Quinoa aguadito, or peruvian chicken and coriander soup

By: Tori Haschka
From: Cut the Carbs!
Serves: 2-3

This is not a soup for that portion of the population who thinks coriander tastes unspeakably like soap. But for the rest of us, it can be something of a revelation. The first time a Peruvian friend made me aguadito, I was floored by the quantity of green fronds that found their way into the pot. It was bold and brash and something to behold, particularly the way the strong taste of coriander was anchored by the silkiness of chicken stock and zip of lime and chilli. And while the flavours may appear all light and bright, this is a soup that’s deceptively filling, particularly if you take the liberties that I have by inserting green peas and quinoa. Quinoa isn’t traditional in an aguadito, but to me it’s a natural inclusion – clutching two of Peru’s most famed tastes together in a single bowl.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
large bunch	fresh coriander, well washed
1	onion
2	garlic cloves, peeled
3 tablespoons	olive oil
1 litre	chicken stock
85g	quinoa, rinsed well
130g	frozen peas
2	raw chicken breasts
or 350g	cooked chicken, shredded
1 teaspoon	sea salt

To serve

Quantity	Ingredient
2-3	lime wedges
	finely chopped green chilli, (optional)

Method

To prepare the coriander, trim the very ends off the stems. Now roughly chop the stems and set the leaves aside for later.
Put the coriander stems, onion, garlic and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a food processor and blitz to a paste.
Place a saucepan over medium heat. Add the coriander paste and fry for about 3 minutes to soften the onion and garlic.
Add the chicken stock to the pan and bring it to the boil. Add the quinoa, cover the pan with the lid and simmer for 15 minutes. If you are using raw chicken, place it in the pot now to poach. After 15 minutes, or when the quinoa and chicken are cooked through, remove the chicken from the pan and shred it with 2 forks.
Add the frozen peas and shredded chicken to the pan and heat until the peas and chicken are piping hot.
Pound the reserved coriander leaves, the remaining olive oil and the salt together to a paste either using a pestle and mortar or a food processor. Stir this through the soup before serving it with lime wedges and if you fancy things to be a little hotter, green chilli, to taste.

Tags:: healthy; low carb

Quinoa aguadito, or peruvian chicken and coriander soup

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