Wayne Boatwright wrote:

> I've only had tortilla soup in Mexican restaurants, most mediocre, a few
> excellent. I've never made it nor have a recipe.
>
> The soups I liked were very thick, spicy, and chock full of ingredients.
>
> Anyone have a recipe for something like that?

Here is a Zarela MartÃ*nez recipe, from her Web site at
<http://www.zarela.com/recipes/view_recipe.php?id=29&page=sopa_de_tortilla>

Victor

Sopa de Tortilla

There are easier recipes for tortilla soup but few are as delicious as
this traditional version from central Veracruz.

Ingredients
6 dried chiles pasilla
1 large whole chicken breast, with skin and ribs
2 small to medium-sized white onions
4 garlic cloves (leave 2 unpeeled)
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1/2 cup vegetable oil
6 commercial corn tortillas, cut into 1/2-inch strips
2 large ripe tomatoes (about 1 pound total)
1 small leek, halved lengthwise, trimmed and thoroughly cleaned of sand
6 €“ 8 fresh epazote sprigs or 3 tablespoons crumbled dried epazote, or
use cilantro
2 jalapeño chiles
2 avocados (a Mexican type like Hass)
8 ounces queso blanco or white cheddar cheese, cut into bite-sized dice,
or use 4 ounces crumbled cotija cheese for a stronger flavor
1/4 cup Mexican-style crema or crème fraîche

Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Wipe the pasilla chiles clean with a slightly damp cloth and place on a
baking sheet in the oven. Cook until hard and crisp but not burned,
about 25 to 30 minutes. Set aside.

Place the chicken breast in a medium-sized saucepan with about half of a
small onion (preferably unpeeled), 2 unpeeled garlic cloves, and the
salt. Add about 6 cups water, or enough to cover by about 2 inches.
Bring to a boil over high heat, quickly reduce the heat to maintain a
low rolling boil, and skim off any froth that rises to the top. Cook,
partly covered, for about 20 minutes, or until the meat is just tender.
Remove the chicken breast, let cool until you can handle it, and pull
the meat into fine shreds. Set aside. Strain the broth (discarding the
solids) and set aside; you should have about 5 €“ 6 cups.

In a medium-sized skillet, heat the oil to rippling over medium-high
heat. Fry the tortilla strips, a handful at a time, until golden, about
2 minutes per batch. As they are done, lift out to drain on paper
towels. Strain about 2 tablespoons of the oil into a medium-sized Dutch
oven or stockpot; discard the rest. Set aside the tortilla strips and
strained oil while you prepare the stock enrichment.

Roast the tomatoes until blackened on a hot griddle, let cool, and peel
over a bowl to catch the juices. Coarsely chop 1 garlic clove and half
of the onion; purée in a blender with the tomatoes. Finely chop the leek
along with the remaining whole onion and garlic, and cook, stirring
often, for 3 minutes. Add the tomato purée and cook, over medium heat,
for 15 minutes, or until little crater-like holes appear on the hot
surface and the fat begins to separate.

While the mixture cooks, remove the tops and seeds from the chiles and
slice into thin rings. Leave 2 epazote sprigs whole and strip the leaves
off the rest; peel and dice the avocado. When the tomato mixture has
reached the right stage, add the whole epazote sprigs and sliced chiles.
Stir in the reserved chicken stock. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to
low, and let cook, partly covered, 15 minutes longer.

Distribute the shredded chicken breast among 4 €“ 6 soup bowls. Add the
fried tortilla strips, epazote leaves, diced avocado, diced cheese, and
crema; pour about 1 cup of the hot soup over each serving. Float one
toasted pasilla chile in each bowl for garnish.

6 servings

On 2009-09-29, Victor Sack > wrote:
>
> Here is a Zarela Martínez recipe, from her Web site at
><http://www.zarela.com/recipes/view_recipe.php?id=29&page=sopa_de_tortilla>

> Sopa de Tortilla

> 1/2 cup vegetable oil

I love Zarela's recipes, but I wonder why she recommends veg oil.
She's practically a lard zealot.

nb

notbob > wrote:

> On 2009-09-29, Victor Sack > wrote:
> >
> > Here is a Zarela Martínez recipe, from her Web site at
> ><http://www.zarela.com/recipes/view_recipe.php?id=29&page=sopa_de_tortilla>
>
> > Sopa de Tortilla
>
> > 1/2 cup vegetable oil
>
> I love Zarela's recipes, but I wonder why she recommends veg oil.
> She's practically a lard zealot.

From what I can tell, she uses oil for frying tortillas and lard for
other things. Examples are her chilaquiles recipe (oil for tortillas)
and her papadzules recipe (both lard and oil are used: the former for
frying pumpkin seeds, the latter for tortillas). Both recipes are in
her _Food from my Heart_.

Victor