My daughter, Katie, made dinner for us one day and was in and out of the kitchen in about 40 minutes, declaring that the soup was ready. I gave her the evil eye because everyone knows that chicken soup takes a lot longer than 40 minutes. It’s the law! I thought for sure that she was up to no good.
Katie told me what was in the soup and my brain couldn’t figure out what she was telling me. I had her repeat the ingredients and then I had to look at the written recipe. How on earth can a handful of ingredients turn out so amazingly tasty AND in such a short amount of time? PLUS, it tasted suspiciously like Cafe Rio chicken soup.
The bottom line answer is that most of the cooking is done by other people. The chicken? One of those roasted marvels from Costco. The chicken broth? Again, Costco to the rescue with their boxed chicken broth. The salsa verde? A jar from the grocery store. The beans? Canned, also from the grocery store.
Other than opening two cans and a jar, shredding the chicken, and peeling back the seal tab on the chicken stock, the only work that is required is chopping and sauteing an onion, measuring out a few spices, and bringing the whole shebang to a boil for a few minutes. Alternatively the soup can be cooked in a slow cooker for four hours on low. It is great for busy days when there is not much time for cooking, and let’s face it, there are a lot of those days in our lives.
For some great additions, try a spoonful of pico de gallo or fresh salsa, a dollop or two of guacamole, and a sprinkle of Mexican-style cheese such as cotijo. Monterrey jack works well, too! To keep things simple, the pico and guacamole can be purchased, ready -to-go. Crumble on some crushed tortilla chips or, if you have them, some crispy tortilla strips. No tortilla strips? They can be made super quick like I did in Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup.
Ingredients
- 1 medium or large onion, medium diced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cups shredded, cooked chicken (I used a rotisserie chicken from Costco)
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 (16 ounce) jar roasted salsa verde (I used Old World Market brand)
- 2 (15 ounce) cans cannelini beans, rinsed and drained
- 2-3 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Saute the onions in the olive oil until they are translucent.
- While the onions are sauteing, put the remaining soup ingredients into a 6-8 quart pot. Add onions. Bring to a boil over high heat, cover, then lower heat enough to keep soup at a simmer for 15 minutes. Serve as desired.
- Alternatively, for using a slow cooker: The soup can be cooked in a slow cooker. To the crock of a slow cooker, add the sauteed onions, chicken, chicken broth, salsa verde, beans, cumin, and salt and pepper.Turn slow cooker on low and cook for four hours.
- Suggested Toppings: pico di gallo, guacamole, a squeeze of lime, crispy tortilla strips or crushed tortilla chips, cotija crumbles or shredded Monterrey Jack.
You may also like:
Chicken Soup with Orzo
Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup
Smoky White Bean Chicken Chili
