Chicken Tortilla Soup

This soup is so amazingly fresh and tasty, it wakes up your taste buds.  What is really great is this takes so little time to make you can easily make this after work.  The key is to plan ahead so you have the fresh ingredients on hand. 

I used the chicken stock I made and canned earlier this fall.  Because I made the stock with whole chickens I had stripped the cooked meat off and chopped or shredded it and froze it in 2 cup amounts.  I have nearly used all the cooked chicken I froze, it is so handy to have this ingredient on hand, I plan to slow cook a couple more chickens soon and freeze both the stock and chicken for future use.   

Although having homemade chicken stock and chicken is a tasty addition to the soup it is completely possible to make this soup using purchased chicken broth and a purchased rotisserie chicken.  I used the corn that I cut off the cob and froze back in August or September.  This corn has a very fresh taste, if I didn't have some frozen I would use fresh corn if available.  

It is the fresh ingredients you top the soup with that make this so good.  We find we crave the fresh tastes of cilantro, avacado and lime.  When these are paired with jalapenos and tomatoes this is chicken soup comfort food with a kick.  We love the heat of the jalapenos so I leave the seeds in, if you want a milder favor be sure to discard the seeds.  My daughter first made this a couple years ago, so she gets credit for this one.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

4 servings

2 cups chopped or shredded chicken

2 quarts chicken stock

1 small red onion, finely chopped

2 jalapenos, thinly sliced (seeded if you want less heat)

2 large tomatoes, diced

1 cup corn kernels, fresh if available

Tortilla chips

1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

1 ripe avocado, roughly chopped

1 lime, cut into wedges

Place the first six ingredients in a pot and simmer for 20 minutes. 

To serve:  Place a small handful of tortilla chips in a soup bowl, add soup and garnish with cilantro and avocado, squeeze lime over the top and enjoy.

Linked to Twister Tuesday.