chicken tomatillo soup.

I’ve been stuck on foods that make no sense given the weather we’ve been having and now I’ve allowed my cravings to take over the kitchen.  I have permitted myself to indulge in all illogical meals, which is how, on a perfect summer evening; I ended up making us tomatillo chicken soup for dinner.  I would like to say that we needed to clear out some of chicken from the freezer to make space (since someone insists on it) so making chicken broth was a logical thing to do.  If you’re going to make chicken broth it seems silly not to use some of the broth to make soup. I happened to have tomatillos in the fridge from the farmers market and a recipe for tomatillo soup so I felt that since all the components were in the house then I might as well go for it and I am glad I did.  The result was wonderful (and oh so quick!) and despite it being a soup, it still tasted summery.  We garnished our bowls with shredded Monterey Jack, dollops of Greek yogurt (I was out of sour cream), and a substantial sprinkling of cilantro. 

Chicken and Tomatillo Soup

Recipie Adopted from Cookstr

2 bone in and skin on chicken breasts

Salt

Pepper

3 tablespoons oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves finely chopped

1 pound fresh tomatillos, husk removed, coarsely chopped, or 2 cups drained canned tomatillos, coarsely chopped

2 jalapeno chilies, finely chopped

1 teaspoon cumin

4-5 cups chicken broth or water (I would highly recommend using at least some broth)

¼ cup finely chopped cilantro

Sour cream or Greek yogurt for garnish

Grated Monterey Jack or Cheddar

Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then brown it on both sides in the oil over high heat in a sauté pan or heavy duty stock pot (this saves dishes).  When the chicken is well browned, after about 8 minutes on the skin side and 10 minutes on the flesh side, take it out of the pan and lightly sauté the onion and garlic in the fat left in the pan.  (If the fat has burned, pour it out and add 2 tablespoons more).

Return the chicken to the pan along with the tomatillos, jalapenos, broth and cumin.  Cover the pan and simmer gently until the chicken is done – it will be firm to the touch – about 15 minutes. 

Take the pan off the heat, remove the chicken, and let it cool for 10 minutes.  Remove and discard the skin, pull off the chicken meat, and cut into bite size pieces and discard the bones.  Skim off any fat or froth that has floated to the top of the soup.

Pour the broth and tomatillo mixture into a blender (or use an immersion blender if you have one) and process until smooth.  Return the broth to the pot and add the chicken.  If soup is too thick add a little more broth or water.  Stir in cilantro.  Taste and season with salt and pepper if necessary.  Serve with sour cream or yogurt and grated cheese.