Rotisserie Chicken Tortilla Soup

It's been raining all day in Southwest Florida. A perfect day for chicken tortilla soup! My version of of this Mexican classic is very chunky and made with a cooked, seasoned rotisserie chicken (I buy the Mojo seasoned). It is so hearty, I serve it as the main meal. Make sure you have fresh limes to squeeze over the soup when you serve it. The stock from the chicken carcass is combined with chicken bouillon to make a rich broth. Better than Bouillon is the best. I use this paste in many soups and sauces. It is a "must have" to keep in your refrigerator!

P.S. This can also be made with leftover Thanksgiving turkey!

Rotisserie Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 cooked rotisserie chicken
3 large carrots
1 large stalk of celery
1 large Vidalia onion
1 handful or parsley sprigs
3 fresh ears of corn (or a can of corn)
1/2 poblano pepper (skip if you don't want the soup to be spicy)
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 green pepper
4 or 5 scallions, with last 1/4 of tops cut off
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
3 T olive oil
1 can of black beans
1 can of stewed tomatoes
3-4 t of Better than Bouillon paste (chicken flavored)
3 T chili powder
2 T cumin
1 t salt
1 t pepper
2 bay leaves
Bunch of cilantro
Ripe avocado
lime
Corn tortilla or tortilla chips

First make the stock:
1. Remove meat from rotisseries chicken in about 1 inch chunks. Set meat aside.
2. Put chicken carcass and skin in a pot and add water until it is about 3/4 covered.
3. Cut one of the carrots and celery into chunks and add to the pot. Cut onion in half and set half aside. Cut the other half in half (so you have 2 quarters) and place in pot.
4. Add bay leaves and parsley sprigs.
5. Bring pot to a boil, turn down heat to a gentle simmer and simmer for 1 hour. After one hour, let pot stand at room temp for one hour. Then drain into a bowl or pot. Pick any additional chicken off the carcass to add to the soup, then discard the carcass and veggies. Place the stock in the fridge for about an hour for the fat to rise and solidify on the top. You might find it has a gelatin consistency because of the collagen in the bones. That's good!  It means it's extra rich and healthy and it will liquify when heated. Skim the fat off the surface once the fat rises and hardens on the top.

The soup:
1. In a soup pot or Dutch oven, add olive oil.
2. Cut kernels off corn and add to olive oil in pot. (If using canned or frozen corn, add at step #
3. Chop the half onion that was set aside and add to pot.
4. Cut poblano, red, and green peppers into 2 by .25 inch thin strips. Add to pot.
5. Chop remaining carrots and scallions and add to pot.
5. Saute on medium heat until veggies are slightly soft.
6. Add chopped garlic and stewed tomatoes with juice, breaking up the tomatoes with your hands into small pieces.
7. Add chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.
8. Add 3-4 cups of water until water just covers veggies.
9. Add 1 t of Better than Bouillon for each cup of water you added.
10. Bring to a boil, lower to a gentle simmer, and simmer for 30 minutes.
11. Taste test to determine whether to add more chili powder or bouillon, depending on your preference.
12. Add chicken, black beans, and stock from the rotisserie chicken carcass. Set aside until serving.

When ready to serve, heat soup at a gentle simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off heat and stir in about 1/3 cup chopped cilantro. Cut tortilla into strips and fry in oil until crispy and drain or buy them in strips in the salad dressing/croutons section in your supermarket. When ready to serve, top soup with tortilla strips (or crushed chips), diced fresh avocado, and a generous squeeze of fresh lime juice.