Chicken Tortilla Soup

makes approx. 4 quarts or 9-10 pints

Ingredients

• 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 ½ cups carrots, sliced half-moon shaped ½” thick
• 1 large Vidalia onion, diced
• 16 Roma tomatoes, diced
• 2 cups dried black beans
• 1 cup mild green chilies, chopped fine
• 2 cups of water
• 6 cups chicken stock (not broth)
• 4 cups corn kernels, fresh cut or frozen and thawed
• 1 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp sea salt
• 1 Tbsp ground chili powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2-4 dried cayenne peppers
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbsp Canning Gel

Instructions

1. In a small stainless steel stock pot, cover chicken breasts with 2” of water and boil until cooked through, about 15 minutes.  Using canning tongs remove chicken and set aside to cool on a cutting board.  Discard water.  Once chicken has cooled, shred or cut into bite size pieces.
2. Bean Prep:  Dried black beans may be added to the soup once they have been properly cleaned and rinsed in a colander.  The beans will soften naturally during processing.  If you prefer softer beans in your soup, you may pre-boil in a saucepan separately for 15 minutes, drain, rinse and then add to soup.
3. In a large stainless steel stock pot, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil on medium-high heat.  Mix well.  Boil gently for 3 minutes then add cooked chicken.  Bring to boil and boil gently for 5 minutes then remove from heat.  Using a slotted spoon, remove dried cayenne peppers from soup and discard.
4. Using a slotted spoon and funnel, fill your hot jars just over half full with the soup contents.  Next, ladle soup broth overtop the soup contents being sure to leave a generous 1” headspace.  Remove any air bubbles and adjust headspace as necessary.  If you prefer a thinner soup, simply ladle soup into hot jars.
5. Using a warm wash cloth dipped in vinegar, wipe jar rim and screw bands.  Place sterilized lid and ring atop each jar and hand tighten.
6. Process in a pressure canner at 10 pounds of pressure; 75 minutes for pints and 90 minutes for quarts.  Be sure to adjust pressure if living in a higher altitude.