Sopa Azteca (Mexican Chicken soup)

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I first had this soup at a restaurant in town and I loved it!  When I looked it up to see what was in it and found that many foods with rice in them are referred to as Azteca.  That was about 15 years ago.  Now it seems Sopa Azteca is associated with the tortillas -aka – Mexican Tortilla soup.  Here is a recipe that is closer to the soup that I ate for the first time (and you do it in the crock pot!)

Ingredients needed for this sopa

  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 Tablespoon chipotle chili in adobo sauce
  • 1 16 oz. can diced fire roasted tomatoes
  • 3 ½ cups chicken stock (see note)
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • ¼ cup dry rice (optional)

Garnishes:

  • 1 dozen corn tortillas (and about 1/4 cup oil to fry them; I like corn oil for this)
  • sour cream (or Mexican Crema Fresca)
  • Mexican Queso Fresco cheese
  • cilantro, chopped
  • green onion, chopped
  • fresh jalapeño pepper, diced
  • avocado, chopped
  • Lime Wedges
  • Chopped chicharron – but don’t use the ones in the bag.  Go to a Mexican market and get some freshly cooked chicharron.  My preference is to leave them out if I can’t get these.

Making the Soup 

Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces.

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Place the chicken and the rest of the soup ingredients, except the rice, in a crock pot.  Cook on low and cook for 8-9 hours.  If you are putting the rice in, add it during the last two hours.

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Put the oil in a small, deep pan and heat on medium-high.  Cut 5 or 6 tortillas into small strips while the oil is heating.

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Cook the strips until they are a golden brown.  Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.

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Chop the garnishes.

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Fill a bowl with the soup and let each person add the garnishes they want.

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Serve with warm tortillas on the side.

Serves 4-6

© Copyright 2015 The Lazy Gastronome

5 from 6 votes
Sopa Azteca

A delicious Mexican soup made in the crockpot.

Course: Main Course, main dish
Cuisine: Mexican, soup
Keyword: avocado, chicken, chipotle, corn tortilla, crema, fire roasted tomatoes, green onion
Servings: 4 to 6 servings
Author: HelenFern
Ingredients
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 Tablespoon chipotle chili in adobo sauce, minced
  • 1 16oz can diced fire roasted tomatoes
  • 3-1/2 cups chicken stock
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon lemon pepper½ teaspoon salt½ teaspoon ground cumin¼ cup dry rice (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 cup raw rice
Garnishes
  • 1 doz corn tortillas
  • 1/4 cup corn oil for frying
  • crumbled Mexican queso fresco cheese
  • Mexican crema
  • cilantro
  • green onion, chopped
  • fresh jalapeño pepper, diced
  • avocado, chopped
  • lime, cut into wedges
  • Mexican chicharones, chopped (not the bagged)
Instructions
  1. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces.

  2. Place the chicken and the rest of the soup ingredients, except the rice, in a crock pot.  Cook on low and cook for 8-9 hours. 

  3. Add it during the last two hours.

  4. Put the oil in a small, deep pan and heat on medium-high.  Cut 5 or 6 tortillas into small strips while the oil is heating.

  5. Cook the strips until they are a golden brown.  Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.

  6. Chop the garnishes.

  7. Fill a bowl with the soup and let each person add the garnishes they want.

  8. Serve with warm tortillas on the side.

Recipe Notes

 

Fin real Chicharron at a Mexican market and get some freshly cooked.

© Copyright 2015 The Lazy Gastronome

Tell me what you think. I appreciate your comments.

This entry was posted in Chicken, Main dish, Main dish, Mexican, Soup and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

16 Responses to Sopa Azteca (Mexican Chicken soup)

  1. Leigh says:

    This soup sounds so delicious! I must try it son.

  2. Danita Carr says:

    Looks easy and delicious! #SmallVictories

  3. This sounds great. Thanks for sharing on Small Victories.

  4. Yummy! I wish my boys loved soup as much as I do in the fall and winter. Thanks for sharing with Small Victories Sunday Linkup. Pinning to our linkup board and hope you found some great posts to visit this week!

  5. Fabiola says:

    There are dozens of variations on the recipe for Sopa Azteca here in Mexico. My mom makes it somewhat like this, except she doesn’t add cream and uses chipotle chilies instead of jalapeno.

    • HelenFern says:

      This one is based on one I had at a restaurant. I sat and picked through everything and then tried to recreate it – I liked my better!! But your mom’s sounds really good! I love chipotle –

      Thanks for stopping by!

  6. I could use a serving of this right now! It looks delish, Helen. Thanks for sharing!

  7. Andréa says:

    5 stars
    What a delicious recipe.

  8. Liz Berg says:

    5 stars
    Absolutely scrumptious! We had a cold spell and this hit the spot for dinner. It will be a regular on our winter meal rotation.

  9. Amy Liu Dong says:

    5 stars
    This is such a great-looking soup and it really looks so delicious and very tasty! A perfect treat for this cold weather! Loved it!

  10. Leslie says:

    5 stars
    This is one of my favorite soup recipes! So so good!

  11. Mina says:

    5 stars
    Such a lovely and comforting dish! Perfect for the season!

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