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I made you/me some soup. It’s green…
I wasn’t going to post it because, well, it might be the ugliest soup I’ve ever made. I usually like to share things that are pretty/cute/delicious. Not today, my friends!! Today I’m hurling nutritious, humble and necessary (for me anyway) your way.
My head is stuffed up, my nose is clogged, and my ears hurt (hello ear ache!). Yeah, I’m sick. UGH!
Growing up this is the soup my mama would make me to make things all better. So, this post comes straight from her mama heart through me. JUST like that scene at the end of Ghost, you know? When Whoopi let’s Patrick Swayze take over her body so Demi can get her last dance. JUST like that. So, basically this is my mom giving you this recipe (through me). Weird, right?
Let’s dance!
This chicken soup is daaa best.
This chicken soup story starts with a bunch of fresh cilantro heading into a blender with some garlic cloves, serrano pepper and chicken broth. After a minute or two, you’ll end up with a fragrant, beautiful bright green liquid mixture. Try not to drink it.
Next you’re gonna cook the chicken on both sides in some oil. You want crispy skin. You want the chicken to be nearly cooked all the way through.
After the onion, garlic and red pepper are sauteed, you’re gonna add the rice…
And then the cilantro liquid. Next up, you’re going to add the chicken back to the pot, along with a good amount of chicken broth.
After a good simmer of 20-30 minutes, you’ll have some of the most nutritious, strong soup ever.
Okay. Here’s the thing about this soup: the lime is an absolute must. Like, if you forget it…you have to go back to the store. I’m sorry to be so bossy. I really am, but it’s that important. That citrus works in ways that are indescribable with the chicken and cilantro. This soup feels like gigantic hug from mom (my mom anyway).
Also, if you’re one of those people who tastes soap when you eat cilantro, I’m totally intrigued by you. Like, fascinated…say hi. I wanna know you.
Aguadito (a.k.a. Peruvian Chicken Soup)
3/4 cup cilantro leaves
1 serrano pepper, halved and de-seeded
4 garlic cloves (2 whole garlic cloves and 2 garlic cloves minced), divided
4 1/4 cups chicken broth, divided
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 chicken thighs, skin-on and bone-in
2 chicken drumsticks, skin-on and bone-in
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup white rice
1 ear of corn, cut off the cob
Salt to taste
1 lime
1. Add cilantro leaves, serrano pepper, 2 garlic cloves and 1/4 cup of chicken broth to a blender. Blend until mixture is thoroughly combined. Set aside.
2. In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. When hot, carefully add chicken thighs and drumsticks, skin-side down. Cook on first side for 4-5 minutes, and until skin is crisp and slightly browned. Flip on second side and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside.
3. If the chicken absorbed all of the oil, add one more tablespoon of olive oil. Add yellow onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Next, add red bell pepper and ground cumin, allowing to cook for 1-2 more minutes. Add minced garlic atop of mixture and cook until fragrant.
4. Add the rice and cilantro liquid mixture to the pot and mix, being sure to completely coat the rice. Gently add the chicken back to the pot and cover with the remaining 4 cups of chicken broth. The broth should just cover the chicken. Cook for 20-30 minutes, and until rice is fully cooked.
5. When you’re ready to serve, add salt to taste. This will all depend on how salty your chicken broth was. I needed to add about 1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt. Mix in corn right before serving.
6. Add a few cilantro leaves to each bowl of soup, along with a few wedges of lime. It’s important.
Yields 4 servings
Hola,
Durante mi tiempo en el Peru me desfrute mucho la comida. Si sencilla y todo eso, pero antes de la gastronomia Italiana y Mexicana eren mis favoritos. Estoy fascinado ya con los platos tipicos peruanos – arroz con mariscos or pollo, seco, y por supuesto ceviche, papa a la huancaina dios mio! Buenasos! Pero nunca he probado aguadito hasta que un dia nuestra gerente general de mantenimiento de casa y cosa (la senora que la mayoria llaman la empleada, yo no) nos lo hizo y te juro, comi yo todo que sobro! Riquisimo! Justo este nocho estoy un poco resfriado pero no es el motive que encuentre tu blog o receta. Justamente hice caldo de cuello de pavo y la carne es tan sbrosa, pesaba en tartar de hacer aguadito con ella. Que te parece? Gracias por hacer tu posting. De que parte eres? Y este baboso que no le gusta cilantro, palta ni champaniones…estara vivo? Jaja! Cuidate! Hblamos.
d
My final product ended up with a brown broth rather than that breath taking green pictured above. It tasted wonderful though, I didn’t even have a cold and it still made me feel a million times better. I just blended up more cilantro and chicken broth and added to the soup before packing into portions for lunch. Probably make a few tweaks for next time, but there will be a next time.
Totally amazing! I did it last night. I cut the chicken in small pieces and put it back in and then I used much more lime and no corn. I love limes and did not have corn. Served it with wild rice and a cilantro salad. I hope everything tastes good the next day as well 🙂 I have many leftovers. Enjoy the day.
We had just eaten a Peruvian chicken and rice soup in Brooklyn and I vowed to find a similar recipe. This was fantastic. The soup we had used peas and potatoes along with the rice, and no corn. The flavors were wonderful! All I had on hand was some rotisserie chicken and it worked fabulously. I can’t wait to make it with the legs and thighs! Thank you!
Awesome recipe 🙂
Looks absolutely delicious! Here is a chicken soup you might like to try.
Chicken & Vegetable Soup Recipe
Thanks for sharing,
Jane
CILANTRO RULES! lol. Im a chef going through a cilantro phase putting it in to as many dishes as i can @ home and some @ work…Cheese Enchiladas last night (home) Lamb Tagine (work) Cilantro Feta Pesto Shrimp (home) The exquisitely fresh vibrant citric peppery taste explodes in your mouth and perks up dishes quite well…This Is A Must Try Soup Recipe. Thanks for sharing…..Turtle66
This soup will be perfect for my husband since he is catching the head cold I am just getting over… oops. He LOVES cilantro and I’m still not sure if I do or not, so this’ll be the test. Worst case scenario? He gets all the soup. So glad I found it!!
So glad you decided to post it! I personally think it’s beautiful, made some today ’cause I’m kinda stuffy… it was delicious and felt myself getting better!
Wow! This is great soup!
I just finished making a pot of it–I followed the recipe exactly, but I did use a jalapeno instead of a serrano because I’m a sissy.
Might seriously eat all of the soup myself.
Thanks for sharing 🙂
YAY! So awesome.
Absolutely amazing. Made this soup a couple of days ago to kick a cold in the head. Did just the trick! My wife and I killed the entire pot. Thank you for posting!!
So awesome! So glad you loved it.