Nopales are a favorite ingredient during Lent season since they are so versatile that you can add them to almost any dish. Like in this soup, for example, which is called Nopal Soup which roughly translates to “sailing cactus soup”.
Fill a medium-size saucepan with water and place on high heat. Remove the tomatoes’ stems and cores and cut an X at the bottom of the tomatoes.
Once the water is boiling, place the tomatoes in the boiling water for about 30 seconds. Remove immediately and refresh under cold running water, or place in a bowl full of water and ice cubes.
Once cooled, peel the skin off and remove the tomato seeds. Place into the blender with the garlic clove and the piece of onion. Process until you have a smooth sauce.
Heat oil in a medium-size saucepan, then pour the sauce in and fry for about 7-8 minutes over medium heat.
Add the chicken broth, and keep cooking for 6 more minutes. After that, add the Nopales and the cilantro, and keep cooking for 4-5 more minutes at low heat.
This last step is a quick one, and occurs right before you serve the soup: Once the soup starts boiling, crack an egg in a small bowl, and then gently add it to the soup. Repeat with the rest of the eggs adding them one by one, since you are only going to poach the eggs.
Serve the soup immediately and enjoy!
Notes
If you don’t have chicken broth, mix 3 cups of water with chicken bullion.
For this recipe, you are going to use the tomatoes without the skins (the process is described below), but some people use the whole tomato, seeds and skins included. This is up to personal preference.
Instead of poaching them, some people like to beat the eggs in a bowl and gently pour them into the soup, forming some egg ribbons in the soup (again, that will be your personal choice).