Mexico: One Plate at a Time

Season 1, Episode 11

Episode Title: Caldo de Pollo & Tortilla Soup: The Super Bowl

Air Date: 2003-03-21

Overview:

Every culture has its soothing, soulful soup, and in Mexico, it’s Caldo de Pollo, a light chicken broth flavored with aromatic vegetables and herbs. To show us how the traditional Caldo de Pollo Ranchero is made, Rick goes straight to the source, shopping for chicken, vegetables and herbs in Oaxaca, then brings it all home to the rustic country kitchen of his friend Suzanna Trilling, where they are joined by Doña Carlotta for a side-by-side afternoon of soup-making and camaraderie. Then it’s back home to Chicago for something a little less traditional: soup on the grill! Rick’s contemporary Spicy Grilled Chicken Soup with Summer Vegetables makes an easy one-pot dinner. We visit a Mexican bakery for a look at the role of rolls and bread in Mexico; then Rick turns the country’s true daily bread, the tortilla, into a tomato-y Tortilla Soup, seasoned with pasilla chiles and epazote and garnished with avocado, queso fresco and a crowning tangle of crispy tortilla strips.