Hatch Chile Soup

Got Hatch chiles laying around?  This Hatch Chile Soup is a keeper and can lead to all sorts of quick meals.  

But consider yourself warned, we’re using a big ol’ pile of Hatch for this soup and it is spicy!  

How To Make Hatch Chile Soup

Hatch chiles are relatively mild, but the heat really adds up when you use 8 of them!  But this also gives you loads of that delicious Hatch flavor and I think that’s when this soup is at its finest. 

For a milder version I would probably consider a different soup 🙂  Or you could cut down on the number of chiles used.  And if you have the option, some Hatch varieties will be sold as Mild, Medium, or Hot — this can also make it easier to control the heat. 

I’m starting with 1.5 lbs. of fresh Hatch chiles. 

This turned out to be 8 medium-sized Hatch chiles.  How Hot Are Hatch Chiles?

As usual, you’ll want to roast these beauties to extract all of their unique flavor.  Sure, you can stick ’em on the grill if you want, but lately I just plop them in the oven at 400F.  

30 minutes later they’ll look like this:

And your kitchen will smell heavenly!

See all those puffy bits of skin?  You can remove the dangling bits, but don’t worry about getting rid of every last piece.  We’re blending this eventually and the skin won’t affect the flavor — it’s typically just removed for texture purposes in dishes like Rajas.

You can also de-stem and de-seed the chiles at this point — just keep in mind that it’s much easier to do this once the chiles have cooled down a bit!

Once the chiles are roasting I usually get the onion sweating. 

Roughly chop a small onion and get it cooking in 3 tablespoons of butter.  You can also throw in 4 whole, peeled garlic cloves.  

When the onion starts to brown we’ll add 3 tablespoons of flour, mixing well.  This will thicken up the soup, but you can consider it optional if you want to avoid flour.  

Then we’ll add the remaining ingredients:

4 cups stock
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano  What is Mexican oregano?
1/4 teaspoon cumin (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly cracked black pepper

Let this simmer for a few minutes and then add the roasted Hatch pieces:

Bring everything up to temp and then give it all a good whirl in the blender.  Don’t forget to use caution when blending hot stuff!

Give the soup a few minutes in the saucepan and now the most important step…

Taste testing!

As with most soups, using the proper amount of salt is crucial and the exact amount will depend on which stock you use. 

I used this veggie stock that has no sodium, so I probably had to add more salt than someone who uses a store-bought stock.   Your batch will be unique so it’s always best to add a pinch at a time until it tastes right to you. 

I added another generous pinch of cumin to this batch, but you can consider the cumin optional as I know there are many of you out there who dislike it. 

I also added some corn to this batch:

This was canned corn so I just added it in at the end, but if you’re using fresh kernels you’ll want to give them a bit more time to cook. 

And now you can serve it up!

Be sure to add a final dash of acidity as this can really brighten up your soup.  I used a few drops of hot sauce, but a squeeze of lime will do the job too. 

I also like adding freshly chopped cilantro stems to this soup, but you can consider that optional.  Crema would be a good final touch as well. 

To turn this into a meal I usually just dip some bean-n-cheese half tostadas in it.  Simply add some refried beans and cheese to a tortilla in a dry skillet and cook until you’ve got light brown spots forming on the underside of the tortilla — super easy and quite delicious 🙂

Okay, let me know if you’ve got any questions about this Hatch Chile Soup.  It’s a great way to take advantage of that delicious Hatch flavor and it’s been a welcome change of pace in my kitchen. 

Buen Provecho. 

For up-to-date recipes follow me on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest.

Want to see the latest post?  It’s this $30 Grocery List for College Students: