Okay, folks, let’s dive into my little kitchen adventure today – making Cuban Chicken Soup! I’ve been craving some comfort food, and this seemed like the perfect thing.
Getting Started
First, I gathered all my ingredients. I’m a bit of a “throw things together” kind of cook, so I didn’t measure everything perfectly, but here’s the gist of what I used:
- Chicken (I used some leftover rotisserie chicken, because, why not?)
- Onion (yellow, because that’s what I had)
- Garlic (lots of it, naturally)
- Carrots (baby carrots, ’cause I’m lazy)
- Celery (just a couple of stalks)
- Potatoes (Yukon Gold, my fave)
- Chicken broth (the low-sodium kind)
- Lime (freshly squeezed, of course)
- Cilantro (a must-have!)
- Rice.
- Some spices (cumin, oregano, salt, pepper – the usual suspects)
The Cooking Process
I started by chopping up the onion, garlic, carrots, and celery. I’m not gonna lie, my knife skills are… not great. But hey, it all ends up in the same place, right?
Then, I heated up a little bit of olive oil in a big pot and tossed in the onion and garlic. Once they were smelling good and starting to soften, I added the carrots and celery. I let that all cook together for a few minutes, just until the veggies started to get a little tender.
Next, I poured in the chicken broth and added the potatoes (which I had already peeled and cubed, because nobody wants to eat potato peels in their soup). I also threw in the spices at this point – a good pinch of cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper.
I brought the whole thing to a boil, then turned down the heat and let it simmer for a while, maybe 20 minutes or so? Just until the potatoes were nice and soft. I also cooked rice in the mean time.
Finally, I stirred in the shredded chicken and added my secret weapons about 5minutes before it’s done: a big squeeze of lime juice and a handful of chopped cilantro. These two things really make the soup, in my opinion. They add so much brightness and flavor!
The Result
And that’s it! I ladled myself a big bowl and added the cooked rice. Honestly, it was exactly what I needed. Warm, comforting, and full of flavor. Plus, it made the whole house smell amazing. I did a small celbration dance because, why not?
This Cuban Chicken Soup is definitely going into my regular rotation. It’s easy, delicious, and pretty healthy, too. What’s not to love?
