans {what?!} except an appointment at our wedding venue tomorrow to finalize plans and put down our initial deposit.
So exciting!
Except I've been having a mini-meltdown about the date lately.
I'm ready to get this part marked off the list so I can stop thinking about dates nonstop.

I also plan on finally finishing up my Breaking Bad marathon.
It was just as good the second time through as it was the first, no question.

Have a great weekend!

1 comment:

  1. We have been watching at least two eps of Breaking Bad a night.. SO good! I can't wait to try this soup!! YUMMY

    ReplyDelete