New Year's Day Tortilla Soup Recipe
Chicken Tortilla Soup
A smoky, comforting bowl of shredded chicken, black beans, and corn in a rich tomato-chile broth, topped with crispy tortilla strips, avocado, and lime. This is the soup we'll be simmering all day during our New Year's Day Sew-In.
Ingredients
- 2 tspolive oil
- 1onion, roughly chopped
- 3cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1jalapeño, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
- 1/4 tspdried oregano
- 1/4 tspground cumin
- 1/2 tspground chipotle pepper
- 1 (14 oz) canfire-roasted tomatoes with green chiles
- 3 cupschicken stock
- 3/4 cupblack beans
- 3/4 cupfrozen corn
- 1 cupshredded cooked chicken (rotisserie works great)
- kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
- Shredded cheese (colby jack, monterey jack, or pepper jack)
- Lime wedges
- Cubed avocado
- Fresh cilantro
- Sliced green onion
- Crispy tortilla strips
- Sliced jalapeño, for extra heat
- Sour cream
- Diced fresh tomato
- Pico de gallo
- Thinly sliced radish
- A few dashes of hot sauce
- Crushed tortilla chips, for extra crunch
Instructions
- Start the base. Warm a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion, garlic, and jalapeño and cook until the onion turns soft and see-through. Stir in the salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, and ground chipotle, and let the spices cook for a minute or two until fragrant.
- Simmer the broth. Pour in the fire-roasted tomatoes and chicken stock. Bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer gently, uncovered, for about 30 minutes.
- Blend it smooth. Use an immersion blender right in the pot to puree the soup until smooth. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper as needed, then stir in the black beans, corn, and shredded chicken. Let everything warm through.
- Crisp the tortilla strips (optional). In a small skillet, heat a little oil over medium-high heat. Fry the tortilla strips in a single layer for 30-45 seconds per side until crisp, then drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
- Serve it up. Ladle the soup into bowls and set out the toppings so everyone can build their own bowl.
Substitutions & Variations
Swap the shredded chicken for shredded smoked turkey. The smokiness plays really well with the chipotle in the broth, and it's a great way to use up leftover holiday turkey.
Leave out the chicken and swap the chicken stock for vegetable stock. The blended tomato-chile base carries plenty of flavor on its own.
Pinto beans work in place of black beans if that's what you have on hand. Either way, they soften nicely into the broth.
Leave the ground chipotle out entirely for a mild, kid-friendly version, or add a second jalapeño if you like a soup with more kick.
Fresh corn cut off the cob works beautifully in the summer months in place of frozen corn. Add it during the last few minutes of simmering.
Carefully transfer a portion of the soup to a stand blender, blend until smooth, then stir it back into the pot. Just let it cool slightly first.
Tips for the Best Bowl
- Give the spices a minute in the hot oil before adding any liquid. It brings out flavor you'd otherwise miss.
- Fire-roasted tomatoes make a real difference here. Regular canned tomatoes leave the broth tasting flatter.
- Stir the chicken in at the very end so it just warms through instead of turning dry.
- Let each person add their own lime juice at the table rather than squeezing it into the pot, since the broth gets more acidic as it sits.
- Cube the avocado right before serving so it stays bright and creamy instead of going soft.
- If you're making a big batch to freeze, hold off on the beans and corn until you reheat. They freeze a little grainy otherwise.
- Keep any fried tortilla strips in a separate container from leftovers. Stored together, they'll go soft within the hour.
This soup keeps well in the fridge for 3-4 days, or in the freezer for several months (hold off on adding the beans, corn, and toppings until you reheat). Recipe inspired by and adapted for our New Year's Day Sew-In.