Jamaican Tortilla Soup

I am extremely pleased with this recipe! I reduced the water by half, but increased the coconut milk and tomatoes. I also doubled the spices, except for the red hot sauce (Sriracha, in my case). Next time I will leave the quantity of tomatoes as is, but continue with the reduced water and doubled coconut milk and spices. I used vegetarian chicken substitute and bottled lime juice, and we served it with the shredded pizza cheese we had on hand. This was fantastic. My fiance is a VERY picky eater, and he enjoyed it and said I should definitely make it again! It has a nice warm spiciness to it, without being uncomfortably hot. If I could give it six stars, I would.

Good recipe -- easy to prepare and a very interesting mixture of flavors. Don't skimp on the lime! If I make it again, I might add rice to make it a little heartier.

VERY good soup! I agree with half the water and double the spices, otherwise the ingredients are drowned out and the soup is too watery. I added avocado slices and fresh chopped cilantro at the end. Use about a 1/4 slice of lime for each bowl. I also added a little rice to make it more hearty.

I used about half the amount of water and doubled the spices. I thought it was really good. I don't love soups for meals, but this one is an exception for me.

We really, really liked this one. It tasted like a cross between Mexican lime soup (Sopa de Lima from this site is terrific) and Tom Ka Gai. I made the following adjustments per our tastes: homemade chicken broth, rotisserie chicken, doubled all spices except allspice, used a can + juices of Rotel for the tomatoes, light coconut milk. I used more chicken broth than the recipe calls for, having a total yield of 11.5 cups of soup. In the future I will also add an onion because I can't see any good reason not to. Be free-handed with the lime juice, it's the secret ingredient that makes everything come together. Your soup will only taste as good as your broth does -- so use a brand of bouillon or stock that you know and love! Thanks for sharing your recipe, this was a delicious low-calorie dinner for us tonight :)

Yes, halve the water, double the spices (incl ginger & garlic.) Adding rice or lots of tortilla chips bulks it up. A big hit!

This was good, but I had to double the spices. I didn't have any thyme or lime, and I really think the lime is essential because as I made it, it was just okay, but for the leftovers, I will definitely be making sure I go buy a lime. I was expecting a stronger coconut flavor, and would maybe consider losing some of the chicken broth and doing a full can of coconut milk next time. Also, the cheese didn't really seem essential. It's probably fine without it. Just don't forget the lime!

We took the advice of double spices and less water. Excellent recipe. Unexpected and delicious. Perfect for when we're "tired of the same old stuff."

This soup was very good! I took other people’s recommendations and doubled all the spices including the garlic and ginger, I also used 2 green onions with the whites, a 13.5oz can of unsweetened coconut milk, and 1 cup rice. (I would recommend long grain rice like jasmine) I made this recipe more like a traditional soup by browning the chicken in olive oil in a stock pot until done. Removed it from the pan, then added the carrot, ginger, garlic and green onion and cooked until soft, ( I chopped every thing small) deglazed the pan with the 6 cups water, added the chicken flavor, chicken and rice and cooked until the rice was done, then I put in the rest of the ingredients and heated until hot. I served it with the cheese, chips, lime (a must) and avocados. It was great I will make it again.

Oh my gosh. Tell me JMJ...is this recipe like the Rumbi Island Grill tortilla soup?? I haven't been near a Rumbi's in over a year and CRAVE that soup. I just noticed that this recipe is extremely similar to the copycat recipe I have (sans cilantro). Living in Utah, I imagine you may know. I'm going to try this in the next week. If it is, you have saved my life!

Great soup. Not so much water needed though.

Laralee, yes, this recipe WAS indeed inspired by Rumbi's soup, and the most fantastic Jamaican jerk I had on a trip to the Cayman islands years ago. I'm glad everyone is doubling the spices and reducing the water, as I submitted it a little milder for the feint of heart : )

this recipe was really good!! i used 6 cups of water instead of 8 and 2 cups of coconut milk. i also used 2 scotch bonnet peppers to give it an authentic island flavor. just remember to SHAKE the can of coconut milk so it wont separate in the soup! overall it was a delicious recipe and i will definitely make it again when it gets cold.

Wow! My whole family loved this and its pretty simple to make. The flavor is extremely unique and is something you dont need to feel bad about craving. I did cut the water in half, added a condensed stock, and a whole can of coconut milk.

Wonderful! I used 6 cups of homemade chicken/veggie both and skipped the water/bullion. I also double the spices including the hot sauce (sriracha). I also used a full can of coconut milk (regular not light since light just adds extra water but is the same price). I doubled the veggies too and sautéed them rather than boiled them (personal preference). I also sautéed finely chopped celery including some celery leaf, and topped with minced jalapeno, green onion, and cilantro. I skipped the cheese and tortillas. I completely agree with "don't skip the lime" comment of other reviewers. Next time I would also add the rice suggested by several. It is an excellent flavored soup that you can put with pretty much whatever veggies sound good to you. Definitely a entrée type soup for us, but would work well too as a appetizer course. A keeper of a recipe!!!

This was delicious! I made it exactly according to the recipe, and it was wonderful. I was still expecting the Mexican flavor because that's all I've ever had, but this was a great surprise. Can't wait to have it again!

I followed other suggestions and cut water by half and doubled spices. Also added a cup of garden peas for color and a pound of shrimp. Next time I will add boiled and cubed sweet potato.

I gave this 4 stars because it's such a DELICIOUS soup and a great start, but the amounts are a little off. Definitely need to double the spices and even add a few extra bullion cubes or a little salt. (The flavor was just kind of bland by its self.) Also, the lime juice REALLY helps with flavor so don't skimp on that! A few of my family members add more hot sauce to theirs, and I also always include chopped cilantro. Now, just as preference, I started to like this soup even more when I also doubled the coconut milk, carrots, chicken, and tomatoes, too. So, maybe the REAL "cure" to perfect this is to cut the water in half. I've also added some rice in the past to make it a little heartier. Oh man, it's SO GOOD!!!

Not sure what went wrong. It was way too watery. I did NOT read review before making this and I see a lot of people are suggesting to reduce the water. I saved it as a recipe to try and then my husband picked it by the description and ingredients. Shame on me. I was so disappointed. I may have to try again with less water.

Needs some additional veggies...a bit too watery as written.

Very yummy for me and all my kids. I used a whole can of coconut milk instead of 1 cup. I used one can of ro-tell tomatoes instead of the fresh. I also took some other reviewers' advice and added rice, which amounted to about a cup which I put into the pot with the carrots and onion (I added this based on another reviewer). We like spice, so I added a pinch of cayenne which really boosted the flavor as well as a bit of fresh cilantro. This bright green really made the soup look more appetizing. The mozzarella on top worked well with the coconut.

I changed recipe and used 48 ounce low sodium chicken broth instead of water and bouillon. I added a can of black beans and corn. I doubled spices and garlic except I didn't add allspice. I used a can of rotel instead of tomatoes. I served over wild rice with sour cream, green onions, lots of lime juice,and cheese, YUM. Would not have gotten 5 stars without these changes.

I liked this recipe. However, like many people have said, the spices were too little, and I had to use more as well. I also think that it could have had more spices in general, as it mostly tasted only of coconut. I did like the lime taste in there though, very nice.