Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

It's been a year since I posted a recipe creation/adaptation of mine, so here you are! I made this yesterday for my parents and some long-time family friends who are missionaries with Wycliffe. It turned out better than I expected! Maybe if I get REALLY bored planning my lectures this week, I'll add some of my previous attempts at mole sauce, homemade chili truffles, black bean stew, gazpacho, and whatever else I've come up with since I've moved back to Seattle!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

3-4 large chicken breasts
3 T olive oil
4-6 cloves of garlic (minced)
2 chopped onions
cumin and chili pepper to taste (I used several teaspoons of each, it just depends how flavorful you want it)
2 cups of chunky salsa (I used 1 cup of hot and 1 cup of medium salsa)
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 can or half of a frozen bag of corn kernels
1 can black beans, rinsed
1/4 c lemon juice
~80 oz of chicken broth (more if you want it to be less thick)

for garnish/side:

tortilla strips (I recommend Mission brand)
Monterrey jack and cheddar
sour cream
salsa
limes

1. In a large stockpot brown chicken breasts in oil (if you're short on time, you can cut the chicken in to smaller pieces), but don't worry about cooking them through. With the heat still high, add garlic and onion and saute until they start to brown as well.

2. Add all the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes.

3. Remove chicken breasts (or pieces) and shred them with two forks. Add shredded chicken back into the soup, turn off the heat and stir well.

4. Serve soup with cheese, sour cream, salsa and lime to garnish. Tortilla chips can be added to the soup, or you can put a handful at the bottom of the serving bowl before adding the soup on top. Either way, the corn chips will take on some of the liquid and will taste great in the soup!

Serves 8-10 for a main dish or more if it's a side. I served the soup with more chips/salsa on the table and with warmed hand made tortillas from Trader Joes. It turned out very well! Just the right amount of broth/substance ratio for my taste, and was perfectly spicy (for me who likes a little fire).

Enjoy!