Ang Sarap (A Tagalog word for "It's Delicious")

For today we will be using a very useful Mexican ingredient which is the Tortilla.  Tortilla or “little cake” in English can be classified in two types one is the Mexican variant where it is in form of a flatbread made out of corn or wheat and the less popular Spanish variant where it is in a form of omelette made out of potatoes.  For this post we will be focusing more on the Mexican tortillas.

Flatbread tortillas are a staple dish in Mexico and had existed for many centuries in the region, in fact it started since the Mayan civilization.  According to the legend tortillas were invented by a peasant for his hungry king in ancient times.  The first tortillas that were discovered dates back to approximately 10,000 BC and it was made out of native maize (corn).   On 1519 the Spaniards who colonized Mexico discovered this maize flatbread called “tlaxcalli”, the name was then named as tortilla.  The popularity then spread worldwide after this discovery and now it is used in a lot of dishes worldwide, like this recipe the Tortilla Soup.

Tortilla Soup is a Mexican Soup dish made out of chicken, tomatoes, corn and leftover tortillas.  Other ingredients can be added such as avocadoes, kidney beans, hominy and cheese.  A real good soup dish especially when it is served during cold days the warmth of the hot soup, the effects of the chicken essence and the hot peppers will really make your cold winter nights warm and comforting.

Ingredients

500g deboned chicken thighs
2 large tortillas
1 1/2 cup corn kernels
1 can kidney beans
1 large can chopped tomatoes
3 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 large white onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried oregano
juice from 1 lemon
fresh cilantro, chopped
olive oil
cayenne pepper
salt

Method

1. Cut tortillas into strips then place on a greased baking pan, bake tortillas in a 180C preheated oven for 3-5 minutes or until tortillas turn golden brown and crispy.
2. In a pot add the chicken stock and chicken thighs, bring to a boil, simmer then cook for 25 minutes.
3. Remove chicken from pot then let it cool.  Once chicken has cooled down shred the chicken then set it aside.
4. In a separate pot sauté onion and garlic in oil until soft in a small amount of olive oil.
5. Add the chicken stock, tomatoes, oregano and cayenne pepper.  Bring it to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Stir in chicken, corn, beans and some cilantro. Simmer for 10 minutes.
7. Add the lemon juice and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
8. Ladle soup into serving bowls, and top with crispy tortillas and chopped fresh cilantro.