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Lime and chicken tortilla soup
Serves 4 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts, skins removed and butterflied finely grated zest and juice
- 1 lime
- 1tsp chipotle chilli powder
- 1tsp garlic powder
- 1tsp dried oregano
- 1⁄2tsp smoked salt
- 1tbsp olive oil
For the soup
- 2tbsp olive oil
- 1 red onion, finely diced
- 2 red peppers, finely diced
- 2 celery sticks, finely diced
- 500g very ripe tomatoes
- 1 garlic bulb, cloves separated, unpeeled
- 1 chipotle chilli, whole but deseeded
- 3tbsp finely chopped coriander stems, plus leaves for garnish
- 1 large sprig thyme
- 1 litre chicken stock
- 200g black beans, cooked (optional)
For the garnishes
- 1 avocado
- juice 1 lime
- 2-3tbsp olive oil
- 2-3 corn tortillas, cut into triangles
- 100ml soured cream
- Manchego, Gruyère or cheddar, grated
Method
Place the chicken breasts in a bowl. Mix together the marinade ingredients, pour over the chicken and leave to marinate for 1 hour.
Heat a griddle pan until it’s too hot to hold your hand over. Cook the chicken for 3-4 minutes on each side until just cooked through. Set aside.
Heat the oil for the soup in a large flameproof casserole or saucepan. Add the onion, red peppers and celery and sauté over a low heat until translucent and starting to caramelise.
Meanwhile, put the tomatoes, unpeeled garlic cloves and chilli in a heavy-based frying pan and dry roast for a similar amount of time until the tomatoes are blackening.
If the chilli and garlic look done before the tomatoes, take them out and set aside. Peel the garlic and put in a food processor with the unpeeled tomatoes and chilli then blitz until smooth.
Add the coriander stems and thyme to the onions and peppers and cook for a further 2 minutes. Pour in the tomato mixture and simmer for 5 minutes until it starts to reduce. Add the chicken stock and continue to simmer for around 15-20 minutes.
For the garnishes, dice the avocado and toss in the lime juice. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and fry the tortilla triangles until crisp and golden brown. Shred the cooked chicken and add it to the soup along with the black beans, if using.
Remove the thyme sprig from the soup and serve it in bowls with the tortillas, avocado, soured cream, coriander and cheese.
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