Mexican-Style “Dry” Noodles with Chicken

The Spanish name for this dish, sopa seca de fideos, translates as “dry noodle soup.” Short, slender noodles called fideos are cooked with aromatics and broth, as if making a soup, but they absorb all the liquid so the finished dish is dry rather than brothy. A key step is toasting the pasta to bring out its nutty, wheaty flavor. Most versions of sopa seca are meatless, but we cook chicken breasts with the pasta mixture, shred the meat and mix it into the noodles at the end to make a one-pan dinner. Serve with lime wedges at the table and, if you wish, with diced avocado and crema (Mexican-style sour cream).