Chicken Posole Verde my Second Favorite Soup

As I have stated in an earlier post, my favorite soup is Tortilla Soup. Chicken Posole Verde is now my second favorite after my husband discovered it while working in Mexico. Usually Posole soups are made with pork and pigs feet but I find that chicken is cheaper and easier to work with. This version of Chicken Posole Verde has you make your own broth which honestly is the heart and soul of this soup so it is worthwhile for you to make. You can make the broth in a pressure cooker to dramatically shorten the cooking time without losing any flavor.

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Chicken Posole Verde my Second Favorite Soup

Chicken Posole Verde is not a very labor intensive soup but it tastes like you labored over it all day.

Servings 10 -12 servings

Ingredients

For the Broth

• 1 - 3 lb whole Chicken
• 1 medium Yellow Onion quartered
• 8 cloves Garlic
• 1 rib Celery cut into quarters
• 2 tsp Black Peppercorns whole
• 8 Cloves whole or 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 8 Allspice whole or 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 cup Cilantro stems with leaves removed for garnish later
• 2 Bay leaves
• 2 tsp kosher salt plus more to taste

For the Soup

• 1/2 lb fresh tomatillos husked and diced or a 10 ounce can of tomatillos
• 1/2 medium Sweet Onion
• 4 oz can Roasted Diced Chiles
• 3 cups Kale leaves stems and center rib removed and chopped
• 2 - 15 oz cans Hominy drained and rinsed
• 1 tsp Cumin ground
• 1/4 tsp allspice
• pinch cayenne
• 1/2 cup Cilantro chopped
• 1-2 Limes juiced

To Serve

• Cilantro leaves
• 2 Avocados diced
• 4 Radishes thinly sliced

Instructions

• To make the broth, place the chicken, breast side down, in a large pot. Add the onion, garlic, celery, peppercorns, cloves, allspice, cilantro stems, bay leaves and salt. Cover with 12 cups of water and bring to a boil. Once a boil is reached turn the heat down to a simmer and cook uncovered for 45 minutes.
• Once the broth has cooked 45 minutes turn off the heat and carefully remove the chicken. Place the chicken in a large bowl so that it can cool and drain of liquid. When cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the skin and bones. Chop the meat into bite size portions and discard the remaining bones and skin. You should have about 4 cups of meat.
• While the chicken is cooling, strain the broth, discarding the vegetables. Remove as much fat as possible with a gravy separator or gently with a serving ladle. Return the broth to the pot. Bring the broth to a boil and reduce by a 1/3 to end up with roughly 6 cups.
• Once your broth is reduced add your chicken, tomatillos, sweet onion, chiles, Hominy and seasonings. Reserve the kale and the lime juice until your soup has simmered again for 15-20 minutes. If you add your kale too early it will turn into mush and not be enjoyable and your lime juice will lose flavor if not saved until the last minute to add.
• When you are almost ready to serve add the kale, lime juice and chopped cilantro. Season to taste.
• Garnish with Cilantro, Avocado and Radish.

Notes

In my house we serve this soup with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of queso blanco.