All the flavour of your favourite taco in a soup!
Chicken soup for the soul Mexican style - a glorious blend of smokey BBQ and garden fresh flavours!
How to make SOPA TORTILLA recipe inside!
If you have been reading my Med Food & Recipes blogs you may know that I love Mexican food!
I have a special relationship with Mexico. I spent a summer there to learn Spanish during my University studies. I stayed with a Mexican family on the island of Cozumel.
I had 3 Mexican home cooking epiphanies during that summer that I take with me into my Med kitchen today:
#1 Home-made fruit juice - instead of buying from the supermarket, with beautiful sweet fruits abundant, my Mexican home stay mom simply added sliced fresh fruits from the garden to water - et voila! Beautiful fruit juice! Orange, Lemon, Mango, Guava...
#2 Hand-made Tortilla roasted directly on the stove top element - I use the BBQ
#3 Sopa Tortilla! It’s chicken soup for the soul Mexican style. All of the flavours of your favourite chicken taco in a warm, nourishing, and flavourful soup - with garden fresh toppings !
Sopa Tortilla tastes like you are on a beach around a bonfire at sunset.
I can’t think of a better seasonal transition meal when you still want the cozy of winter, but are dreaming of the taste of summer sun… welcome spring!
Get inspired for more Mexican recipes with the Searching for Mexico TV series - with Eva Longoria . It is a beautiful exploration and celebration of Mexican cuisine and culture. Watch on Apple TV or Amazon Prime.
In this blog I share my adaptation of this iconic Mexican recipe, full of fresh Med Garden ingredients with tips to make it Mediterranean and Metabolic diet friendly - and gourmet or fast & easy options.
Recipe ingredients, method and photos inside!
Sopa Tortilla prep & BBQ-ing music selection:
- Mana - for cooking
- Latin acoustic guitar playlist - for dining
How to Make: SOPA TORTILLA Recipe
Welcome spring!
Sopa Tortilla Recipe adapted from 'The Mexican Home Kitchen' by Mely Martinez, found at Epicurious.com. Buy the full book on Amazon.
The key to my adaptation of this recipe is the smokey bonfire flavour of the BBQ chicken and BBQ corn on the cob. Plus all of the garden fresh veg toppings which you can also arrange on the table in small serving bowls for your guests to add their own!
Gourmet and Fast & Easy prep options
Mediterranean & metabolic diet options
Ingredients I 4 servings
2 medium tomatoes
2 cloves garlic
⅓ medium white onion
(Fast & Easy option: can of diced tomato, garlic powder and dried onion flakes instead of the above 3 ingredients)
2 large chicken breasts (Mediterranean diet option: 2 meaty white fish fillets)
2-3 cobs of corn
6 cups chicken broth (low salt), plus more if needed
5 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
6 corn tortillas (Metabolic diet option: an extra 2 cobs corn - instead of the tortilla - BBQ’d kernels cut off the cob)
1 sprig epazote (about 4 leaves) - Epazote is a Central American herb with a pungent taste and notes of oregano, anise, citrus, and mint. (Fast & Easy option: use cilantro instead)
Smoked paprika
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 or 2 pasilla peppers, sliced into rings - (Fast & Easy option: use chilli pepper flakes instead)
Med Garden Ingredients I Garnishing and to serve
2 ripe avocado, diced
1 cup feta cheese, cut into small cubes
2 handfuls of cherry or plum tomatoes cut in half or quarters
1 chopped red onion, to taste - or spring onion
Handfull of reserved BBQ corn kernels
Chopped fresh cilantro, to taste
4 limes, cut into wedges
1 roasted poblano pepper, cut into strips (optional) - or chilli pepper flakes
Mexican crema (optional) - or sour cream - I usually skip the cream for a more fresh and less heavy flavour
TIP: I like to add strips of spinach (similar size to strips of Tortilla) as an extra garnish to get some extra vitamins in there
Method
Step 1: BBQ
Ingredients to BBQ!
Chicken breasts
Corn on the cob
Tortilla
Important to do this step 1st to allow BBQ chicken and corn to cool before shredding the chicken and cutting the corn kernels off the cob.
While the BBQ is heating up:
Marinate the chicken - I like to use the juice of fresh orange, honey, chilli pepper flakes, olive oil, salt and pepper. Marinate for 10-15 minutes.
Husk the corn on the cob.
Once BBQ is hot - 200°C:
BBQ chicken for 5 minutes on each side - check to make sure there is no pinky flesh left uncooked by slicing the fillets in half.
Add naked corn on the cob, husked, to the BBQ at the same time as the chicken. BBQ until cobs start to become slightly blackened on every side.
Add Tortilla to warm on the top shelf of BBQ for final 2-3 mins of cooking time of chicken and corn.
Step 2: Fresh Veg Garnish Prep
While you are waiting for the BBQ chicken and corn to cool, prep your veg garnish!
Dice avocado
Dice feta
Dice cherry or plum tomatoes
Finely chop red onion - or spring onion
Chop fresh cilantro
Cut lime into quarter wedges
(Optional) cut spinach into thin strips
Cover and keep cool in the e fridge until soup base is ready.
Step 3 - Soup base
Gourmet way
Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat, then roast the tomatoes, garlic, and onion, turning them so they can roast evenly.
Place the roasted vegetables in a blender. Blend until smooth, adding about 1 cup chicken broth, if needed.
Fast & Easy option - use a can of diced tomatoes seasoned to your liking with salt & pepper, garlic powder, dried onion flakes, smoked paprika; and skip the blender.
In a large saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the tomato sauce and cook for about 3 minutes.
When the sauce starts to boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. The sauce will reduce and change to a darker color.
Add the chicken broth to the sauce, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 to 12 more minutes.
While the soup broth is simmering:
Shred the chicken into bite sized pieces
Cut the corn kernels off the cob by standing the cob on its base and slicing down from the top allowing the kernels to crumble off of the cob
Cut Tortillas warmed on the bbq into bite sized strips.
Option: You can also fry the Tortilla strips in some olive oil salt & pepper at this stage - or leave slightly crispy from the BBQ
Add the shredded chicken, BBQ corn kernels and the epazote (or cilantro spring) to the broth and season with the salt and pepper. Simmer for 3 more minutes.
Step 4 - Building your Sopa Tortilla
Pull out the veg garnish you prepped while BBQ-ing from the fridge in the final 3 minutes stage of your soup base.
Ladle the soup into medium bowls and top with the tortilla strips.
Build your fresh ingredients into a mound on top of the soup in the middle of the bowl:
Diced avocado
Diced feta
Diced cherry or plum tomatoes
Finely chopped red onion, to taste - or spring onion
More BBQ corn kernels
Chopped fresh cilantro, to taste
Lime wedges on the side of the bowl
Optional:
1 roasted poblano pepper, cut into strips (optional) - pepper flakes
Mexican crema (optional) - sour cream - I usually skip the cream for a more fresh and less heavy flavour
TIP: I like to add strips of spinach (similar size to strips of Tortilla) as an extra garnish to get some extra vitamins in there
I use a random method for how I add the veg garnishes - except for the final two: I like to sprinkle reserved BBQ’d corn kernels all around and then repeat with fresh cilantro for the perfect toppers!
Or Place the garnishes in serving dishes for everyone to add to their own bowls.
I hope you enjoy this welcome spring Sopa Tortilla recipe adaptation!
Share your welcome spring recipe ideas in the comments below!
Welcome spring!
Jade
Lewon
Med
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