Swedish Taco Night Friday: Hearty Mexican Chipotle Chicken Soup Recipe

I don't know what it is about the Chipotle Chile flavour. Maybe it's the darkness of the colours it creates in your various dish recipes or the smokiness of the taste. This time of year we eat a lot of soups and make enough to be left over and eaten over the next day or so. One of my flavourites is Chicken soup with lots of vegetables. Then yesterday Discovery Foods (Santa Maria) posted a Mexican Chicken Stew recipe from the January issue of Good Housekeeping magazine. It called for using Chipotle in the recipe, but most of the text was too small and I couldn't find the recipe anywhere else online anywhere. The problem was solved by using my same recipe I use for regular Chicken Soup and adding some other very important ingredients. 

Basically I start with three lean white chicken breasts. I finely slice lengthwise and mince up finer for smaller bite sized chunks. Marinated in red balsamic vinegar and Santa Maria's Taco Spice for some foundation seasoning and put into large cast iron port for cooking slowly in Olive oil. Added to that are four crushed garlic cloves, two fine chopped medium onions, and generous additions of dried Pizza Herb spice mix which has most of the Mediterranean herb blends, three finely chopped Jalapeno Peppers and four large Chile Ancho Chipotle peppers which I steam first, split open and place in the pot and covered the lid to simmer for a time. I get my Chile Ancho Chipotle peppers from the ICA Store. They have already been smoked or roasted and are usually two to a pack. The Chipotle definitely gives it a darker richer colour from basic chicken soup or stew.

The Discovery Foods page was pushing their Chipotle paste as a substitute (and I also do understand that, it's has good flavour), but I have always done this from scratch, even when making my chocolate mole sauces for chicken dish recipes. After say 30 minutes of cooking at low heat and when the chicken for the most part is cooked through, I added one cup of Chicken stock and one cup vegetable stock. Two bouillon cubes (chicken & Vegetable) in each cup of hot water and add to the blend. Next are the vegetables and I can't tell you exactly how many of what, as you will have to add these as much or less as you prefer. Carrots, Potatoes, Green Beans, added one can of sweet corn and several fresh mushrooms sliced. As far as crushed corn chips for added flavour and texture, I add those last and individually in the bowl of soup. I don't necessarily want to make this a tortilla soup. Basically here I think it easy for anyone to go ahead and make their basic Chicken soup recipe and add these extra simple ingredients and spices to make it Mexican. This is not a real complicated dish at all. Add more water as you need it for more broth liquid also.

Be considerate of others - *smile*

When it comes to heat, mine is ever so slightly warm spice-wise for flavour, but I don't Nuke it for my taste at the sacrifice of everyone else who may not appreciate the Heat scale. Make it as neutral as possible, but not sacrificing flavour. Want it hotter ? That's what Hot Sauces are for. You can add as much heat as your heart desires, but just think about your guests when it comes to main courses. Nuke your own bowl of soup, stew or chili all you want, but be kind to others.

As always - Enjoy!