Chipotle Chicken & Veggie Soup

[=Mark]

Chipotle Chicken & Veggie Soup

Got the idea for this after sampling a couple bowls of a regional style soup during a trip to the Firey Foods Festival in New Mexico, just substituted Chipotles for the green chiles:

• 1 6 lb. roasting chicken
  
• 1 32 oz can chicken stock
  
• 1 c coarsley chopped celery (Save all veggie trimmings for stock)
  
• 1 c diced red bell pepper
  
• 1 c sliced carrots
  
• 2 medium onions coarsely chopped
  
• 1 c corn kernels
  
• 1 16 oz can diced tomato
  
• 1 c chipotles in adobo sauce
  
• 1/2 tsp thyme
  
• cracked black pepper to taste
  
• salt to taste (I use heavy chinese soy sauce)
  

Roast chicken in oven till done, cool overnight.

Debone chicken and save all the bones & scraps. Cut meat into bite size bits removing fat & gristle. Refrigerate.

In a large stock pot add bones and carcass as well as veggie peelings, carrot butts and onion skins etc and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 2 to 3 hours, skimming and stirring occasionally.

Strain through a collander and add stock back to pot. Add celery, bell pepper, corn, onions and carrots as well as the canned stock and bring to a simmer. Cook until veggies begin to turn tender. Add chicken and canned tomato.

While soup is coming back to a simmer, take about a cup of it and put in a food processor with the chipotles & adobo. Whirr it up for about 30 seconds or untill the peppers are well pureed. Add salt, pepper and thyme to the soup, then start adding the chipotle puree about a quarter cup at a time, stirring and tasting for the desired pungency. Using all of it makes for a chileheads delite, but may be too much for some gringos to handle!

This makes a big old pot full which would probably serve 20 or 25 people. Good for freezing and serving at a later time.

You could use all canned stock and one of those rotisserie chickens from the store, but my life is dull and I got nothin' better to do...

Keywords: Soup, Chicken, Tex-Mex, American, Hot and Spicy, eGCI

( RG261 )