This will warm your soul, and quite possibly make you a better person. Well, maybe just the first one, but its worth a shot. Good food makes us good people, right?
Chicken Tortilla Soup Yield: 1gallon
Ingredients:
1gal chicken stock
1 whole chicken, rinsed and salted
2ea onions, small dice
1c celery, rinsed and small diced
7ea garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
4ea red peppers, roasted, peeled and small diced
1c sweet corn kernels
1bu kale, stems removed and sliced thin
2T paprika, smoked
2T coriander, ground
1T cumin, ground
1/2T clove, ground
15ea corn tortillas, stale and dry, (leave out overnight on counter, uncovered)
3ea limes, zested and juiced
2 cans Kidney beans
3ea bay leaves
Directions:
Place stock into non-reactive stock pot. Bring to a boil. Place Chicken into pot and simmer for 45mins or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165f. Make sure it is a light simmer, so you do not reduce the liquid more than 15%. Remove chicken and let cool. Strain off broth with a fine mesh sieve, and reserve. Pull chicken meat from carcass.
Place onion, celery, garlic, peppers, sweet corn, a couple pinches of salt, and the stock back into the stock pot. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 20mins or until onions are translucent and cooked through. Add kale, paprika, coriander, cumin, clove, cilantro, and chicken to the pot. Bring to a simmer for 20 mins. Add tortillas and lime. Taste for salt. Does it need more?
Taste for Acid. Does it need more zip and freshness? Add more lime juice if necessary. Enjoy.
Chicken Stock Yield: 1gallon
Ingredients:
3lbs chicken carcass and bones or 6 chicken backs
2lbs onion, cut in half with skin and root intact
1lb celery, rinsed and chopped; utilizing the root end
1lb carrot, rinsed and chopped; utilizing top and skin
1ea garlic head, halved
3ea bay leaves
10ea oregano Sprigs, fresh
10ea parsley Stems
8ea Tellicherry black peppercorns
1.5g water
Directions:
Place all of the ingredients in a non-reactive stock pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let lightly simmer for 5 hours. Make sure it is a light simmer, so you do not reduce the liquid more than 15%. Strain off broth with a fine mesh sieve. Also here you can skim off the fat from the broth and toss it.
When product is completely strained, divide into an ice tray and freeze. After product is frozen, pop out stock cubes and place into a container or Ziploc bag, then put it back in the freezer.
Pull them out when needed to cook vegetables or rice or noodles or chicken or marinades or sauces and/or soups.
