Chicken Tomatillo Soup

Tomatillos are a staple ingredient in Mexican cuisine and were used as far back as 800 B.C. by the Aztecs. Their more authentic name is “tomato verde”, Spanish for “green tomato”, and they make up an essential part of the famous green Mexican sauce called salsa verde. They are similar to regular red tomatoes except that their taste is less sweet and more tart and their texture is firmer and meatier. Their seeds are really tiny and their skins are very thin so they neither need to be peeled nor de-seeded like regular tomatoes often do for soups and sauces. Combined with chicken and sweet corn they come together to create a comforting, light and nourishing soup full of protein, fiber and a range of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Standard tomatillos come the size of golf balls and they all have a thin, paper-like inedible husk. It keeps them fresh but needs to be removed before cooking. Choose ones that are vibrantly green and firm without any soft spots under a tightly fitting husk and wash them well to remove the sticky residue beneath the husks.
Chopping the tomatillos into really small pieces makes them cook more quickly so that they soften up and their flavour becomes more mild.Cumin and coriander is a spice pairing used widely across Mexico as well as the Middle East and Asia. Each is good on its own but together they really give a dish that exotic flair without being too overpowering or making it spicy.Along with the cumin and coriander, the onion, garlic and jalapeño create the first layer of flavour and sautéing them all before adding in the other ingredients amplifies their potency. Cooking the chicken next until it is slightly browned on the edges makes it as tasty as possible and these extra steps and make the entire soup much more flavourful than it would be otherwise.