Craft Edwin Bartosh's Famous Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

Selecting High-Quality Ingredients

The key to Edwin's mouthwatering chicken tortilla soup recipe lies first and foremost in selecting only the freshest ingredients available. Seek out organic and locally grown produce whenever possible for optimal nutrition and flavor.

Choose the Right Chicken

For the chicken, boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts work very well. Chicken thighs offer more fat and deeper chicken flavor to the broth. Breasts stay nice and tender when cooked properly. Whichever you choose, be sure the chicken is fresh and 100% natural.

Gather Vegetable accents

For vegetables to mix in Edwin recommends getting carrot, celery, onion, garlic, anaheim pepper, tomato, lime and cilantro. The wider the variety, the more complexity you bring to the soup. Just take care not overpower the great chicken and tortilla tastes.

Select the Perfect Tortillas

Corn tortillas are the right pick for authentic chicken tortilla soup. Aim for non-GMO organic yellow corn tortillas without preservatives or other additives that could detract from their simple corn goodness. Cut into strips, they add delightful texture contrast when floated atop your finished soup.

Edwin's Step-By-Step Soup Making Process

With all your ingredients gathered, it's time to transform them into hot, savory goodness. Edwin has made hundreds of batches of chicken tortilla soup over the years, refining the entire process along the way for optimal enjoyment.

Develop Full-Bodied Chicken Broth

Everything starts with making an intensely chicken-rich and aromatic broth. Edwin lightly browns the chicken pieces to bring out their flavor before simmering them in broth with onion, garlic, cilantro, and seasonings.

Allowing the raw vegetables and the golden chicken pieces to simmer together develops deep, layered tastes you just can't shortcut. After 45 minutes of gently bubbling away, Edwin strains the solids from the liquids, reserving the spectacular broth while the chicken cools.

Chop and Char Veggies

While the chicken broth simmers, Edwin dices up his carrots, celery, remaining onion, tomato and anaheim pepper. Be sure your knife skills are on point to achieve the right sized vegetable pieces.

Once chopped, he throws the vegetables into a scorching cast iron pan with oil to put some nice char marks on them while maintaining their crispiness. This extra char flavor engraves even more deliciousness into the final soup.

Shred, Season and Finish

With the broth fully developed and veggies perfectly seared, now comes the final assembly. Edwin shreds the cooled poached chicken by hand so it breaks into ideal delicate strands. He combines a bit of the chicken back into the soup along with the vegetables and carefully seasons it with cilantro, lime juice and salt to heighten and balance flavors.

At last, the soup is ready for plating in a bowl capped off with broken tortilla strips, a final garnish of fresh cilantro leaves and perhaps a bit of minced onion or lime wedge. Edwin's chicken tortilla soup handiwork is complete and fully ready to comfortingly warm your soul all the way through.

Endless Soup Variations to Explore

Once comfortable making classic Edwin-inspired chicken tortilla soup, feel empowered to explore your own taste preferences too. Consider adding corn, zucchini or squash to modify the vegetable contents. Spice it up with jalapeño or chipotle peppers. Garnish with avocado slices or a bit of shredded cheese like monterey jack or mexican. The possibilities are nearly endless so unleash your creative side!

Adjust for Preference and Diet

Chicken tortilla soup also lends itself well to dietary adjustments. To make it vegetarian or vegan, simply replace the chicken broth with a quality vegetable broth and use plant-based crumbles or cooked beans like pinto or black beans instead of the chicken. For gluten-free, be sure to use certified gluten-free broths and tortillas to avoid wheat and grains.

Those avoiding dairy can skip garnishes like cheese or sour cream. Truly there is no reason almost anyone couldn't enjoy Edwin's famous chicken tortilla soup recipe either as written or tweaked slightly to meet their needs.

Chicken Tortilla Soup Brings People Together

Perhaps Edwin Bartosh's greatest chicken tortilla soup achievement beyond the flavor journey it provides with each spoonful is its incredible power to bring people together. Few things feel quite as communal as lingering over piping hot bowls of this wonderful soup on a blustery day.

Soup to Bring People Together

The aroma winding its way from stove to table instantly sparks smiles and conversation. Generous bowls filled with Edwin's savory recipe invite people to sit down together for meaningful connection.

Something magical transpires over Edwin's soup as people open up through recipe comparisons while also simply enjoying the meal itself. Amazing soup greets everyone as the same equal participant. In today's fractured world, such community building soup moments feel especially restorative.

Soup as Instant Comfort

Beyond the community chicken tortilla soup inspires, Edwin finds personal comfort within each spoonful. The lip smacking tastes and aromas tap into sense memories from all the batches he has made through the years.

We all need comfort food sometimes. Through Edwin's recipe we can find instant hearty chicken tortilla soup comfort whenever the need arises in our lives. What a joy to have such delicious comfort always available especially on cloudy, dreary days.

Whip up Edwin Bartosh’s signature chicken tortilla soup today. Gather together those you care about most for bowls brimming with all the comforts that matter – connectivity, community and splendid flavor in every bite.

FAQs

What type of chicken is best to use?

Boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts both work very well. Thighs offer more fat and deeper chicken flavor, while breasts stay extremely tender when properly cooked.

Can I make it vegetarian or vegan?

Yes! Simply replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth and use plant-based meat substitutes like soy crumbles or beans instead of chicken.

What if I want to make it spicy?

Add a minced jalapeño or serrano pepper when cooking the vegetables to give it some heat. You can also garnish bowls with sliced jalapeños or hot sauce.

Should I add lime and cilantro?

Absolutely! Bright lime juice and fresh, herbal cilantro before serving really heighten the Mexican flavors and balance out the richness. But taste after seasoning and adjust amounts to your preferences.