INGREDIENTS

  • 1 can of fire roasted tomatoes
  • 2 large dried ancho chiles
  • 2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 diced large-size yellow onion
  • 1 bunch of curly kale or collard greens, chopped roughly into bite-size pieces
  • 4 cloves of roughly chopped garlic
  • 8 cups of low-sodium chicken broth
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground of black pepper
  • 1 and ½ lbs. of chicken cubes cut it in cubes of ¾ inch
  • Fresh lime wedges
  • 1 tablespoon of lime juice
  • Crushed tortilla chips
  • Freshly grated cheddar cheese
  • Fresh cilantro leaves
  • Diced ripe avocado

DIRECTIONS

  1. Toast the chiles using metal tongs over an open flame, carefully. You can do it on a gas burner or on a dry skillet on medium heat. Toast it till they are slightly blistered and pliable. It has to be fragrant enough. Keep it aside in a cutting board and allow it to cool down. Cut them in half and take out the stems and seeds. Cut the chiles into smaller pieces. Now, put them in a high-powered blender with fire-roasted tomatoes with the juice. Keep it aside.
  2. Take a large soup pot and add oil and heat it at medium flame. Now, add in the chopped garlic and sprinkle kosher salt to taste. Saute this for 8-10 minutes or till the onions have become translucent. Make sure that you stir it continuously. Now, add the chopped garlic and saute again for 30 seconds. Keep stirring till it is fragrant. Remove the pan from heat.
  3. Take the onion and garlic mixture to the blender with chiles and also the fire roasted tomatoes. Blend the ingredients in a blender till the chilies have integrated completed and you have a smooth mixture having a dark orange-red color. Put the soup on high heat. When it is hot, add pureed tomato and chili at once. It will start to sizzle as soon as it hits the pan. Keep cooking till the mixture has become thick enough. It is going to splutter and bubble to some extent. Once it is ready, the mixture will have a slightly lighter color. It will appear like loose tomato paste.

  1. Now, add in the chicken broth to the pot and stir using a whisk. Bring it to boil. Reduce the flame to low and let it cook for 20 minutes, uncovered. Stir the broth occasionally. Put salt and pepper to taste. Taste to check. Add the chopped greens to the broth. Stir it till it has integrated completely. Let the greens to cook at the low flat for 7 minutes or till it is tender. Add the chicken and stir. Cook for 2 minutes more or till the chicken has just cooked at low heat. Before you serve, add the lime juice. Taste again and add seasoning if required. Garnish with toppings and serve hot.

NOTES

  • Ancho chiles are actually pablano peppers. It is better to use thicker tortilla chips for the soup.