Description
Caldo de Pollo is a comforting and flavorful Mexican chicken soup featuring tender shredded chicken, hearty vegetables, and a rich, savory broth, perfect for a satisfying and wholesome meal.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Chicken and Broth
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 8 cups water
- 1 medium onion, quartered
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and halved
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
Vegetable Puree
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 3 Roma tomatoes
Soup Vegetables
- 3 medium chopped carrots
- 3 ribs chopped celery
- 3 ears corn, halved
- 2 large chopped russet potatoes, peeled
Optional Garnishes
- Chopped cilantro
- Lime wedges
- Hot sauce
- Mexican rice
Instructions
- Prepare the broth: Heat 8 cups of water in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs, quartered onion, seeded and halved jalapeño pepper, garlic cloves, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover the pot and gently boil for 20 minutes to infuse flavors and cook the chicken.
- Make the vegetable puree: Remove 1 cup of the broth from the pot and pour it into a blender. Using a small strainer, remove the onion, jalapeño, and garlic from the pot and add them to the blender. Add chicken bouillon powder, oregano, and Roma tomatoes to the blender. Blend until smooth to create a flavorful vegetable puree.
- Shred the chicken: Take the cooked chicken out of the pot and shred it using two forks into bite-sized pieces.
- Combine and cook soup vegetables: Return the shredded chicken to the pot along with the blended vegetable puree. Add chopped carrots, celery, corn halves, and peeled chopped potatoes. Cover the pot and gently boil for 15 minutes or until all vegetables are tender.
- Serve and garnish: Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with chopped cilantro, lime wedges, and hot sauce if desired. Serve with Mexican rice on the side for a complete meal.
Notes
- Substitute chicken thighs with chicken drumsticks or bone-in thighs for more flavor if preferred.
- Adjust the amount of jalapeño to control the heat level of the soup.
- For a richer broth, you can brown the chicken pieces briefly before adding water.
- Add other vegetables like zucchini or chayote for variation.
- If you prefer a thicker soup, reduce the broth slightly before adding the vegetable puree.
- The vegetable puree adds richness and depth—do not skip blending.
- Leftover soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or frozen for longer storage.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 240 kcal
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 680 mg
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 20 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 25 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
