My favorite Mexican comfort food!
12 corn tortillas, cut into sixths and fried or baked to make chips (slightly stale dry tortillas are best; I usually cut mine and then leave them spread out all day before frying)
28 oz. can whole tomatoes in juice, drained
2 or 3 canned chipotle chiles in adobo
2 or 3 fresh serrano peppers, stemmed and roughly chopped
large white onion, half sliced; dice the other half
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 1/2 c. chicken broth or water
ham (I use a small pkg. of cubed ham, but use what you like - chicken is good, too), optional
salt (about 1/2 - 1 tsp, to taste)
cilantro, chopped
queso añejo or fresco, crumbled or parmesean
mexican crema (if I don’t have any on hand, I add a little milk to a small container of sour cream just to thin it a bit and whisk really well)
Puree the tomatoes and chiles (to taste) in blender; you’ll need about 2 1/4 cups, I use any extra as salsa. Saute the sliced onion in olive oil over medium heat until golden, add garlic and cook a minute more. Turn heat up to med. high and add tomato puree. Cook, stirring, until it thickens some, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt. Add broth or water and bring to a boil. Add meat, if using. Add chips, coating well, return to a boil, cover and turn off heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Spoon into bowls, drizzle with crema, sprinkle with diced onion, cilantro, and cheese, and serve.