Slow-Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

I'm pretty sure foods like taco salad and tortilla soup are just excuses to eat chips at a meal...

...sounds good to me!

So I know with our mini-heatwave and rolling blackouts, it's hardly the time to be sharing a recipe for soup. But hear me out -

a) I'd like to believe that not all my readers are from Calgary.

b) The slow-cooker is arguably the best thing for cooking in the summer because it doesn't heat up your house and you can throw the ingredients, turn it on, hang out outside (or go to work), then come back to a delicious meal.

c) It's always hot wherever "Tex-Mex" food comes from.

d) I'm slow at blogging - get over it! :P

This recipe comes from my friend Mallory's blog, Total Noms. I love her recipes because they all are super-easy and delicious! Also, if you are in the States, you must check out her and her friend Anya's online cookie shop, Mile End Bakery. They make gluten-free (and gluten-containing) cookies and ship them all across the States; they will also hand-deliver the cookies to you if you live in the NY/NJ area (specifically Astoria, Manhattan, Jersey City or Hoboken.)

Back to the soup - first, you brown some chicken breasts...


Then you lay them at the bottom of your slow cooker and top them with a bunch of veggies - garlic, onions, canned chiles, tomatoes - plus a bit of chicken broth and a dash of cumin.


This soup is a quickie for a slow-cooker soup - only four hours on low, then you're ready to garnish with avocado, cilantro, cheese, lime, chips and eat!

Mallory's original recipe recommends slicing up some tortillas and stirring them into the soup... I like sprinkling chips on top to keep things crispy. We went extra indulgent and bought some of those new Fire Roasted Chipotle Tostitos!

Slow-Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
Adapted from Total Noms
Makes 6 servings

• 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil
  
• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  
• Salt & pepper, to taste
  
• 1 × 4 fl oz/127 mL can green chiles, drained
  
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 1 yellow onion, diced
  
• 1 × 28 fl oz/796 mL can diced tomatoes, including juice
  
• ½ cup (125 mL) chicken broth
  
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) cumin
  
• 2 tbsp (30 mL) cilantro, chopped
  
• 1 lime
  
• Tortilla chips, crumbled (about ¼ cup per serving)
  
• ½ cup (125 mL) Monterey jack cheese, shredded
  
• 1 avocado, diced and tossed with lime juice to prevent browning

1. Heat up a pan over medium-high heat. Pat your chicken breasts dry with a paper towel, then season both sides of each breast with salt and pepper. Once the pan is nice and hot, add oil. Carefully place the chicken into the pan, and let sit for 5 minutes before flipping to the other side. The goal here is NOT to cook the chicken through, but you want to see a nice brown crust forming on the outside chicken to add flavor when it’s slow cooking. Let sit for another 4-5 minutes on the other side, then remove from pan and place chicken in slow cooker.
   
2. In a separate bowl, combine chilies, garlic, onion, tomatoes, chicken broth and cumin. Stir well and pour over chicken. Cook on low for 4 hours. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker to a cutting board and using two forks, shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. Return to the slow cooker. Adjust seasoning and add additional chicken broth or water if it's too thick.
   
3. Once the soup is ready, stir in cilantro. Serve in soup bowls, topping each with shredded cheese, tortilla chips, diced avocado and a squeeze of lime.

Nutrition info: 252 calories, 14 g fat (4 g saturated), 31 mg cholesterol, 18 g carbohydrate (5 g fibre, 5 g sugar), 13 g protein, 423 mg sodium. An excellent source of vitamin B₆, vitamin E, potassium and selenium. A good source of niacin (vitamin B₃), pantothenic acid (vitamin B₅), folate (vitamin B₉), vitamin C, vitamin K, iron, magnesium and phosphorus.