Mexican Chicken Soup

Submitted by Hannah

After trying many different tortilla and taco soups I came up with my favorite versions of those. This is fast to make and it makes a lot so you will have some for lunch the next day which I always love. Feel free to adjust the spices to your tastes. I usually don't measure I just dump in what I think, but I gave you a good estimate of what I use in the soup. I always taste along the way while it is cooking to see if additional seasoning is needed.

Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts cooked and shredded

1 medium onion chopped

1 red, orange or yellow red pepper chopped

1 can of red enchilada sauce

1 can tomatoes with diced green chiles

2 cans white beans like great northern

3/4 cup frozen corn

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 1/2 tsp cumin

2 -3tsps chile powder

3 cups chicken broth and 1 cup of water

2 -3 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

** We usually like to add some heat to this by using chipotle chili powder or diced jalepenos.**

Directions:

In a dutch oven or stock pot heat about 1-2 Tbsp of oil and add the chopped onion and pepper. Saute those over medium heat for a few minutes until the onion starts to turn opague. At this point I add the spices - cumin, chile powder and smoked paprika to let them toast a minute or two before adding the liquids. Then you can add the water, chicken broth, enchilada sauce, tomatoes with diced chiles, shredded chicken and the frozen corn. Cover soup and let it cook on medium low where it is simmering slightly for at least 40 minutes. It works out really well to make this in advance a day or two earlier if you are trying to prep some meals for another day. It just gets more flavorful.

Before you are going to serve the soup add in the fresh cilantro and stir. You can save some to serve on top also if you would like.

I like to serve this with sour cream, shredded cheese, diced avocado and tortilla chips.