Tortilla Soup with Beans and Corn
This soup strikes a perfect balance between being utterly crave-worthy (it’s like TACOS in the form of soup!) and delightfully healthful (it’s like tacos in the form of a VEGETABLE-PACKED SOUP!). It also accommodates a variety of dietary restrictions: The recipe is vegan, dairy-free, and gluten-free as written; just be sure to carefully read the labels of the individual ingredients to ensure they meet your dietary needs. And of course, any toppings you add could affect the dish’s vegetarian/vegan and/or dairy- or gluten-free status, so choose your toppings accordingly.
All that being said, occasionally I’ll add some shredded chicken (from a cooked rotisserie chicken) to this soup to provide a little more heft and bump up the protein content for my two growing carnivorous boys (and one fully grown carnivorous husband), and sometimes I’ll use chicken broth if I don’t have any vegetable broth on hand. If you’d like to add some cooked chicken to this soup, I’d recommend adding it in with the beans and corn; you might need to simmer the soup just a little bit longer until the chicken is completely heated through. (You’ll probably need to add more broth to the soup as well, at least 1 to 2 cups more, depending on how much chicken you add.)
Per my boys’ preference for not-too-spicy foods, this soup is mildly spiced with cumin and oregano, but if you’d like a little more heat, feel free to add a pinch or 2 of red pepper flakes and/or a seeded and finely diced jalapeño pepper when you add the onion, etc.
Finally, this soup is really all about the toppings. I like to set out little bowls of toppings so each of us can top our soup with whatever we’d like. The corn tortilla strips are perhaps the most important topping; they provide a necessary crunch, so I urge you not to skip them! However, if you’re short on time, you can just crush up some store-bought tortilla chips over your bowls of soup instead. They’re a perfectly acceptable shortcut, and on a busy weeknight, I’m a big fan of anything that helps me get dinner on the table more quickly.
VEGETARIAN, VEGAN, DAIRY-FREE, GLUTEN-FREE
All that being said, occasionally I’ll add some shredded chicken (from a cooked rotisserie chicken) to this soup to provide a little more heft and bump up the protein content for my two growing carnivorous boys (and one fully grown carnivorous husband), and sometimes I’ll use chicken broth if I don’t have any vegetable broth on hand. If you’d like to add some cooked chicken to this soup, I’d recommend adding it in with the beans and corn; you might need to simmer the soup just a little bit longer until the chicken is completely heated through. (You’ll probably need to add more broth to the soup as well, at least 1 to 2 cups more, depending on how much chicken you add.)
Per my boys’ preference for not-too-spicy foods, this soup is mildly spiced with cumin and oregano, but if you’d like a little more heat, feel free to add a pinch or 2 of red pepper flakes and/or a seeded and finely diced jalapeño pepper when you add the onion, etc.
Finally, this soup is really all about the toppings. I like to set out little bowls of toppings so each of us can top our soup with whatever we’d like. The corn tortilla strips are perhaps the most important topping; they provide a necessary crunch, so I urge you not to skip them! However, if you’re short on time, you can just crush up some store-bought tortilla chips over your bowls of soup instead. They’re a perfectly acceptable shortcut, and on a busy weeknight, I’m a big fan of anything that helps me get dinner on the table more quickly.
VEGETARIAN, VEGAN, DAIRY-FREE, GLUTEN-FREE
Author: Wholesome Family Kitchen
Serves: 4 to 6. (For my family of four—two adults + two hungry kiddos—I can usually get at least one dinner meal out of this batch of soup, plus a couple of smaller lunch servings the next day.)
Ingredients
- • 2 tablespoons olive oil
- • 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- • 3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
- • 2 stalks celery, diced
- • 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano *
- • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- • 4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- • 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted)
- • 6 cups (48 ounces/1½ quarts) vegetable (or chicken) broth/stock, plus more if needed to thin the soup **
- • 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- • 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- • 1½ cups frozen corn kernels
- • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste ***
- • 1 to 2 limes, sliced into wedges
- • Baked Corn Tortilla Strips (recipe below) or crushed corn tortilla chips ****
- Additional optional toppings:
- Shredded cheddar cheese or crumbled Mexican cheese (e.g., cotija or queso fresco), diced or sliced avocado, sour cream or Greek yogurt, chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, oregano, cumin, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper; sauté, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft and translucent and just starting to become golden, about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds, stirring continuously. Add the canned tomatoes with their juices, the broth or stock, and another pinch of salt. Turn up the heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir the beans and corn into the soup, and simmer for another 10 minutes or so until heated through. If the soup is too thick for your liking, add more broth or stock (or even water in a pinch). Taste and add more salt and/or pepper if needed. Serve each bowl of soup with a squeeze of lime juice, a handful of tortilla strips, and any other desired toppings.
Notes
* Most dried oregano sold in grocery stores today is the Mediterranean variety, which is grown throughout the Mediterranean region (including Greece, Italy, and Spain) and therefore pairs well with dishes from this region. It will work just fine in this soup recipe, but if you can find it, Mexican oregano adds a more complex flavor that complements the spices in this soup, and in other Mexican dishes, especially well.
** I try to use homemade stock (chicken or vegetable) when making this soup; it really does make a difference in flavor. But, truth be told, sometimes I don’t have any homemade stock on hand, I’m feeling kind of lazy, and I want soup NOW. A good-tasting, all-natural, store-bought broth with recognizable ingredients is a perfectly acceptable substitute. I try to seek out a low-sodium variety so that I can better control the amount of salt in the soup.
*** A note about salt and soup: One of my best tips for making a flavorful soup is to season your soup with kosher salt throughout the cooking process (e.g., when you add the onion, celery, and carrots, then again when you add the rest of the ingredients), not just at the end. Doing so helps to keep your soup from tasting “salty,” rather than properly seasoned. And keep in mind that your stock or broth will likely be salty, so go cautiously. A pinch of salt at each stage is usually enough.
**** To make the Baked Corn Tortilla Strips: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Working in stacks of 2 or 3 tortillas each, use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to slice 6 (6-inch) corn tortillas in half crosswise, then into thin strips lengthwise, so you end up with strips roughly 2 to 3 inches long and about ½ inch wide. Add the strips to a large bowl and toss them with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a big pinch of kosher salt. Arrange the tortilla strips in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring once after about 5 minutes, until the strips are lightly golden and crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool. (For best results, use fresh, high-quality corn tortillas that are pliable and not too dry.)
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten’s Mexican Chicken Soup recipe in Barefoot Contessa at Home.
** I try to use homemade stock (chicken or vegetable) when making this soup; it really does make a difference in flavor. But, truth be told, sometimes I don’t have any homemade stock on hand, I’m feeling kind of lazy, and I want soup NOW. A good-tasting, all-natural, store-bought broth with recognizable ingredients is a perfectly acceptable substitute. I try to seek out a low-sodium variety so that I can better control the amount of salt in the soup.
*** A note about salt and soup: One of my best tips for making a flavorful soup is to season your soup with kosher salt throughout the cooking process (e.g., when you add the onion, celery, and carrots, then again when you add the rest of the ingredients), not just at the end. Doing so helps to keep your soup from tasting “salty,” rather than properly seasoned. And keep in mind that your stock or broth will likely be salty, so go cautiously. A pinch of salt at each stage is usually enough.
**** To make the Baked Corn Tortilla Strips: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Working in stacks of 2 or 3 tortillas each, use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to slice 6 (6-inch) corn tortillas in half crosswise, then into thin strips lengthwise, so you end up with strips roughly 2 to 3 inches long and about ½ inch wide. Add the strips to a large bowl and toss them with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a big pinch of kosher salt. Arrange the tortilla strips in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring once after about 5 minutes, until the strips are lightly golden and crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool. (For best results, use fresh, high-quality corn tortillas that are pliable and not too dry.)
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten’s Mexican Chicken Soup recipe in Barefoot Contessa at Home.
Recipe by Wholesome Family Kitchen at https://www.wholesomefamilykitchen.com/recipe-tortilla-soup-with-beans-and-corn/