Mexican Chicken Soup

 

It's been far too long since I last posted.  It started with a lazy summer.  Then I moved into a new apartment.  Then Thanksgiving happened.  So I have a stack of recipes that I've been looking forward to sharing.  This one has definitely become a staple in my house.  I make it about once every two weeks and it lasts me at least 6 meals (it makes a TON!).  I even used the baked chicken technique I learned in this recipe and came up with my own Chicken Linguine Pesto recipe (made with zucchini and squash noodles!)  One of my earliest memories is of my Mexican maternal grandmother serving up the most amazingly flavorful chicken soup.  While I will never be able to replicate that childhood favorite (my grandmother never committed any of her recipes to paper), the flavors in this soup always trigger that same nostalgia.  In place of the traditional tortilla strips, I garnish this dish with chopped avocado (a vast improvement, in my opinion - I love avocado).  The original recipe is from Paleo Comfort Foods.

 
Special Equipment needed:
13x9 baking dish
large dutch oven or stock pot
blender (not 100% necessary, but recommended)

Ingredients:
3 lbs free-range boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tbsp + 2 tbsp coconut oil (or your favorite cooking fat/oil)
3 tsp fajita or taco seasoning*
1 large onion; diced
6 cloves garlic; minced
2 jalapeno peppers; de-seeded and diced
2 poblano peppers; de-seeded and diced
2 quarts (8 cups) chicken stock**
28 oz. can fire-roasted chopped or crushed tomatoes (or regular chopped tomatoes)
juice of 2 limes
1 cup cilantro; chopped
avocado and fresh cilantro for serving

*homemade taco seasoning: 1 tbsp chili powder, 1 tbsp cumin, ¼ tsp onion powder, ¼ tsp garlic powder, ½ tsp dried oregano, ½ tsp paprika, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper (enough seasoning for 1 lb. ground beef)

**4 cups free-range chicken broth plus 4 cups water is how I do it

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375°.  Place chicken breasts in 13x9 baking dish and cover with 1 tbsp of oil.  Sprinkle taco seasoning over chicken and toss to coat.  Bake for 30-45 minutes until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°.  Prepare your other ingredients while the chicken is baking.
2. When chicken is done baking, remove from the oven and shred with two forks*.  This process is a bit labor intensive so, if you’d prefer, you can chop the chicken into small pieces.
3. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp of oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat.  Add onions and cook until translucent (about 5 minutes).
4. Add garlic and peppers and saute for a minute or so, until fragrant.  Add chicken stock and fire-roasted tomatoes and bring up to a medium boil.
5. Optional step: With a slotted spoon, remove some of the vegetable solids to a blender and puree.  Add pureed veggies back into pot.
6. Add chicken, cilantro, and lime juice.  I usually turn off the heat at this point but you may want to add salt, pepper or hot sauce depending on your personal taste.
7. Serve with fresh cilantro and chopped avocado.

*Super awesome side-note!  I found the most ingenious way of shredding chicken recently and I will never go back to the 'two forks' method.  All you need is a large food processor with a slicing disk attachment.  Place a whole cooked chicken breast in the chute and pulse until the chicken is shredded.  You don't need to use the plunger since gravity does all the work for you.  Plus, if you do use the plunger, you're more likely to end up with chicken slices instead of shreds.

I LOVE this recipe.  And I was so surprised how much the chopped avocado added to the final dish as a meal.  Another practically foolproof recipe.  I even forgot to add the jalapenos one time and the dish still turned out delicious.  Happy nomming!