limejalapenotortilla

Avocado Soup with Queso Fresco

Though there are many kinds of avocado soups, this is my favorite. I tried it at the Mexican Ambassador’s residence a couple months ago. As Doña Rosita, the cook,  heard me mmm, and mmm, and mmmmmmm all over again, she came out of the kitchen with a pen and a piece of paper ready to dictate her recipe.

What a surprise for such a tasty soup: just a handful of ingredients! Seems that what matters, again, is how you use them.

Doña Rosita told me she has tweaked her recipe through time. Also, she sometimes tops it with tortilla crisps, and sometimes with fresh croutons. Depends on the mood. But she always serves it with crumbled Queso Fresco. There you go! Another thing you can do with that Mexican Fresh Cheese, aside from a Green Salad and Enfrijoladas.

It is easy, tasty and sounds oh… so… fancy. Plus, it is wholesome. The only thing I added to Doña Rosita’s recipe, is some fresh lime juice. I couldn’t help it. So check it out, this is how it goes:

Chop a cupful of onion and add it to the already melted butter and hot oil. Cook the onion over low heat, for 12 to 15 minutes, or until it has gone from white, to translucent, to starting to brown around the edges. See the onion down here, it is rendering and deepening its flavors…

Avocado Soup 2

Add some fresh cilantro. Or if you are one of those people that can’t stand cilantro, add another green herb of your choice: parsley, chives, tarragon or a combination, time to play!

Cook the cilantro just until it has begun to wilt. It will be under a minute, just a stir here and there. We don’t want it to brown. 

Then, scoop the fresh Mexican avocado meat out. A main tip to making this recipe be as delicious as it can be, is to use ripe, meaty avocados. So if that avocado is not giving in to your hold as you gently squeeze, it is not ready for you. Let it ripen some more. Make the soup another day.

If you have ripe avocados, cut in half, remove the seed, scoop the meat out and push it into the blender. You could add a bit of Chile too, Jalapeño, or Serrano. Though Doña Rosita doesn’t.Avocado Soup 5

Now go ahead and add all that almost sweetened and browned onion, along with the wilted cilantro into the blender. Yep, along with whatever oil and butter remains too…

Avocado Soup 6
Pour in some chicken broth. Home made or store bought. You can substitute for vegetable broth as well… Though I always go for the former. 

Avocado Soup 7

For my spin, take out your lime squeezer and add some fresh lime juice right in there too. You can try it without as well and then you get Doña Rosita’s take on the soup.

Avocado Soup 8

Sprinkle some Kosher or Sea salt… and puree it all.

If you want the soup “al tiempo”, or lukewarm, pour it right into your bowls. If you want to serve it cold, cover and refrigerate for a couple hours. Now, if you want it hot, you can as well! Just puree it with some hot chicken broth in the prior step… Talk about an accommodating soup.

Avocado Soup 9Sprinkle a few, or a ton, corn tortilla crisps.

Avocado Soup 10I guess I went for a ton.

Sprinkle some tangy and salty Queso Fresco…and why not? You can decorate it with a slice of creamy and ripe avocado right on top.

 If you do, sprinkle a bit of salt on it… Fresh avocado always seems to beg for a little salt…

Avocado Soup 11

There you go… A smooth, fresh, wholesome and tasty soup, with some crunchy tortilla crisps and a tangy bite from the Queso Fresco in every bite.

Avocado Soup 12I already had some…

Avocado Soup 13

Avocado Soup

Sopa de Aguacate

Recipe Yield

4 to 6 servings

Cooking time

20 minutes

Rate this recipe

4.25 from 4 votes

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon corn or safflower oil
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1 1/2 cup white onion roughly chopped
  • 1 cup cilantro leaves rinsed and loosely packed
  • 1 jalapeno chile sliced in half, seeding optional if less heat is desired
  • 3 large ripe Mexican avocados cut in half, seed removed, flesh spooned out, about 3 cups ripe avocado flesh
  • 6 cups chicken broth can substitute vegetable broth
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt more or less to taste
  • 1 1/2 cups tortilla crisps
  • 1 cup queso fresco crumbled, may substitute farmers cheese or a mild feta

To Prepare

  • In a medium skillet, set over medium-low heat and add the butter and oil. Once the butter dissolves, stir in the onion and jalapeno. Let them cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened. Its color will become translucent and the edges will begin to turn light brown, about 12 to 15 minutes. Incorporate the cilantro leaves and mix them in with the onions and jalapeno. Once the cilantro has wilted, 30 seconds to a minute later, turn off the heat.
  • Place the peeled and seeded avocados in the blender or food processor along with the cooked onion, jalapeno, cilantro, chicken broth, lime or lima juice and salt. Puree until smooth, taste for salt and add more if need be.
  • You may serve bowls garnished with tortilla crisps and cheese, or let your guests garnish to their liking.

Comments

18comments inAvocado Soup with Queso Fresco

  1. Joanna Hensley

    Feb 16

    Hi Pati!

    This sounds amazing! Can I use frozen avocado?

    Thanks,
    Joanna

    1. Pati Jinich

      Feb 16

      Hey Joanna, I think you may use frozen, but my guess is that the soup will become a bit watery. Anyway, go ahead and let me know if it works!

  2. Jen

    Jun 11

    Hi Pati,
    This looks relish. I hope to serve it at our next gourmet club. Is this something that can be made a head of time?
    Thanks,
    Jen

    1. Pati

      Jun 11

      Yes, Jen! I would recommend the most, 12 hours ahead of time and keep covered in the fridge until ready to serve.

  3. Nita

    Dec 08

    Hi Pati, I am trying to find the brand of lime squeezer that you use. There are so many brands out there and most of them are junk. Please, please, please, can you tell me what brand you use? And if possible where I can buy one?

    1. Pati Jinich

      Dec 10

      Hi Nita, I found my lime squeezer at a little market in Mexico, so I don’t have a brand for you. I recommend looking for a heavy one.

  4. Melody

    Jul 08

    I just saw you for the first time today on OPB making the Tortilla & Lime Jam… YUMMY! I am going out now to buy the ingredients I don’t have to make this for guests. So glad I got to watch you make it, it will help ensure I make it right.
    You are lovely to watch and make it all make sense. Can’t wait to try so many more of your recipes!
    Avocado soup is next!
    Melody

  5. Marty Reyes

    Apr 30

    Pati, My husband found your show for me and this was on the first show I watched… I am going to make this for my girlfriends when we go on our quilting retreat. The thing we love most next to fabric is food. My daughter is always making ice cream, so I already put in my request for your Avocado and Coconut ice cream. I was raised in southern California and grew up on orange juice and avocados. Thanks for the awesome recipes.

  6. Sunshine [at] The Culinary Vampire

    Sep 17

    This is my dinner tonight, no joke.

    1. Pati Jinich

      Sep 17

      Hahaha! Lovely ; )

  7. Tino Juarez

    May 06

    Sounds Great! All I have to do is take my Lactaid tablets(for the Cheese),and enjoy!
    Have enjoyed many of your recipes.
    Thanks!
    T Juarez

    1. Pati Jinich

      May 06

      You made me laugh! I am so glad you have enjoyed them, and hope you continue to enjoy them in the future too…

  8. Food Jihadist

    Apr 26

    This looks wonderful. We have a very small season for avocados in Egypt, so I will have to try and snatch them all up to make this soup. Have any tips about extending the shelf life of avocados?

    1. Pati Jinich

      Apr 26

      You are in Egypt! Well greetings from DC! Yes, many good tips. Avocados ripen off the trees. If you want to slow ripening process the most you can, leave them in the refrigerator. Outside the refrigerator they will ripen at a normal pace, say 5 to 8 days from green to black. If you want them to ripen fast, leave them in the warmest area of your house, wrapped in paper, such as newspaper or paper bags. Once ripened, place them in the refrigerator, where they will last several days too…

  9. Cheryl S.

    Apr 23

    Good Heavens Pati!!!
    What can I say about this recipe but, Mmmm, mmm, mmm!!!!
    I have ripening avocados on my shelf right now and this soup will be their final destiny….I can hardly stand the wait!
    and…you were at the Mexican Ambassador’s residence?
    Oh, lucky you! Even more lucky…that he has such a gifted cook. He gets to eat this great food all the time!
    Anyway, I was wondering if you have a recipe for chorizo.
    I love, love, love this wonderful sausage and would like to know how to make it at home. Also, when I was in Toluca, Mexico I had this unbelievably delicious green sausage. If you know anything about this or how to make it, would you be able to post information on it?
    I would be most grateful.
    Thanks,
    Cheryl

    1. Pati Jinich

      Apr 23

      Dear Cheryl,
      Thanks so much for your lovely comment. Let me know how that soup turned out…
      Regarding chorizo, I love it too!! And I have tried the green chorizo you talk about, which comes from Toluca. Here is a link to make a good, genuine chorizo verde http://www.profeco.gob.mx/tecnologias/caryemb/chorizo_verde.asp If you have trouble translating it with an immediate translation, let me know!!

  10. Kim Baxter

    Apr 23

    Yum. Forwarding this to our friends the avocado farmers.

    1. Pati Jinich

      Apr 23

      Thank you Kimmy!

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