This is one of my favorite soups of all time. It is so hearty, so healthy, so flavorful and so filling. It freezes beautifully, and it tastes even better leftover, so there's no such thing as too much. Get out your biggest pot. You'll be glad you did.
Ingredients:
1-1/2 to 2 pounds lean ground beef
3-4 peppers, any color, diced (but use variety if you can) My favorite thing to do is use 1 of each--green, yellow, orange and red
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, finely minced
4-6 tomatoes, finely diced (or you can use 2 cans petite diced or crushed tomatoes)
2 cans tomato sauce
2-4 cups low sodium chicken broth (use as much or as little as you like to get the consistency you prefer.)
3 cups pre-cooked quinoa (red is my favorite, but any kind will do)
sriracha, Tony Chachere's seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
1. In large soup pot or dutch oven, brown ground beef and drain.
2. Add peppers, onion, and garlic and cook just until vegetables become very fragrant and begin to soften.
3. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and chicken broth and simmer for at least 30 minutes over medium heat or up to several hours on low heat. (You can't really overcook this. The longer is simmers, the better the flavor. Just make sure the heat is low enough to avoid any scorching.)
4. Add Sriracha, Tony Chachere's seasoning, salt and pepper to taste.
5. When ready to serve, ladle into bowls and top with cooked red quinoa. (You could really add raw quinoa to the soup at the same time you add the tomato sauce and broth and let it cook in the soup. I like to use pre-cooked and add it right when the soup is ready to eat just to make sure it maintains the texture I like best, but it would be delicious either way.)