Corn & Crab Soup
The secret of this soup’s distinct flavor is grated lime peel and chile powder.
One summer in Maine, I threw in leftover lobster meat instead of the lump crab. I’ve also used fresh fish cut into 1-inch chunks. A leftover baked chicken with all the yummy pan juices thrown into the broth is also great. Experiment!
Ingredients
3 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels, divided. (corn cobs, reserved)
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup white wine
1 bunch fresh cilantro, stems cut off and reserved, leaves chopped
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 minced seeded jalapeno
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
2 teaspoons finely grated lime peel
12 ounces lump crabmeat, picked over
Juice of 1 fresh lime
avocado oil (for frying)
corn tortillas, cut into 1/4 inch wide strips
coarse kosher salt and ancho chile powder
avocado slices for garnish
lime slices for garnish
Instructions
Make corn broth: After removing corn from the cobs, break corn cobs in half and place in large pot. Add chicken broth, 1 cup water, cilantro stems, and salt to the pot. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 25 minutes. Strain liquid into bowl; discard solids. Add 1 cup wine and enough water to measure 4 cups.
Saute aromatics: Melt butter in heavy large saucepan. Add onion; saute until tender and translucent. Add garlic, jalapeno, chile powder, and lime peel; stir 1 minute. Remove from heat.
Finish soup: Reserve 1/3 cup crabmeat for garnish. Combine 2 cups corn kernels and 1 cup corn broth in blender; puree until almost smooth but still slightly rough in texture. Add this to the onion mixture. Add the remaining 3 cups corn broth and 1 1/2 cups corn kernels to the onion mixture; bring to simmer. Add crabmeat, lime juice, and 1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves, salt, pepper. Simmer for another 5 minutes. Add more lime juice, if desired.
Fry tortilla strips: Pour 1/2 inch avacado oil in a skillet and heat over medium heat to 350 degrees. Add several tortilla strips to skillet and cook until crisp, about 45 seconds. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with salt and lightly dust with chile powder.
Serve and garnish: Ladle soup into bowls. Top each serving with reserved crabmeat. Garnish with cilantro, tortilla strips, avocado slices and serve with a lime slice..