Monday, November 27, 2017

Cream of Green Chile Soup

My husband and I are what you would call Chile Heads.  We love anything with Hatch Green Chile.  We've had green chile wine, green chile peanut butter, and he's famous for his Green Chile Stew Recipe.  We try to get to New Mexico as often as we can, especially in late August and September during the Hatch Chile harvest.  Hatch, New Mexico is known as the "Chile Capitol of the World," most famous for growing New Mexico's State Vegetable: the New Mexico or green chile.  There's nothing quite like the smell of fresh green chiles turning in a chile roaster over an open flame.  We've been known to bring home garbage bags full.  I've been thinking about developing a Cream of Green Chile Soup for a long time.  I finally got around to creating it, and it was positively dreamy.  Light, but creamy in texture with the distinct flavor of roasted Hatch green chile.  I've never tasted anything quite like it.  My husband ate three bowls and exclaimed, "The only thing missing is a Monterrey Jack grilled cheese sandwich."  He's definitely onto something there.  Whether you're a Chile Head or a chile novice, this creamy, dreamy soup is a must make! 
Move over Greg's Famous Green Chile Stew,
make room for Candi's Cream of Green Chile Soup!
2 pounds of green chile deliciousness

Simmer the green chiles, onion and garlic with
chicken stock...
Puree until smooth, season with salt
and add heavy cream.

Enjoy New Mexico's most famous flavor!

Cream of Green Chile Soup

2 pounds roasted mild Hatch green chiles, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 large white onion, chopped
2 teaspoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic minced
4 cups chicken stock
1-2 cups heavy cream (depending on heat from chile)
Kosher salt to taste

In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, saute onion in olive oil until soft and translucent.  Add garlic and saute one minute more.  Add the chopped green chiles and chicken broth.  Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer and allow to cook 20 minutes.  Using an immersion blender, puree the mixture until very creamy.  Stir in cream.  Taste for seasoning and salt to taste.  Allow mixture to heat through and serve.

NOTE:  I used Hatch green chiles I had in my freezer.  I think this would be delicious with canned green chiles as well, but nothing beats that fresh roasted flavor.  If you have access to fresh green chiles in season, the definitely roast them fresh and use those.  Be sure to use the authentic Hatch green chile.  There's nothing that compares to the flavor!  I used 1.5 pounds of mild chiles and 1/2 pound of a particularly HOT batch. I wound up using the entire 2 cups of cream, but next time I will make the soup with all mild chiles, and go with 1 cup for a stronger chile flavor.

Prep Time:   Approximately 10 minutes     Cook Time:  Approximately 20 minutes


6 comments:

  1. I grew up in NM when Hatch chiles were still "undiscovered" by the masses. We would make a trek over to Hatch from Carlsbad (not a day trip back in the 50's and early 60's) and get several bushels of fresh chiles and take them home and roast them in Dad's roasting contraption. So, I thought I was a Chilehead. But even I never thought of green chile peanut butter or cream chile soup. Green chile chocolate sauce or chile apple crisp, yes. I even made green chile lime jello (really good!) So I tried your peanut butter and the soup and loved both. So now, I have green chile soup along with a grilled green chile cheese and am in heaven. Thanks for the ideas, although my wife isn't too sure. She grew up in northern Louisiana and still thinks the mild chiles are hot!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies

    1. So glad you liked it! The flavor of Hatch Chiles are truly unique! Thankfully they have started to make their way to Oklahoma and get trucked in and freshly roasted each Fall (although I sure miss that excuse to travel to NM each year!)

      Delete
  2. So glad you liked it! The flavor of Hatch Chiles are truly unique! Thankfully they have started to make their way to Oklahoma and get trucked in and freshly roasted each Fall (although I sure miss that excuse to travel to NM each year!)

    ReplyDelete
  3. About how many pods equals 2 lbs mine are already roasted and frozen

    ReplyDelete
  4. Approximately how many pods equals 2 pounds of fresh green chilies? Mine are already roasted and frozen.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Susan - sorry for the late reply. I’m having trouble logging into my account. There are approximately 8 fresh green chiles per pound (of fresh) and it takes approximately 12 to 14 whole fresh chiles to create 1 cup/8 oz of roasted green chiles

      Delete