Mexican Soup~Like Ina’s

I live on good soup, not on fine words.
Moliere

Well dang it our little taste of summer has vanished temporarily and a soup night is in order, nothing fancy, but it fits the bill for a chilly night and maybe on the porch in front of the fire table… So, it’s time to scramble to find what I have to toss into the pot…

Since I didn’t want anything too complicated and determined to use a few Mexican ingredients, Ina’s Mexican soup had a strong lead on a busy day around the house.

I chose to sous vide the seasoned bone-in chicken breasts and made the soup in the Instant Pot. Season your chicken, however, you like for this particular recipe, I went full-on Mexican seasoning and included a bit of chipotle salsa in the sous vide bag to boost the flavor of the chicken. I also made crispy tortilla strips in the air fryer…

Ina’s Mexican Soup Recipe was slightly adapted and I only made 1/2 of the recipe.

  • 4 split (2 whole) chicken breasts, bone-in, skin on (roasted or sous vide)
  • Good olive oil
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
  • 1 cup chopped celery (2 stalks)
  • 2 cups chopped carrots (4 carrots)
  • 4 large garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2-1/2 quarts chicken stock, preferably homemade
  • 1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in puree, crushed
  • 2 to 4 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander seed
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
    Optional fresh or frozen corn
  • 6 (6-inch) fresh white corn tortillas
  • To Serve:
  • Sliced avocado
  • Sour cream
  • Grated Cheddar cheese
  • Tortilla chips or strips
    *Serve with crispy taquitos

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place the chicken breasts skin side up on a sheet pan.  Rub with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until done.  When the chicken is cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones, and shred the meat.  Cover and set aside. (Seasoned sous vide chicken breasts take about 1 1/2 hours at 140º) – shred the chicken when it is cool enough to handle.
  • Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven.  Add the onions, celery, and carrots and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, or until the onion starts to brown.  Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.  Add the chicken stock, tomatoes with their puree, jalapenos, cumin, coriander, 1 tablespoon salt (depending on the saltiness of the chicken stock), 1 teaspoon pepper, and the cilantro, if using.  Cut the tortillas in half, cut them crosswise into ½-inch strips, and add to the soup.  Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes.  Add the shredded chicken and season to taste.  Serve the soup hot topped with sliced avocado, a dollop of sour cream, grated Cheddar cheese, and broken tortilla chips or crispy tortilla strips
Mexican Soup… just add Crispy Tortilla Strips

Ina’s Mexican Soup… Loaded bowl