Slow Cooker Sort Of Tortilla Soup

Since moving to Austin, I’ve eaten a ridiculous amount of tortilla soup.  Like it could have been 114 degrees outside and the craving never ceased.  And one more tidbit?  Nine times out of ten I order tortilla soup sans tortilla, so that’s just the way I made it at home.

FoodFash Chicken Sort of Tortilla Soup (yields 6 servings)

2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts

32 ounces chicken broth

1 – 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes

1 – 8 ounce can of tomato sauce

1/2 large onion, chopped

1 or 2 serrano peppers, seeds removed and chopped

2 – 15 ounce cans of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

a handful of fresh cilantro

salt to taste (if needed at all)

For garnish:

lime wedges

avocado

fresh cilantro

Place chicken breasts in a slow cooker.  Pour everything except for the garnish ingredients over the chicken.  Stir the ingredients and slow cook on high for 3-1/2 hours.  Carefully remove chicken breasts, remove and discard the skin.  Use a fork to separate the meat from the bones and use two forks to shred the chicken.  Add the shredded meat back to the soup and cook on high for 30 minutes more.  Ladle soup into a bowl, squeeze a lime wedge over each serving, and top with fresh cilantro and sliced avocado.  And if you’re one of the normal people that likes tortilla strips on your tortilla soup, go ahead and make that happen too.

This whole slow cooker thing is new enough to me that I’m completely amazed every time.  And the soup itself was amazing too!  I’ve eaten soup for the last four lunches and dinners and could probably keep it going if I wasn’t about to run out.