Chicken Corn Potato Soup

1. Peel and chop the onion. Melt the butter or heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and the salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is softened, about 3 minutes.

2. Add the chicken and 1 cup of the broth. Peel the garlic cloves and add them along with the thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover, reduce heat to low and cook until the chicken is just cooked through, about 15 minutes.

3. Remove chicken and let it cool slightly.

4. Add the potatoes and the remaining broth to the pot, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, use your fingers or two forks to shred the chicken and set it aside (discard the bones). Shuck the corn and cut off the kernels (hold the corn cob on one end and cut down the cob with a sharp knife to remove the kernels; I like to do this into a large bowl to contain the kernel—for details see How to Cut Corn). Put the chicken and the corn in the pot and cook until the corn is tender and cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes.

6. Prepare any garnishes you want to serve: Roast, peel, and chop the chiles; halve, pit, and chop the avocado; mince the green onions and/or the cilantro; cut the tomato in half; cut the lime into wedges.

7. Serve bowls of the soup with the garnishes on the table for diners to add to taste. Know that a spritz of lime juice from a lime wedge, while optional, really brings this soup to life!

* You can use any equivalent amount of chicken thighs, if you like; just know that using bone-in chicken greatly adds to the flavor of this soup.