Tortilla Soup

I’ve always been a soup kinda person. I have some friends that don’t like soup, even hate it. I don’t get that at all because for me, soup is the ultimate comforting meal.

When I was a kid, something I could always expect from my grandpa was home-grown pickled beets and a hot bowl of alphabet noodle soup with a slice of bread slathered in his famous garlic butter. I instantly feel nostalgic and happy at the same time thinking about that dinner, and often find myself craving that soup.

These last few weeks have been overwhelming with moving to a new place on top of a crazy busy schedule at work. I’ve had no time to play (I miss you Joshua Tree!) and even less time to make a meal that I consider decent. For all these reasons, soup has been on high rotation for dinner, including this Tortilla Soup recipe from Aimee.

It’s a deceivingly simple recipe that you can literally throw together in less than 10 minutes. On top of that, it delivers the flavors and actually fills you up so you can go straight to the next thing (hopefully it’s something relaxing!).

Tortilla Soup ingredients

I still don’t know the recipe for my grand-pa’s soup but somehow I don’t want to. I’d have way too much to live up to if I tried to recreate it. Sometimes it’s better to just bask in the memories.

Tortilla Soup

Yield

4 servings

Prep Time / Cook Time

/

Activity Guide

Bike Touring, Car Camping

Ingredients

  • 1 poblano chile, roasted over the campfire, skin scraped off and diced
  • 1 serrano chile, roasted over the campfire, skin scraped off and diced (remove seeds for milder heat)
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1/2 onion, sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 4 cups broth
  • 1 cup tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 can pinto beans
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 lime, chopped avocado, chopped cilantro, and tortilla chips (optional)

Tools

  • Can opener
  • Cutting board
  • Knife
  • Large pot
  • Spoon

Method

  1. Heat the olive oil in your pot and cook the onions and garlic until softened.
  2. Add cumin, chili powder, salt, and pepper, and cook another minute.
  3. Add peppers, tomatoes, pinto beans, and broth. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
  4. Serve hot in bowls, and finish with any or all of the optional ingredients

3 thoughts on “Tortilla Soup

  1. As a long-time backpacker and outdoor enthusiast, I really like your site and most of your suggestions. I wish you wouldn’t include canned anything in your recipe lists, however. Any true backpacker will not be bringing cans of food, as they are too heavy.

Leave a Reply to Trisha Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *