FoodieAtlas
Recipes around the World
Tortilla soup is built on a charred base: tomatoes, onion, garlic, and dried chipotle or pasilla chilies placed directly on a dry comal until blackened on the outside, then blended into a dark, smoky broth that is strained and simmered with chicken stock until it deepens further. Fried tortilla strips — cut from stale corn tortillas and fried until rigid — go in at the moment of serving, not before, so they retain crunch for the first few bites before softening into something else. The garnish table distinguishes the individual bowl: shredded chicken, sliced avocado, a dollop of crema, crumbled cotija, a squeeze of lime, and the option to add fresh chile de árbol for heat. The Yucatán version — sopa de lima — uses bitter Yucatán lima citrus and turkey instead of chicken, making it a distinctly different dish with the same form.
In a large pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat.
Add the finely chopped onion, minced garlic, and chopped jalapeño pepper. Cook until the onion is soft and translucent.
Stir in the ground cumin and chili powder, and cook for about 1 minute until fragrant.
Add the chicken broth, diced tomatoes, black beans, and corn kernels. Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and let the soup simmer for about 15 minutes to allow the flavors to meld together.
Stir in the cooked, shredded chicken, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for an additional 5 minutes until the chicken is heated through.
While the soup is simmering, prepare the toppings. If using tortilla strips, fry them in a little oil until crispy, or simply use crushed tortilla chips.
Ladle the soup into bowls.
Top each bowl with tortilla strips or crushed tortilla chips, diced avocado, shredded cheese, chopped fresh cilantro, a squeeze of lime juice, and a dollop of sour cream if desired.
Smoky charred tomato-chili broth with fried tortilla strips; garnishes added at the table complete the bowl.
Central Mexico (Mexico City area) and Yucatán; the sopa de lima version is specifically Yucatecan with bitter lima citrus and turkey.
Charred tomatoes, dried chipotle or pasilla chili, chicken broth, corn tortillas (fried), avocado, crema, cotija, lime.
Char the tomatoes and chili until genuinely black on the outside — the bitterness from charring is what gives the broth its smoky depth, not chili powder.
Eaten as a first course or light meal; Mexican rice alongside; cold cerveza or agua de Jamaica.