Tortilla Soup
May. 7th, 2010 06:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
blacksquirrelI have an intense adoration for tortilla soup. It's warm and comforting yet still spicy and exciting. It's smooth yet crunchy. When done right it's earthy, rich, and incredibly satisfying. This last trip to Mexico - which I will post pics for soon - I had the best tortilla soup I'd ever eaten and completely despaired of ever eating its like again.
Until today.
I took inspiration from Rick Bayliss and that transcendent bowl I ate in a tiny fishing/surfing village right on the beach.
Tortilla Soup
Soup:
olive oil
onion, finely diced
carrot, finely diced
garlic, minced
hot pepper, minced (I used jalapeno and serrano)
diced tomatoes, partly drained
cumin, coriander, oregano, salt, pepper
chicken or vegetable stock (about twice as much stock as tomatoes)
Toppings:
chicken, cubed or shredded (tofu might work too?)
avocado, cubed
green onion and cilantro
cheese (queso fresco, cheddar, etc. - goat cheese might be good)
tortilla chips (I used sweet potato tortilla chips, but any kind would do)
crema/sour cream
flash fried strips of dried ancho or pasilla peppers (I haven't tried making this, but I've enjoyed it elsewhere)
fresh (key) lime juice
So, apparently the trick is to reduce the tomatoes into a paste. Huh.
Heat oil in the bottom of a heavy sauce pan or dutch oven. Add onion and carrot - saute until well browned and soft. Add garlic and hot peppers - saute until fragrant. Add tomatoes and spices - reduce on a high simmer until quite thick, the consistency of tomato paste (Rick says to puree at this point, but I just mushed the tomato pieces against the side of the pan and it worked more than fine). Add stock and simmer for a few minutes.
The toppings are half the flavor and 3/4 of the fun :) Go nuts!
Until today.
I took inspiration from Rick Bayliss and that transcendent bowl I ate in a tiny fishing/surfing village right on the beach.
Tortilla Soup
Soup:
olive oil
onion, finely diced
carrot, finely diced
garlic, minced
hot pepper, minced (I used jalapeno and serrano)
diced tomatoes, partly drained
cumin, coriander, oregano, salt, pepper
chicken or vegetable stock (about twice as much stock as tomatoes)
Toppings:
chicken, cubed or shredded (tofu might work too?)
avocado, cubed
green onion and cilantro
cheese (queso fresco, cheddar, etc. - goat cheese might be good)
tortilla chips (I used sweet potato tortilla chips, but any kind would do)
crema/sour cream
flash fried strips of dried ancho or pasilla peppers (I haven't tried making this, but I've enjoyed it elsewhere)
fresh (key) lime juice
So, apparently the trick is to reduce the tomatoes into a paste. Huh.
Heat oil in the bottom of a heavy sauce pan or dutch oven. Add onion and carrot - saute until well browned and soft. Add garlic and hot peppers - saute until fragrant. Add tomatoes and spices - reduce on a high simmer until quite thick, the consistency of tomato paste (Rick says to puree at this point, but I just mushed the tomato pieces against the side of the pan and it worked more than fine). Add stock and simmer for a few minutes.
The toppings are half the flavor and 3/4 of the fun :) Go nuts!
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Date: 2010-05-10 04:31 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2010-05-10 06:57 pm (UTC)