Mexican · Yucatán · soup

Sopa de Lima Yucateca

Name: Sopa de Lima Yucateca
Prep time: 1 h 22 min
Total time: 1 h 27 min
Cuisine: Mexican · Yucatán
Ingredients: turkey meat — 1000 g; water — 2500 g; white onion — 200 g; garlic — 12 g; allspice — 5 g; black peppercorns — 800 g; cloves — 6 g; dried mexican oregano — 1 g; limas agrias — 300 g; tomatoes — 250 g; chiles dulces — 200 g; pork lard — 27 g; corn tortillas — 600 g; oil — 230 g; habanero chile — 100 g; salt — 10 g

Sopa de Lima Yucateca reads richness 5.2, heat 4.4 and allium 3.7 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Mexican · Yucatán soup, about 1 hr 27 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

Umami & Savory — 4.0 / 10
Sweet & Fruity — 3.0 / 10
Sour & Bright — 4.4 / 10
Bitter & Earthy — 1.6 / 10
Rich & Fat — 5.4 / 10
Aromatic & Spice — 5.3 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Richness 5.2 · Heat 4.4 · Allium 3.7 · Warm Spice 3.7 · Salinity 3.7 · Sourness 3.6 · Umami 3.3 · Citrus 2.5 · Fruity 2.4 · Floral 2.3 · Sweetness 2.0 · Bitterness 1.4 · Earthy 1.3 · Herbaceous 1.2 · Nutty 0.8

What's in it (16)

turkey meat — 1000 g
water — 2500 g
white onion — 200 g
garlic — 12 g
allspice — 5 g
black peppercorns — 800 g
cloves — 6 g
dried mexican oregano — 1 g
limas agrias — 300 g
tomatoes — 250 g
chiles dulces — 200 g
pork lard — 27 g
corn tortillas — 600 g
oil — 230 g
habanero chile — 100 g
salt — 10 g

Time & effort: about 1 hr 27 min (1 hr 22 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 98.3 kcal, 5.9 g protein, 2.3 g fat, 16.5 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (7 steps)

Simmer the turkey with the water, onion, garlic and whole spices for 45 minutes, skimming the grey foam off in the first ten. Lift out the meat, strain the broth, and shred the meat off the bone.
Toast the oregano for a few seconds on the comal until it releases its scent, then crumble it between your palms into the broth.
Melt the lard and cook the diced chiles dulces and onion 5 minutes until soft, add the tomato and cook 8 minutes more, until the raw tomato smell is gone and the mixture is jammy. Tip it into the broth.
Now the part that everyone gets wrong. Cut two of the limas in half, squeeze the juice into the pot off the heat, and drop in one thin slice of the peel for no more than 5 minutes before fishing it out. The peel of the lima carries a resinous perfume that is the whole point of this soup, and left in it will turn it bitter.
Heat the oil to 180°C and fry the tortilla strips in batches for 2 to 3 minutes until they are pale gold and rigid; drain on paper.
Return the shredded meat, season with salt, and serve with the strips heaped on top, the charred habanero on the side and the last lima cut in wedges.
Substitutions: bone-in chicken can stand in for the turkey thighs; 3 limes plus 2 wide strips of grapefruit peel can stand in for the limas agrias; 1 green bell pepper (about 150 g) can stand in for the chiles dulces.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

Memelas con Asiento y Quesillo — Mexican · Oaxaca
Cochinita Pibil en Hoja de Plátano — Mexican · Yucatán
Picadas Veracruzanas — Mexican · Veracruz
Palak Paneer — Indian
Bifana — Portuguese

Keep reading: what richness, heat, allium mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.