I have a meal plan that gets you tortilla soup dinner enough for a big hungry family. It’s great, won’t break the bank, and can be done reasonably quick with minimal dishes.
You just simmer 2 chickens in chicken stock with a couple bay leafs, whole head of garlic and some thyme.
Once you get the chicken cooked through (about an hour) you saute some stuff until soft, season, deglaze and you’re basically done.
I like to garnish with some fresh avocado, pico de gallo, queso quesadilla, chips, and fresh cilantro.
Make up some guacamole and warm some beans and you got a satisfying meal.
2 large onions give you enough for the soup, guacamole and pico de gallo. Plus the tostada shells come in a 30 pack so there should be enough for your crunched up chips to garnish the soup, and the tostadas.
I’m not big on recipes but here goes:
- Tortilla Soup
2 whole chickens
3q chic broth
2 sprigs thyme
1 whole head garlic
2 bay leaf
4T canola (or more as needed)
6 corn tortillas, chopped
2.5c onion, diced
4 clove garlic
2c tomato puree
1T cumin powder
2T chili powder
1/2c chopped cilantro
salt
pepper
Clean the chickens, put them in a deep pot, and cover with the stock. Slice the the head of garlic by cutting the whole head just enough to take the tops off most of the cloves. Add it, the fresh thyme and the bay leaves.
Simmer about an hour, turning the chicken once until cooked though and tender. Remove to cool in a bowl.
Heat another deep pot and add the oil. Saute the onions until soft and starting to get golden. Add the chopped tortillas and cook until they’re softening. Add the garlic and cook until everything starts to brown.
Add the tomato and cook, stirring, to get all bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the cumin, chili powder, and salt & pepper to taste.
Add enough of the broth to get the mixture loose a little bit. Puree the mixture in batches in a blander.
Whisk in the broth and keep adding salt until it tastes all right. I used a bunch of my hatch chili salt last time and it was great.
To serve, put some fresh avocado in a big bowl, with some pico de gallo and the queso quesadilla. Ladle in the soup, crush on some chips and sprinkle with fresh cilantro.
Guacamole
Fresh ripe avocado
Onion, chopped
Jalapeno, minced
Cilantro, chopped
Salt & Pepper
Lime Juice, fresh
Smash the avocado and stir in the onion, jalapeno (with some seeds), cilantro, s&p, and then finish with some fresh lime juice.
Pico De Gallo
Tomatoes, de-seeded and diced
Onions, chopped
Cilantro, chopped
Garlic, minced
Jalapeno, minced
Salt & Pepper
Stir everything together and serve
To round out the meal, shred some iceberg lettuce, warm some refried beans, and grate some cheddar.
A big bowl of soup, a guacamole, lettuce and cheese tostada, and a bean, lettuce and cheese tostada; you got yourself a homemade meal you can be proud of.
