Houston's Mexico City Style Soup

[amykmart]

Found the recipe for Houston's Tortilla soup on this web site, but the soup I really love is the Mexico City Style. I'm not a good enough cook to identify the ingredients. Can one of you experts help? I know that someone out there has cracked the code! Please share--I'll be eternally grateful...

[Susie in Texas]

I've never had it but hopefully someone has and can tell us.

[Karen From Colorado]

I am not sure of the difference between the two myself. I am in hopes that someone from the region might know.

[Sgt. Pepper]

Mexican Tortilla Soup Is this the recipe your looking for?

[CunSwim]

Sopa de tortilla ... I use Chicken stock and add tomatoes onions garlic and a litttle chile that has been pureed and sauteed in olive oil then we us all kinds of garnish Tortilla strips, avocado, cheese pork rinds, chile guajillo and cream cream.
I will submit the recipe later this afternoon.
I learned it My Mother in Law I think i will make it today!

[CunSwim]

Here it is almost a week later Sorry! Sopa De Tortilla #122664

[WaveWireless]

Did anyone ever get this recipe ??

[Happy Hippie]

Sgt. Pepper, where do you purchase epazote. I've searched and searched and have never found it anywhere. I just check out your recipe and it sounds awesome.

[Happy Hippie]

I just tried to open CunSwim's link to her Sopa De Tortilla #122664. Instead of going to the recipe, it takes me to Zaar's home page. Has anybody else had this problem?

[Kit^..^ty Of Canada]

Sopa De Tortilla

[Happy Hippie]

Thanks Kit for adding your magic touch, I used your link and it took me to the Sopa recipe.

[Witch Doctor]

Feta Cheese in a Mexican Tortilla Soup recipe????

Here's My Personal Tortilla Soup My Personal Tortilla Soup (Sopa De Tortilla) that my housekeeper taught me to make. And then I have one I haven't posted that is the Tortilla Soup that I did have in Mexico City.

Epazote is quite common here in the Houston area, especially in those grocers that cater to our LARGE mexican- American community. Like Fiesta Grocers.

Classic Tortilla Soup with all the Trimmings
(Sopa de Tortilla)

Makes about 10 cups, serving 6

Ingredients:

1 large dried Pasilla Chili, stemmed and seeded
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
2 Tbsp vegetable or olive oil
1 medium white onion, sliced ¼ inch thick
3 garlic cloves, peeled
2 quarts chicken broth
1 large sprig fresh epazote (optional)
Salt, to taste
4 (about 1 ¼ lbs total) boneless, skinless chicken breasts halves, cut into ½ inch cubes
1 large ripe avocado, pitted, flesh scooped from the skin and cut into ¼ inch cubes
1 ½ cups (6 ounces) shredded Mexican melting cheese (such as Chihuahua, quesadilla or Asadero)
4 cups (about 6 ounces) roughly broken tortilla chips
1 large lime, cut into 6 wedges, for serving

Preparation:

Quickly toast the chili by turning it an inch or two above an open flame for a few seconds, until its aroma fills the kitchen. Lacking an open flame, toast it in a dry pan over medium heat, pressing it flat for a few seconds, then flipping it over and pressing it again. Break the chili into pieces and put in a blender jar, along with the tomatoes with their juice.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan (4 quart) over medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until golden, about 7 minutes. Scoop up the onion and garlic with a slotted spoon, pressing them against the side of the pan to leave behind as much oil as possible, and transfer to the blender; set the pan aside. Process until smooth.

Return the pan to medium high heat. When it is quite hot, add the puree and stir nearly constantly until thickened to the consistency of tomato paste, about 6 minutes. Add the broth and epazote, if using. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 15 minutes. Taste and season with salt, if needed.

Just before serving, add the chicken to the simmering broth. Divide the avocado, cheese and tortilla chips among the serving bowls. When the chicken is done, usually about 5 minutes, ladle the soup into the bowls. Pass the lime separately.


The Mexican Cheese and the avocado are a MUST in making a successful Tortilla soup!

[Andtototoo!]

I just added a slightly different tortilla soup recipe to my site where you puree the corn tortillas so that the soup is thick. This soup can be made vegetarian or with chicken broth and is an easy recipe. Could this be the kind of tortilla soup you were looking for?

[Chef #1396680]

I have made the Mexico City Style soup several times and plan to do so today. I have eaten it at Houstons and made it according to what I taste. (I have no written recipe) This is what I do. I boil chicken (boneless skinless, pieces of choice) and some finely chopped onion in water until tender. I add some organic chicken stock and a couple of chicken bouillion cubes for a stronger chicken taste. I add salt and pepper to taste, and sometime a little hot sauce. Then add spices like cumin (about 2 tsp. of each), garlic powder, and some lime zest. I sample as I add the spices in case I need more to reach my desired taste. Add the juice of 2 limes. Cook for about 10-15 minutes so the flavors incorporate. Then add the rice (about 3/4 cup). You can adjust the juices by using more chicken broth. When it is served, you top it with chopped tomatoe, avocado, zuchinni, fresh cilantro and a few tortilla chips and a touch of sour cream, if you like.

[Mami J]

I am from Mexico City so I should be of some help True Mexico City style soup can't be so without pasilla chile (sometimes called negros), a roasted fresh tomato and epazote.

First fry some onion slices and garlic until dark golden brown, in a little oil. The chiles should be soaked until soft, then pureed (deveined and seeded) with 1 or 2 roasted tomatoes and the onion/garlic mixture, then fried in the same oil as the onion. Then the chicken stock and epazote leaves should be added. Then the soup must be boiled until the flavors meld. It is most often a meatless soup, but you can add shredded chicken breast if you like, but no dark meat. The garnish should be the fried tortillas (in strips) crumbled queso fresco and if you like sour cream (crema Mexicana) and avocado slices.

By no means the soup should contain canned ingredients, only fresh ones, the exception being the stock which can be canned. It should also be spicy enough so that you shouldn't have to add more chile.