My version of sopa tarasca with chorizo, a Mexican bean soup, has chorizo cooked right into the base for a delicious smoky twist. Finish the soup with tortilla chips, avocado, Mexican crema, and a squeeze of lime for a complete lunch.
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What makes this dish special
Whenever I sit down at a Mexican restaurant, I almost always find myself ordering a soup. I will skip right past the tacos and go straight for the bowl. Pozole is usually my pick, and it rarely steers me wrong. But the other day I felt like venturing out and trying something new.
That is when I landed on sopa tarasca. I had never actually had it before. I just kept reading about this smoky blended bean soup from Michoacán, and I was intrigued. A soup built on pinto beans, tomatoes, and dried chiles sounded exactly like my kind of comfort. So I did what I always do when a dish gets stuck in my head. I went to the kitchen and used my skills as a professional chef to recreate it into a version I knew I would enjoy.
My version leans into what I wanted in the bowl. I cook chorizo right into the base so every spoonful turns rich and savory, while keeping some pintos for texture. Finish the bowl with all the toppings, and you have yourself a complete lunch.
Recipe
Sopa Tarasca with Chorizo
Ingredients
Sopa tarasca
- 8 ounces Mexican chorizo casing removed
- 4 Roma tomatoes
- 1 medium onion halved
- 4 cloves garlic
- 3 dried ancho chiles stemmed and seeded
- 2 15 ounces canned pinto beans with liquid
- 1 15 ounce canned pinto bean rinsed and drained
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- salt to taste
Toppings
- tortilla chips lightly crushed
- Mexican crema or sour cream
- 1 avocado chopped
- cilantro
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Toast the ancho chiles briefly, about 30 seconds on each side. Remove from heat and soak in hot water until softened, about 30 minutes. Drain and roughly chop.
- In the same pan, lay tomatoes, onion, and garlic and cook until blistered and soft, rotating the vegetables occasionally. Remove from heat.
- Add charred vegetables, chiles, 2 cans of pinto beans with their liquid, and broth to a blender. Blend until smooth.
- Heat a heavy pot over medium heat and add chorizo. Cook until rendered and crisp, 5-6 minutes.
- Add puree, stirring to combine. Add cumin, oregano, bay leaf, and remaining pinto beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Season with salt.
- Ladle the soup into bowls. Top with crushed tortilla chips, crema, avocado, and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges if desired.
Notes
Step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Prepare the base
Start by preparing the ancho chilies. Toast the dried ancho chiles for a few seconds per side, then soak them in hot water until soft. You can prepare the chilies the night before, if desired.
Next, it's time to prepare the aromatics. Char the tomatoes, onion, and garlic in the same skillet over medium-high heat until they blister and soften.
This smoky base is what gives sopa tarasca its depth, so don't rush it.
Add the charred vegetables and chiles to a blender with two cans of the pinto beans and chicken broth.
Puree until completely smooth. Although not traditional, I decided to add the third can of beans later for added texture. But if you prefer a smooth consistency, you can omit the third can.
Step 2: Cook chorizo
Next, heat a heavy pot over medium heat and add the chorizo. Break it up and cook until it renders and starts to crisp, about six to eight minutes.
Pour in the blended puree and stand back, since it will sputter. Then, stir in the remaining pinto beans, dried oregano, cumin, and a bay leaf.
Bring everything to a gentle simmer and cook for fifteen to twenty minutes so the flavors settle. Taste and season with salt.
The soup should be pourable but still have body, so add a splash more broth if it feels too thick.
Step 3: Finishing touches
Now let's bring it all together. Ladle the hot soup into bowls and crush a handful of tortilla chips right over the center.
Drizzle with crema, top with chopped avocado, and garnish with cilantro over the top. Finish every bowl with a squeeze of lime if you like a little brightness. You can also add crumbled cotija or queso fresco, pickled onions, or chopped scallions.
This sopa tarasca was exactly what I was craving. The first spoonful is smoky and creamy, with the chorizo giving the whole pot a deep, savory richness. The whole beans add a little bite against the silky blend. Now, this tastes like a bowl you would order at a restaurant, but it comes together on a weeknight.
Serve this soup with peach chipotle corn ribs or chicken chile tostadas for a complete meal!
Make-ahead and storage tips
- Make-ahead: The full soup can be made up to 3 days in advance. Store it in the refrigerator and reheat gently with a splash of broth to loosen it, if needed.
- Store: Store the soup on its own in an airtight container up to 5 days.
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All images shot and styled by Christine Ma. Available for food photography, styling, and recipe development.
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