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one ordinary bowl of pale creamy taco soup containing small ground-beef crumbles, whole yellow corn kernels and tiny dark-green roasted poblano pieces, with no red tomato chunks, beans, tortilla chips, shredded cheese, cream swirl or garnish
Rachel Kim

Creamy Ground Beef Taco Soup

Roasted poblano and corn give this taco soup a pale, creamy base instead of another pot of canned red tomatoes and beans. Blend some of the corn with broth before it joins the beef, leaving the rest whole for texture. Cream cheese goes in near the end and needs gentle stirring to melt evenly. Keep the poblano pieces small enough to sit beside the meat crumbles on a spoon. The soup should pour easily around the vegetables, with the corn doing part of the thickening rather than relying on a large amount of cheese to make the broth feel substantial.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 6
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 2 poblano peppers
  • 1 tbsp neutral oil
  • 1 lb 90% lean ground beef
  • 1 medium yellow onion finely diced
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground ancho chile
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 3/4 tsp fine salt
  • 3 cups frozen corn divided
  • 5 cups low-sodium beef broth divided
  • 4 oz cream cheese softened and cut into small cubes
  • 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

Method
 

  1. Heat the broiler. Place poblanos on a rimmed metal sheet 6 inches from the heat and broil for 8 to 10 minutes, turning until blistered. Cover in a bowl for 10 minutes, then peel, seed and finely dice; the resting and peeling period is included in prep time.
  2. Heat oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Brown beef and onion for 8 minutes until beef reaches 160°F, breaking it into small crumbles, then drain excess fat.
  3. Stir in garlic, cumin, ancho chile, oregano and salt for 30 seconds. Blend 1 1/2 cups frozen corn with 1 1/2 cups of the measured broth until mostly smooth, then pour the mixture into the pot.
  4. Add remaining broth, remaining whole corn and diced poblano. Bring to a simmer and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until corn is tender.
  5. Lower the heat and add cream cheese in small handfuls, stirring for 3 to 4 minutes until fully melted into the broth without boiling hard. Remove from the heat, stir in lime juice and pepper and divide among 6 bowls.