Taco Soup Recipe - Isabel Eats (2024)

FAQs

How can I thicken my taco soup? ›

The best item to thicken a soup is some sort of starch, whether from flour, cornstarch, arrowroot, or even a lot of potatoes. If it is a powder, mix it with cold water and stir to make a smooth, lump-free paste, and stir constantly as you add it to the soup. A little goes a long way!

One option is to add crushed tortilla chips or tortilla strips to the soup. The chips will dissolve and create a thicker consistency. Another alternative is to use instant mashed potatoes. Simply sprinkle some into the soup and stir well, allowing it to thicken before serving.

A squeeze of lemon or lime juice or a little vinegar can help cut through spiciness. Acidic foods tone down the spiciness in foods and can add some flavor, making this a good trick for seafood dishes or creamy soups and chowders.

Yes! Chicken tortilla soup will keep nicely in the fridge for up to 4 days. It may thicken up while refrigerated, so add a bit of water or chicken broth when reheating to thin it out as necessary.

Add Flour Or Cornstarch

You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute. For the best results, never add flour or cornstarch directly to your soup. If you do, it will clump up on top. Instead, ladle a small amount of broth into a separate bowl and let it cool.

It's important to note that cornstarch has twice the thickening power of flour. If you need to substitute cornstarch to thicken liquid in a recipe that calls for ¼ cup (four tablespoons) flour, you only need two tablespoons cornstarch.

Cornstarch is a common thickening agent in the culinary arts, but if you add it directly to the liquid you want to thicken, it will clump up. To thicken a sauce or soup with cornstarch, you first need to make a slurry, which is a mixture of equal parts cornstarch and liquid (usually water, stock or wine).

Add Eggs

To use egg yolks to thicken a soup, whisk the yolks on their own in a mixing bowl and slowly ladle in hot soup bit by bit, whisking constantly, until the mixture is hot to the touch.

The acidity in lemon juice and vinegar can help mask the heat and brighten the other flavors in your soup, so stir in 1 tablespoon (15 ml). Try your soup to see if it's still too spicy for you. If it is, put in another 1 tablespoon (15 ml) at a time until you're happy with how your soup tastes.

Sweet Defeats Heat

Adding something sweet to a too-spicy dish is another great way to reduce spiciness. A sprinkle of sugar or honey should do the trick. Or add a touch of sweet ketchup. If it's a tomato-based sauce, stir in a little more tomato sauce and maybe a touch of sugar.

What do you do if you put too much cayenne pepper in soup? ›

Sweet ingredients like sugar or honey will balance out spiciness. It's almost like by giving your tongue another flavor to think about, you don't notice the spiciness so much. It's still there, but it blends in with the sweetness. Just don't add too much sugar or you'll have a whole new problem on your hands.

For best safety and quality, plan to eat refrigerated soup within 3 to 4 days or freeze it. And avoid letting soup set at room temperature for more than TWO hours.

Turn your big batch of soup into convenient grab-and-go meals by freezing it in individual servings. Quart-size freezer bags (or 4-cup freezer-safe plastic or glass containers) will accommodate a single serving while giving the soup room to expand as it freezes, plus when frozen flat, they stack easily.

Most shelf-stable foods are safe indefinitely. In fact, canned goods will last for years, as long as the can itself is in good condition (no rust, dents, or swelling). Packaged foods (cereal, pasta, cookies) will be safe past the 'best by' date, although they may eventually become stale or develop an off flavor.

A handful of uncooked rice. That's all folks, just a handful of white rice. Any kind will do: jasmine, basmati, short grain, long grain. When added to a brothy (or watery, even) soup, and left to simmer for 20-30 minutes, the rice breaks down, releasing its starch and thickening the liquid that it's cooking in.

Incorporate Cornstarch

Cornstarch is another popular thickening agent that can be easily added to your chicken tortilla soup. Mix cornstarch with a small amount of water to create a slurry.

Just add 2 tablespoons of flour, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, or 1 tablespoon of arrowroot powder. You will also need to add ¾ cup of water and half of the seasoning blend with the thickening agent for every 1 pound of meat.

If it's too thick.

Like a sauce that is too thin, a dish that is too thick is a simple fix! All you need to do is add more of the recipe's cooking liquid — such as wine, broth or cream.