I love tortilla soup. I haven’t had it in ages but it’s one of my favorite Tex-Mex/Southwest dishes.
Over the weekend, I was doing my usual grocery run and I spied some little containers in the deli section with the words, “Tortilla Soup” plainly on the top. Joy! How conveeeeenient! “Kettle cooked in small batches, never frozen,” it proclaimed. Must be delicious, I thought in anticipation.

Last night we decided to have it with our chipotle/black bean wraps. Perfect combo. Just pop those bad boys in the microwave and instant gratification.

Randy nuked mine first. (He is the chef and it’s “his” kitchen.) I peeled open the lid. A very peculiar odor and sight assaulted me. It did not resemble tortilla soup in any way, shape or form. In fact, it reminded me of something that had already been eaten once.

I will try just about anything food-wise, and I will usually eat something that is just mediocre. I only made it to three bites with this swill. It tasted as bad as it looked/smelled. It had carrots (carrots?) in it. I like carrots just fine, but in my opinion they do NOT belong in tortilla soup! I could’ve lived with it if the rest of it was palatable. But even the carrots were as hard as a brick. I pushed the container away in disgust and made some really ugly comment about it that I won’t repeat here. Randy made a brave attempt and even tried to BRIEFLY convince me at first that it was good. It didn’t take him long to change his mind about it.

It was only after all this that he bothered to read the fine print. It was made in Oregon. Oregon! Now, I would love to visit that beautiful state. But let me tell you, they do NOT know what tortilla soup is. If I had read that in the store, I wouldn’t have bothered taking it home. No doubt we Texans don’t know how to make, um, Oregon cuisine…whatever that entails.

Here is a link to a REAL recipe for tortilla soup, from The Mansion on Turtle Creek in Dallas. That’s in TEXAS. :yes: Now, I’ve never had Dean Fearing’s famous version, because I can’t even afford to drive by the place much less eat (or stay) there. But I promise it’ll be good. There are also simpler recipes out there. Just make sure they are Tex-Mex or Southwest in origin and you’ll be fine.