Gluten Free Zesty Chicken Tortilla Soup
Busting with flavor and healthy vegetables, this soup is sure to be a hit!
Ingredients
- 4-5 boneless chicken thighs or 4 boneless breast halves
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3/4 large onion or 1 medium, chopped
- 5 large garlic cloves minced or crushed
- 2 celery stalks diced
- 1 carrot diced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 - 28 oz can stewed tomatoes (or substitute 2 cups of grape tomatoes, cut in quarters plus 1/2 cup water)
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 1/2 -2 Anaheim chili peppers
- 6 or 7 tomatillos
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder gluten free
- 1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder gluten free
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin gluten free
- 1 teaspoon coriander gluten free
- 1/4 teaspoon oregano gluten free
- 4 cups chicken broth gluten free
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/2 can (25 oz) Juanita's Original Mexican Style Hominy or other gluten free brand
- 1/2 can (15.5 oz) great northern or cannellini beans with 1/2 the liquid
Garnish Ideas:
- bought gluten free tortilla chips or strips of corn tortillas (cut gf corn tortillas, cut in strips and fried)
- avocado slices
- grated cheddar cheese or crumbled cotija cheese
- cilantro chopped
- jalapeño diced
- sour cream
Instructions
- Set oven to broil. Lay the whole, washed Anaheim chilis and the whole (peel off the outer skin) tomatillos on a tray (or tray lined with foil). Broil until charred on one side, turn over and broil until peppers and tomatillos roasted on the other side. Remove from oven. Set aside to cool.
- When cool enough to handle, remove the top of the peppers and seeds, then peel the skin off. Remove the skins from the tomatillos.Dice the peppers and save 1/2 of one to add in if you would like more spice. Save the seeds as you can add for some hotness also. Cut the tomatillos slightly.
- In a large Dutch Oven or stockpot, over medium high heat, saute the onion with 2 tablespoons of olive oil for a minute. Add the celery and carrot and salt and continue until slightly soft. Add the crushed or minced garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Remove this soffrito to a bowl.
- Heat over high heat, in the stockpot or dutch oven, 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the chicken when the oil is hot. Salt and pepper lightly. Brown the chicken pieces on all sides.
- Add to the stockpot with the chicken, the can of diced, stewed tomatoes (or cut fresh tomatoes and 1/2 cup of water), chili powders, cumin, coriander and oregano. Add chicken broth and 1 1/2 cups of water, tomato paste, soffrito, diced roasted Anaheim peppers and tomatillos. Simmer the soup on a low burner for about 1 1/2 hours. Add the hominy and beans and continue to simmer for another 30 minutes or so.
- Give a taste to see if you need more spice. If so, add in a the extra 1/2 of Anaheim pepper and some of the reserved seeds. Remove to bowls and serve with all the toppings for each person to garnish.
Notes
I like to serve this with warm tortillas and butter or corn bread and butter. There's nothing like it on a cool fall or winter night!