Lima Soup

Ingredients

• 5unpeeled garlic cloves
• 680 g (about 1½ pounds)chicken breasts
• 2.84 litres (12 cups)water
• 1 teaspoondried oregano
• ½ teaspoondried thyme
• 3bay leaves
• 3whole cloves
• 2½ teaspoons, or more to tastekosher salt or coarse sea salt
• ¼ teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
• 30 ml (2 tablespoons), plus more for frying the tortilla stripsvegetable oil
• ½ (about 1 cup chopped)red onion
• 1green or yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped
• 227 g (½ pound)ripe tomatoes, chopped
• ½ teaspoonkosher salt or coarse sea salt
• 6–8corn tortillas, cut into strips about 5 × 1.3 cm
• 1, thinly slicedlime or lemon, for garnish
• 2–3limes or lemons, to add just before serving
• ½ cupfresh coriander leaves and tender upper stems, chopped, for garnish
• 1, finely chopped (optional)habanero chilli

Instructions

1. 1

   Char the garlic

   Place the unpeeled garlic cloves under a grill or on a preheated comal over medium heat. Roast or char for 10 minutes, turning them a couple of times, until blackened all over; set aside.

2. 2

   Simmer the broth

   Put the chicken breasts in a soup pot and cover with 2.84 litres of water. Add the charred garlic, oregano, thyme, bay leaves, cloves, 2½ teaspoons salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, partially cover and cook for 40 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through but still tender. Take the pot off the heat. Remove the chicken and, once cool enough to handle, shred it finely. Strain the broth into a large bowl, add the shredded chicken and set aside.

3. 3

   Cook the sofrito

   Rinse and dry the soup pot. Heat 30 ml oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion, bell pepper, tomatoes and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are very soft and almost mashed.

4. 4

   Finish the soup

   Pour the reserved broth and shredded chicken into the pot with the sofrito. Bring back to a simmer and cook partially covered for 8–10 minutes, until the flavours have come together.

5. 5

   Fry the tortilla strips

   Heat about 6 mm of oil in a deep frying pan or casserole over medium heat. Working in batches, fry the tortilla strips for 10–15 seconds, until lightly golden. Lift them out with a slotted spoon or spider and drain on a paper-towel-lined plate; season lightly with salt. Alternatively, spread the strips on a baking tray and bake at 135°C (275°F) for 10–15 minutes, turning once.

6. 6

   Serve with garnishes

   Ladle the soup into bowls and add a couple of very thin slices of lime or lemon. Top with tortilla strips and give each person half a lime or lemon to squeeze into their soup just before eating. Offer the chopped coriander and habanero separately for diners to add as they like.

What is Lima Soup?

Despite its name, this soup is built around citrus—lima means lime in Spanish—not lima beans. It is associated with Valladolid in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, where a clear, seasoned chicken broth is brightened with citrus and served with crisp tortilla strips.

This version builds flavour in stages: charred garlic seasons the broth, while a slowly softened tomato, onion and pepper mixture gives it body. Fresh citrus and crunchy strips go in at the end, so the bowl has both warmth and brightness.

Nutrition and macros by portion

The nutrition label shows one serving as written: 350 calories, 38g protein, 25g carbs, 12g fat.

Chicken provides most of the protein, while the tortillas and vegetables contribute the carbohydrates. The oil used for the sofrito and frying supplies much of the fat, with the amount absorbed by the strips varying between batches. For a balanced plate, serve a generous bowl with a side of vegetables and add tortilla strips to taste.

Build flavour into the broth

Charred garlic: Leave the cloves in their skins as they blacken, then simmer them with the chicken and herbs. The roasting gives the broth a deeper, rounded flavour.

Whole spices: Bay leaves, cloves, oregano and thyme infuse the water as the chicken cooks. Straining the broth later removes the solids while keeping their flavour.

Let the sofrito soften

Cook the chopped onion, pepper and tomatoes for the full 10 minutes, stirring often. They should become very soft and nearly mashed, rather than retain a crisp bite.

That soft mixture gives the broth a more integrated, savoury base. If the pot starts to catch, lower the heat slightly and keep stirring.

Keep the chicken tender

Simmer the chicken gently rather than letting the pot boil hard. The recipe’s 40-minute cook should leave the breasts cooked through but still tender enough to shred finely.

After shredding, return the chicken to the strained broth and simmer it with the sofrito for just 8–10 minutes. This gives the flavours time to meld without putting the meat through a prolonged second cook.

Fry crisp tortilla strips

Fry in small batches for only 10–15 seconds, lifting the strips out as soon as they are lightly golden. Overfilling the pan can cool the oil and make the strips less crisp.

For the oven option, spread the strips out on a baking tray and turn them once during their 10–15 minutes at 135°C. Either way, drain or cool them separately and add them to the bowls just before eating.

Finish each bowl at the table

Thin slices of citrus make a fresh garnish, while a squeeze of half a lime or lemon just before eating brings a sharper note to the broth. Offer extra citrus so everyone can adjust their bowl.

Coriander and finely chopped habanero are optional toppings. Keeping the chilli separate lets each person choose how much heat to add.

What to serve alongside

Serve the soup hot as a meal on its own, with the tortilla strips added at the last moment. A side of warm corn tortillas or a simple salad can round out the meal without competing with the citrusy broth.

Keep extra lime or lemon wedges at the table; their acidity is especially welcome alongside the savoury chicken and soft vegetables.

Recipe notes & tips

• Turn the garlic cloves as they char so they blacken evenly on several sides.
• Keep the broth at a gentle simmer to help the chicken stay tender.
• Shred the chicken finely so it distributes evenly through the soup.
• Stir the sofrito often while it cooks, especially as the tomatoes soften.
• Fry the tortilla strips in batches and add them to bowls just before serving.
• Serve citrus, coriander and habanero separately so everyone can season their own bowl.

Variations

• Use lemon: Substitute lemon for the lime if that is what you have available.
• Make it milder: Leave out the habanero and let diners add chilli separately.
• Add more coriander: Offer extra chopped coriander at the table for a fresher finish.
• Bake the strips: Use the oven method at 135°C for a version that does not require frying.
• Use yellow pepper: Choose a yellow bell pepper instead of green for a slightly different sweetness.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Boiling the broth hard: Keep it at a gentle simmer so the chicken stays tender.
• Stopping the sofrito early: Cook until the vegetables are very soft and nearly mashed for the intended texture.
• Crowding the frying pan: Work in batches so the strips cook quickly and turn lightly golden.
• Frying the strips too long: Remove them after 10–15 seconds, once lightly golden, as they can darken quickly.
• Adding strips too soon: Top the bowls just before serving so they keep their crunch.
• Skipping the final citrus: Squeeze lime or lemon into the bowls just before eating to finish the soup as intended.

How to store

Refrigerate leftover soup, without the tortilla strips or fresh garnishes, in a covered container for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the hob until piping hot, then prepare or re-crisp the tortilla strips separately and add them when serving.

Frequently asked questions