Mexico City-Style Tortilla Soup with Fried Pasilla and Avocado

Shared by The Pantry Seattle

Adapted from Ana Sainz

Yield: 6 to 8 Servings

Ingredients

4 Roma tomatoes

High heat oil, as needed

2-4 tablespoons adobo sauce

6 cups chicken or vegetable stock

24 thin corn tortillas

For garnish:

3 dried pasilla negro chiles

2 ounces pork chicharrón (optional)

1 ripe avocado

5 ounces queso fresco or queso panela

1 cup Mexican crema

Instructions

Remove the top of the tomatoes, cut them in half and remove the seeds. Place them in a blender and puree. Add a little water if needed. In a soup pot, heat a tablespoon of oil, when piping hot, add the tomato puree and the adobo. Cook until the mixture reduces by a third.

Add the stock, bring to a boil and then simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.

Cut the tortillas into thin strips, in a heavy bottom pan heat 1 inch of oil to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Fry the tortillas in batches until crispy and slightly golden in color. Set it aside. (You can fry the tortillas up to two days in advance. Let them cool down after frying and store in an airtight container until ready to use.)

Seed and devein the pasilla chiles and fry in a little bit of oil until they start changing color, remove, drain the oil and tear into small pieces.

Crumble the chicharrón, if using and set aside. Dice the cheese and place the crema in a little container, refrigerate until ready to serve. Just before serving, dice the avocado.

To serve, bring the soup to a boil, place a good handful of tortilla strips in each bowl and pour 3/4-1 cup of the soup on top. I like my tortillas crispy so I like to serve it right away. You can wait for a couple of minutes for the tortillas to soften up. Garnish as desired.