Chicken Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken (breast, thigh, or leg, depending on your preference)
• ½ cup diced yellow onion
• ½ cup medium diced green bell pepper
• ¼ cup rough chopped cilantro
• 2 tsp oregano leaves
• 3 T. chopped garlic
• 2 tsp salt (I recommend Kosher salt)
• 2 tsp white pepper
• 1 quart water

Directions: Place ingredients in pressure cooker – i.e. InstaPot – and set to cook on high for 35-40 minutes. Allow pressure to release naturally for at least 10 minutes. Remove chicken, shred, and set aside.

By the way, this chicken is great for enchiladas, tacos, or quesadillas!

Tortilla Soup Ingredients:

• ½ cup each of diced vegetables (yellow onion, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, tomato)
• ½ cup of small dice roasted chili pepper (Poblano recommended. Uncooked poblano can also be used.)
• 2 T. vegetable oil, plus more for frying tortillas
• 4 cups chicken broth or stock
• 2 tsp finely chopped garlic
• ¼ to ½ tsp ground cumin (adjust to taste)
• Salt, as needed
• 3 T. cornstarch
• 2 cups Machaca Chicken
• Chopped cilantro
• 2-3 limes, cut into wedges
• 12 Corn tortillas, cut into 1/4” strips and fried (lightly salted and crushed tortilla chips can be substituted)

Directions: I prefer to roast my own poblanos. Set oven to 350°. Halve and seed poblano. Place poblano on a wire rack sitting on a small pan with an 1/8” of water in the bottom. Roast poblano for 30-40 minutes, turning once. Dice poblano and set aside for soup.

In a large stock pot, put 2 T. of oil over medium-high heat. When oil begins to ripple, add diced vegetables, including roasted chili and garlic, and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add broth and cumin and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, add chicken, and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Correct seasoning with salt and cumin as needed.

Meanwhile, fry tortilla strips in 350° oil for 1-2 minutes, until crisp. Set on paper towels to drain.

Make slurry with cornstarch and cold water (slurry should be mixed to a thin paste). Drizzle over soup, stirring constantly. The soup will look cloudy for a bit but will clear as slurry is incorporated.

Top soup with tortillas, sprinkle of chopped cilantro and fresh lime juice to taste.

Why Jerry loves this recipe: Because everybody loves it! Do yourself a favor and double it from the get-go.