Sopa de Conchas

Imagine a delicious pot of homemade Sopa de Conchas (Seashell Soup or Shell Soup) made in a rich savory chicken broth filled with succulent pieces of tender chicken, carrots, potatoes, corncobs, and mini shells for dinner tonight! A one-pot scrumptious meal cooked and served in under an hour!

In Latin culture, soup is not made solely on cold winter nights or when a family member is sick. Instead, you will find all kinds of soups served year-round either as a starter or for dinner.

Soups are very commonplace and quite often on a restaurant menu and weekly dinner rotation. The connotation that soup is more commonly served in wintertime or only when someone is sick doesn’t really exist.

So feel no shame in making this delicious hearty bowl of soup for dinner this week even if the weather is currently 90-degrees where you are at!

I promise your belly and soul will thank you! Because sometimes a delicious bowl of soup is all you need!

White or Dark Meat?

To produce the most flavorful chicken broth I always highly recommend using dark chicken meat vs using chunks of white meat or chicken breast.

Think, chicken thighs, drumsticks, and wings.

The fat and bone-in dark meat makes for a full flavorful broth and adds much more richness to the soup than breast meat alone.

Of course, you can use white meat as well but use it in combination with dark meat.

Ingredients for Sopa de Conchas

How to Make Sopa de Conchas

1. Peel onion, carrots, and potatoes. Chop onion coarsely, carrots into 1/4 inch thick slices and potatoes into large chunks.
2. Rinse tomatoes, cilantro and chop coarsely.
3. Rinse frozen corn cobs under cool water and cut in half.
4. Peel and mince garlic.
5. Rinse chicken and using a mallet chop pieces in half (optional).
6. Sprinkle chicken with adobo seasoning and set aside.

1. In a caldero or large pot, over medium heat, add oil.
2. Add chopped onion and cook for a few minutes until onions are translucent.
3. Then add the chopped tomatoes, stir and cook for a minute.
4. Add sofrito, garlic, sazon and bay leaves.

1. Stir and saute for a minute.
2. Add chicken pieces, stir and cook for about 5 minutes. (Note: If using white meat in combination with the dark meat, DO NOT add now. We will add these pieces later)

1. Add the carrots, corn, cilantro, chicken bouillon cubes and 10 cups of water.
2. Cover pot slightly with a lid and bring to a boil.

1. Add pepper to taste (about a teaspoon).
2. Add potato chunks and white meat chunks if using.
3. Cook for 15 minutes or until chicken is very tender and almost falling off of bone.
4. Add shells and cook until shells are tender (about 8 minutes) Note: Soup will start to thicken.
5. Taste soup and add salt if needed.
6. Soup is done!

What to Serve with Sopa de Conchas

This sopa is a meal all on its own but we normally serve it with a side of arroz blanco (white rice).

As you are enjoying your soup, dunk a spoonful of white rice into broth for an even yummier bite of rice!

What if My Soup is Too Thick or to Thin?

If your soup is too thick, simply add additional water, a little at a time to thin out.

If the soup is to thin or you prefer your soup thicker, rise heat for 2-3 minutes to thicken.

How to Reheat Shell Soup

Stove Top Instructions

To reheat the sopa on a stove pot, simply add about 1/2 a cup of water to the pot and heat over medium heat for 10 minutes.

Microwave Instructions

To reheat in the microwave, simply add what you will be eating to a bowl and about 2 tablespoons of water. Heat for 2 1/2 minutes or until heated through.

For more delicious soup ideas, you will also love these…

Puerto Rican Chicken Soup

Pasteles al Caldero