Sweetcorn and red pepper are the main ingredients of this creamy and full-flavored dish with mild chile ancho complementing the taste. Poblano would be non-dried alternative to the ancho chile but it is a bit hard to come buy outside of North America.

For a vegetarian version of this Mexico-inspired soup, replace the chicken stock with vegetable stock.

Sanni

Ingredients:

• 2 to 3 1/2 tablespoons of cooking olive oil or corn oil
• 500 grams of sweetcorn kernels
• 1 1/4 red pepper, seeded and membranes removed
• 1/2 Spanish onion, chopped
• 500 ml of chicken stock
• 1 chile ancho (or poblano), finely chopped
• 1 to 2 tablespoons of cream cheese (optional)
• freshly ground pepper, salt
• For decoration: chili strings

Preparation:

1. Heat 2 to 3 tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan on medium temperature and sauté the onion until soft.
2. Dice one of the red peppers and add it to the frying pan. Fry until onion and red pepper are soft (approximately 5 to 10 minutes).
3. Set 1 to 2 tablespoons of the sweetcorn aside for decoration. Add the remaining sweetcorn and the ancho to the pepper and onion and fry for another 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Transfer the content of the frying pan into a blender, add approximately 1/2 of the stock and blend until very smooth. Add the remaining 1/2 of the stock and mix well.
5. Transfer the mix into a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Season with freshly ground pepper and salt. Add the cream cheese if you like. It makes the mix a little creamier and smoother tasting, but it tastes very nice without the cream cheese as well.
6. Finely chop the remaining red pepper. Sauté in a non-stick frying pan on medium heat with a teaspoon of oil for approximately 5 minutes.
7. Serve the soup in pre-warmed dishes and carefully sprinkle the warm pepper dices and sweetcorn kernels on top. Decorate with a few chili strings.