Best Tortilla Soup, The

Directions

Pull off the stems and shake out the seeds from the chiles. Place the chiles into a 2-quart bowl. Heat 6 cups of water to almost boiling and pour over chiles; cover with a plate to keep the chiles submerged. Let chiles soak for at least 20 minutes or until pliable (Do not soak longer than 30 minutes or the chiles lose flavor.) Reserve 1 cup of soaking liquid.

Heat the broiler. Line a baking pan with foil and place the tomatoes on the pan so they do not touch. Broil for at least 7 minutes per side; then turn the tomatoes over with tongs and broil on the other side for 7 minutes. (The skins will be split and the tomatoes slightly charred.) Remove the tomatoes to a plate and let cool. Peel off skins and scoop out the seeds and core.

Turn down the oven to 425º F. Place the onion rings and garlic on a baking pan and toss with 1 Tbsp. of grape seed oil. Cook for about 15 minutes or until the onion and garlic are soft, golden and slightly charred.

Place the tomatoes, chiles, onion, garlic, oregano, salt, black pepper and cumin into a food processor or blender with vinegar and 1 cup of chile soaking liquid and purée until smooth. (Chile skins are tough and this may take several blendings to achieve a smooth consistency.)

Place 2 Tbsp. of grape seed oil in a heavy pot on medium-high heat until hot. Add 3 cups of red chile sauce and cook until reduced to a thick paste (about 15 minutes). Add chicken broth and lower heat to medium-low. Cook for 15-20 minutes to mellow the flavor of the vinegar. Adjust seasoning: If the soup is slightly bitter-- add a pinch of sugar. You may also need to add more salt at this stage.

To Serve

Place fried tortilla strips, diced avocado and 1 Tbsp. of crumbled cheese into the bottom of soup dish. Pour 2 cups of hot chile broth into bowl and top with more avocado, cheese and cilantro. Serve immediately with a wedge of lime.

Note from the Author

Tortilla soup has many variations, which comes from using different types of dried chiles to create its signature dark red, aromatic broth—New Mexico, guajillo, cascabel etc. The best I‘ve tried uses a combination of earthy, mild New Mexico chiles paired with roasted tomatoes as a base. To reduce your time in the kitchen, use a good prepared chicken stock since there is no way to short-cut making the chile-based broth. Add shredded, cooked chicken if you want a more substantial meal.

Hot Hints

An easy way to dice an avocado is to cut it in half with a knife, remove the pit and make 8-10 lengthwise cuts then 8 cuts across the width of the avocado. Scoop out the meat out with a tsp. to make a perfect ¼ inch dice.