This Quick Taco Soup with Pulled Pork is part of a series of meals made using Easy Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas (Mexican Pulled Pork) that I shared. Using leftover pulled pork, you will be dishing out this flavoursome soup in 15 minutes! But you can also make this with other leftovers, like chicken.
A few weeks ago I shared my Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken Enchilada Soup (that’s a mouthful, isn’t it!!). It’s great because it literally takes 10 minutes to prep then you set and forget. I didn’t expect to be sharing another Mexican Soup again so soon, but I can’t resist. This Quick Taco Soup with Pulled Pork is an express version made using leftover Pulled Pork (but of course you can make it using any leftover meat).
This soup evolved on a whim one day when I had lunch plans with a friend and promised to take over a taco spread using leftover Pork Carnitas (I even sent her a photo in advance of what I was bringing!). But when I woke up, it was a filthy miserable cold day. Perfect weather for a hearty warm soup, so I peered into my pantry to assess its contents to see whether I could pull together a quick soup using the Pork Carnitas.
I am not one for coming up with recipes on the fly, more often than not, my “inventions” are a disaster. But I make a lot of Mexican food so I was fairly confident this would be pretty tasty. Based on my friend’s reaction, I think it was more than “pretty tasty”!
Toppings are not optional! It’s what turns an otherwise yummy soup into a memorable soup that people will ask for again and again – even the kids! This Quick Taco Soup with Pulled Pork is a great midweek meal to add to your rotation because it’s so quick and filling. And it also freezes really well (assuming you aren’t using pulled pork that was previously frozen because you shouldn’t refreeze meat, even if cooked).
This is recipe is part of a series where I show you How to Make 5 Mexican Freezer Friendly meals (for 4 people!) in 1 hour for $50 using one batch of Pork Carnitas.
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Quick Taco Soup with Pork Carnitas
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 brown or white onion , diced
- 1 red bell pepper (capsicum), diced
- 1 can (15oz / 400g) black beans (Note 2)
- 1 can (15oz / 400g) sweet corn
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 tsp oregano (dried)
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp chilli (optional)
- 2 cups shredded Mexican pulled pork (Pork Carnitas) (or shredded chicken)
- 24 oz / 680 g tomato puree passata (or crushed tomatoes - see Note 1)
- 4 cups (1 litre / 2 pints) chicken or vegetable broth / stock
- Salt and pepper
Toppings (optional)
- Corn chips
- Sour cream
- Grated cheese
- Cilantro / coriander leaves
- Avocado , diced
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large saucepan over high heat.
- Add the pulled pork and cook for 1 minute until parts of it are browned, then remove from the saucepan. Do this step even if you are using shredded chicken or another meat.
- Add garlic and onion, sauté until onion becomes translucent (2 minutes), then add the capsicum (bell pepper) and cook for 1 minute until softened.
- Return the pulled pork into the saucepan and add all other ingredients except salt and pepper. If you are making this ahead to FREEZE, see below for instructions.
- Stir to scrap the brown bits from the pulled pork off the bottom of the pan to mix in with the soup flavours.
- Bring to boil then turn down heat slightly and allow to simmer rapidly for 3 minutes so the flavours can come together. If you are using crushed tinned tomatoes instead of passata, let it simmer for a further 5 minutes to let the tomatoes breakdown a bit. If the soup gets too thick to your liking, just add a bit more water.
- Do a taste test, then season with salt and pepper. It is important to season last because different stock brands have different levels of saltiness.
- Serve with toppings of choice. The more toppings = more delicious!
Freezer Friendly Instructions
- Follow steps 1 to 3.
- In step 4, do not add the tomato passata or chicken/vegetable stock/broth. Instead, add 1 cup of water, bring to simmer and stir, scraping the bottom of the pot to get the brown bits off.
- Remove pot from heat and set aside to cool, then pour the contents into a container or ziplock bag and freeze.
- To cook, defrost, then pour the contents into a saucepan. Add the tomato passata and chicken stock/broth. Then follow steps 6 onwards as per above.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Wow yum! This looks so great!
Thanks Rachel!