Quick and Easy Tortilla Soup
User Reviews
5
Quick and Easy Tortilla Soup
Description
This tortilla soup begins with blending fresh tomatoes, onions, garlic, and optional jalapeño peppers to create a smooth, bright base. The puree is cooked briefly in olive oil until it deepens in color, then combined with chicken or vegetable stock and simmered. Chopped potatoes, carrots, and zucchini are added and cooked until tender, providing heartiness and varied texture to the broth.
The flavor balances acidity from tomatoes with gentle sweetness from carrots and a savory garlic and onion foundation. Fresh tortillas cut and crisped or served warm alongside the soup add a traditional element, usually paired with mozzarella or queso fresco cheese and optional hot sauce for heat. This soup is adaptable by adjusting vegetable amounts and texture preference—with options to blend or keep chunky.
It’s suitable for warmer months with more broth and fewer solids or prepared thicker for colder days. The recipe allows for freezing the tomato base separately to maintain freshness and ease preparation later. Serving fresh tortillas and cheese complements the soup’s flavors and textures well.
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion (cut into quarters)
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 medium Roma tomato see notes
- ½ jalapeño (fresh - optional for added heat)
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 5 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
- 2 small potato
- 2 medium carrot
- 2 small zucchini (courgettes)
- ½ tsp salt
To Serve:
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 4 tortillas (fresh, flour or corn)
- ½ cup mozzarella cheese Monterey Jack cheese or queso fresco
- ⅛ tsp hot sauce (a dash- optional for added heat)
Instructions
Prepare the tortilla soup base:
- Put the tomatoes, onion and garlic in a blender (if you like spicy, throw in a bit of jalapeño, too). Hit BLEND or whatever button will do the business, and puree the heck out of those veggies! It will have a salmon-pink color at first, but will turn red once it starts to cook.
- Put the olive oil in a pot and turn the heat to medium-high. Next, pour the puree into the hot oil in the pot. Stir, and let simmer for about 3 or 4 minutes. It will turn a bright red color.
- Next, add the water, bouillon (or stock), and salt- bring to a boil. Let the soup simmer for about five minutes, while you chop the veggies.
Prepare the vegetables:
- Slice the zucchini into small rounds, half slices or quarters, depending on how big your zucchini are (in diameter). Do the same with the carrots, and dice the potato. The goal is to try to make all the vegetables the same size.
- Add the veggies to the soup and let simmer until the potato is cooked. Check for salt, and add if needed. If it doesn’t taste incredibly delicious, it needs more salt. That’s it–soup’s ready!
Make the crispy tortilla strips:
- Cut the flour or corn tortilla into ½" (1.3 cm) strips.
- Pan fry the strips (I use a pizza cutter to cut them easily and quickly) in a small amount of olive oil, then drain on a paper towel.
- If using corn tortillas, I suggest using the smaller ones and cut into very thin strips. These are easier to deep fry, but you can do it in a small pot so you won’t need much oil.
- Place on a paper towel lined plate until needed.
Serve the tortilla soup:
- Start by putting some cheese in the bottom of each bowl. If using crispy corn tortilla strips, mound them up in the center of the bowl, and don’t be shy. If using flour tortillas, those will be added after adding the soup.
- Ladle the soup into the bowl. Top the soup with freshly fried flour tortilla strips if that’s what you’re using. Enjoy!
Notes
- You may substitute 3/4 cup tomato puree or canned tomatoes for fresh tomatoes.
- Adjust vegetable-to-broth ratio seasonally to make soup lighter in summer or heartier in winter.
- Add jalapeño to the puree or hot sauce to taste for optional heat.
- The soup can be blended smooth or left chunky depending on preference.
- Prepare fresh tortillas or crisp store-bought chips to serve alongside, though fresh is preferred.
- Freeze the puréed tomato base separately for longer storage and better flavor retention.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 4Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 533 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1 bowl | |
| Calories | 533kcal | 27% |
| Carbohydrates | 60g | 20% |
| Protein | 18g | 36% |
| Fat | 25g | 38% |
| Saturated Fat | 6g | 30% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 3g | 18% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 14g | 70% |
| Cholesterol | 20mg | 7% |
| Sodium | 1193mg | 50% |
| Potassium | 1209mg | 26% |
| Fiber | 6g | 24% |
| Sugar | 13g | 26% |
| Vitamin A | 5907IU | 118% |
| Vitamin C | 44mg | 49% |
| Calcium | 196mg | 20% |
| Iron | 4mg | 22% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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