Tortilla Soup for the Soul
🌮🔥 Happy Taco Tuesday, Fam! 🔥🌮
Guess who just walked back into the kitchen? Legendary Chef Rick Bayless… the OG flavor architect who helped bring real-deal Mexican technique and soul straight into everyday American cooking. Icon behavior only.
And since we’re currently freezing our tacos off, we’re turning to Chef Bayless for peak Mexican comfort.
Enter: Tortilla Soup.
Warm, rich, soul-saving, and exactly what this weather ordered. 🍲
👇 Scroll down for the full recipe and let’s get seriously cozy.
Cheers & hot sauce,
~ The Taco Tuesday Crew 🌶️✨
Tortilla Soup
Recipe By: Chef Rick Bayless
🔥Fun Fact: Tortilla soup began as a clever way to revive day-old tortillas, turning scraps into smoky, chile-kissed comfort that tastes like a hug in a bowl.
WATCH the VIDEO
What You’ll Need 🌶️✨
3 tablespoons fresh-rendered pork lard or oil, divided use
1 medium (6 ounce) onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 large (1 ounce total) dried pasilla negro chiles
1/2 15 ounce can diced tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted)
1 1/2 quarts good chicken broth
A couple sprigs Epazote (if available)
Salt
6 corn tortillas (preferably store-bought ones that are good for frying), cut into strips a little smaller than ¼ inch
Oil to a depth of at least ½ inch in a small skillet
About 1/2 cup Mexican crema or crème fraiche (sour cream will curdle here)
8 ounces (about 2 cups) shredded Mexican melting cheese (like Chihuahua, asadero or quesadilla) or Monterey jack, colby or mild cheddar
1 large ripe avocado, pit removed, flesh scooped from the skin and cut into ½-inch pieces
8 ounces cooked chicken (a rotisserie chicken would be my suggestion) pulled into very coarse shreds (you’ll have about 2 cups)
A lime, cut into 6 wedges
How To Make The Magic 🔥
1️⃣ Build that smoky soup base
Heat 2 tbsp lard or oil in a large saucepan over medium-high.
Add onion and whole garlic, cooking until golden, soft, and smelling like dinner is officially happening, about 8–10 minutes.
While that magic works, stem, seed, and slice 1 pasilla chile into ½-inch pieces.
Toss the chile into the pan during the final minute to toast until fragrant.
Transfer everything to a blender with the tomatoes and blend until silky smooth.
2️⃣ Deepen the flavor
Back to the pan with 1 more tbsp lard or oil.
Pour in the blended mixture and stir nonstop until darker, thicker, and giving serious tomato-paste energy, about 5 minutes.
Add broth and epazote, bring to a boil, then drop to a gentle simmer.
Partially cover and let it vibe for 30 minutes.
Taste, salt as needed, and remove the epazote.
3️⃣ Fry the crispy goodness
Heat oil in a small skillet to that shimmery 350–360° zone.
Fry tortilla strips in batches until crisp and deep golden, then drain and salt.
Quickly toast the second pasilla chile in the oil for about 30 seconds until crisp but not bitter.
Drain and crumble into bold, spicy flakes.
4️⃣ Set the garnish bar
Put out crema, shredded cheese, diced avocado, and those crunchy chile flakes.
Because toppings = personality. 💅🌮
5️⃣ Ladle and live your best cozy life
Add chicken to the simmering soup and heat through.
Divide crema, cheese, and avocado into warm bowls, then ladle in the soup.
Finish with tortilla strips, crumbled chile, and a squeeze of lime.
Boom.
Soul-warming tortilla soup unlocked. 🍲🔥
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