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Ground Beef Tortilla Soup

May 25, 2008

Today's recipe started out as a simple tortilla soup and, as always, I experimented with herbs and spices. Most tortilla soups use chicken; while I like chicken, it is not my main meal favorite. I think this version is my best batch yet and hope you agree. I think it is ready for prime time. Note that many believe that shredded American cheese makes a creamier soup and freezes better, but my husband and I prefer the taste of cheddar even though it combines less well in the stock.

Ground Beef Tortilla Soup

1 lb. ground chuck or ground round
1 cup chopped onion
3 quarts chicken stock
5 garlic cloves, chopped or put through a garlic sieve
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons ground pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon cilantro
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 12 ounce cans creamed corn
1 29 ounce can diced tomatoes
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup cornstarch
1 cup cold water
broken up tortilla chips (prefer Estilo Casera - El Milagro Mexican Kitchen Style Salted Tortilla Chips, available in the Mexican food section of my local Meijer, not in the chips/pretzels, etc. section)

Suggested garnishes: sour cream, chopped green onions, chopped fresh jalapeno peppers, chopped fresh cilantro, salsa, Monteray Jack cheese, garnishes as desired, and in any combination.

While browning the ground chuck or round and sautéing the onions and garlic in the same pan, bring the chicken stock to a boil in a large pan. Add the salt, ground pepper, cumin, cilantro, and cayenne pepper to the boiling stock. Add the creamed corn and the tomatoes and bring to a boil again.

Turn the heat down and slowly add the shredded cheese so it dissolves in the stock. Keep the cheese from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Mix the corn starch in the cold water until it is dissolved; then add the mixture to the soup slowly, constantly stirring.

Let soup simmer for ten minutes, then add the ground beef, onion, garlic mixture and simmer for five more minutes stirring frequently to keep the cheese from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

When you think of chicken stock, I use 2 quarts of the packaged stock you find in the soup aisle of your grocer. The third quart I make with premium chicken stock

To serve, break up tortilla chips in a bowl and top with the soup and your selected garnishes.

This soup should serve 6-8 people as a main course with a green salad.

I have experimented with this batch by freezing part of the soup and I'll let you know what I think when we eat the defrosted soup.

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