Mexican Lime Soup, Sopa de Lima, is a delicious chicken and lime soup from the Yucatan, the region situated between the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, responsible for some of Mexico's most distinctive cuisine. It's delightful any time of year, but especially in the winter. Flavored with green chile and generous amount of lime, this Mexican Lime Soup will delight your taste buds.
Since most traditional Mexican cooking is from scratch, this recipe instructs you to begin the soup by cooking 2 pounds of chicken pieces in stock. For a short cut version, feel free to substitute 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, which will cook in about 10 minutes and reduce your stock to 6 cups. Allow the chicken breasts to cool in the broth and then shred the cooled chicken and proceed with the recipe as written.
For an even easier version of Mexican Lime Soup, substitute 1 1/2 to 2 cups of already shredded chicken and reduce chicken broth to 6 cups.
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Mexican Lime Soup Recipe
2 pounds of chicken pieces
8 cups of chicken stock or broth
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
8 cloves garlic, unpeeled and crushed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, halved and sliced
Black pepper to taste
1 Anaheim or poblano chile, cored, seeded, and chopped
2 medium tomatoes, cored, seeded, and chopped
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from about 2 limes) or to taste
Garnishes of your choice such as:
*lime wedges
*crushed corn chips
*chopped pieces of avocado
*finely chopped jalapeno or serrano chiles
*chopped fresh cilantro
The first step is to cook the chicken in the stock:
1. Place the chicken and stock in a large heavy bottomed soup pot. Bring to a boil and then lower heat so that it gently simmers. Skim off any foam that accumulates on top and then add 1 teaspoon of the salt, the peppercorns, oregano, and garlic. Continue to simmer until the chicken is tender. This should take about 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the chicken with a large slotted spoon and place it in a large bowl.
2. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and separate the meat from the bones. Discard the bones and skin and shred the chicken into large bite size pieces.
3. Strain the stock and skim off any fat that accumulates on the top.
Now you have all the components required to make your lime soup:
4. Heat the olive oil in a heavy soup pot or Dutch oven over medium low heat. Add the onion, remaining teaspoon of salt and a couple of cranks of freshly ground pepper and sauté until tender, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the chile and cook for about 5 more minutes. Add the tomatoes, shredded chicken, chicken stock, and lime juice. Bring the soup to a boil, and then lower the heat until the soup is gently simmering and cook, uncovered, for about 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Ladle into soup bowls and serve the soup hot, topped with your choice of suggested garnishes.
Serves: 4 to 6
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You might need:
Light Green Lime Squeezer
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