How to Make El Torito's Sopa de Tortilla

The tortilla soup (known as sopa de tortilla in Spanish) at El Torito's restaurants is a delicious and easy-to-prepare dish that makes an excellent accompaniment to any Mexican meal. Make it for Cinco de Mayo, or for any occasion that warrants spicy and delicious soup.

Things You'll Need

• 1 medium yellow onion
• 2 carrots, peeled
• 2 stalks celery
• 1/2 bell pepper, seeded
• 1 potato, peeled
• Dicer
• Cutting knives
• Cutting board
• Cooking pot
• 7 cups chicken broth
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp. dried Mexican oregano
• 1 zucchini
• 2 medium tomatoes
• 2 medium chicken breasts, boneless, skinless , poached and shredded
• 3 corn tortillas
• Vegetable oil
• Frying pan
• Paper towels
• 1.5 cups shredded Jack cheese
• Soup bowls
• 8-10 slices avocado
• Cilantro sprigs

Instructions

1. Dice the onion, carrots, celery, pepper and potato, using a knife and a cutting board or a dicer if you have one. The resulting cubes should be small but firm, no larger than 1/4 inch per side.

2. Combine the vegetables in a large pot and add the chicken broth, tomato paste, garlic, bay leaf and oregano. Season it to taste, using greater or lesser amounts of the spices as desired.

3. Bring the water in the pot to a boil, then reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer for 25 minutes.

4. Dice the zucchini and the whole tomatoes in the same manner as you diced the other vegetables. You can do this while the pot is simmering.

5. Add the diced zucchini and tomatoes to the pot, along with the shredded chicken breast. Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce the heat again and allow the sopa de tortilla to simmer for an additional 10 minutes.

6. Remove the El Torito's sopa de tortilla from the heat.

7. Cut the tortilla carefully into strips about the size and length of matchsticks. Sauté the strips in vegetable oil in a pan until they are crisp.

8. Drain the tortilla strips on paper towels to get rid of the excess oil.

9. Place the tortilla strips at the bottom of the soup bowls. Cover them with the shredded Jack cheese.

10. Ladle in the El Torito's sopa de tortilla on top.

11. Add a slice of avocado and a cilantro sprig to each bowl.

12. Serve it hot. These directions make enough for 8 to 10 bowls of sopa de tortilla.

Tips & Warnings

• To make fewer servings, reduce the ingredients proportionally and make sure you use the same ratio of each ingredient in comparison to the others. (The given portions are used to make soup for El Torito's large groups of customers.)