Penny Pinching Chicken Tortilla Soup

This makes a ton of soup--about 3 dinnersize servings for our family of five(1.5 gallon or so), so it is very inexpensive--especially if whole chickens are on sale! You could use chicken breasts and canned broth, too--but stewing the chicken really brings down the cost. Also, you can add  more beans and turn it into chicken chili.

Being big Mexican food eaters, my family can eat this once a week without getting tired of it.

1 whole chicken, stewed in crockpot with celery, onions and garlic. Save broth and shred chicken meat. (I did this the day before.)

In large stock pot add:

Shredded chicken, broth

1 large can crushed tomatoes, plus 1 can of water

1 can red beans, drained

1 pkg taco seasoning (You can sub your own mexican spices/chili powder and cilantro)

Lots of corn(I used about 4 cans corn)

1 small can mild green chillies

Salt and pepper to taste

Simmer

Add 3 TBL corn meal(masa) mixed into a hot water slurry at least 30 minutes before serving for a thickener.

To Serve: 

Slice corn tortillas into strips, place in bowl of hot soup. Sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese and dollop of sour cream if desired. Black olives would be good, too.