Why eat matzo? If you grew up with matzo ball soup, you may like the familiar taste (and I’m sure a lot of fun) using it, but don’t worry, breadcrumbs work just as well. The amount of noodles suggested for this soup is large because we like it that way, but for a classic balance, you might find 4 ounces just right. If you choose to cook your noodles in soup, do it with an additional 4 cups of broth.
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoons (45 ml) water or milk
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh-leaf parsley
- 1 clove of garlic, chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Fresh black pepper
- 1/3 cup (20 grams) dry breadcrumbs (such as panko) or matzo meal
- 1 kilogram of ground chicken, which is a combination of dark and light meat
- 6 ounces (170 grams) noodle soup of your choice (I choose these)
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 1 cup celery
- 1 cup minced onion
- 4 to 6 cups (950ml to 1.4l) chicken broth
- Chopped parsley and/or dill to finish
Meatballs
Category of ingredient
Cook the noodles: In a medium pan, bring salted water (or water with chicken bouillon added to taste) and cook the noodles according to their package directions. Personally, this is not a place where I want “al dente” noodles – I cook mine until tender. Remove and place in a bowl until needed.
Make the soup: In a large pan (or, my preferred braiser), heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, and onion and cook, stirring, until soft, about 6 minutes. Add 4 cups of broth and bring to a boil. Carefully add the cold meatballs, one at a time, and bring the broth back to a boil. Add the meatballs for 10 minutes, checking one at the end to make sure it’s cooked and add more time if needed. If the meatballs absorb too much broth, you may find that you want to add 1 or 2 cups of the remaining chicken broth, bringing it back to the boil. Taste the broth to taste, add salt and pepper to taste.
Serving: Add the cooked noodles, to taste, to your dish, then place the broth and meatballs on top. Finish with chopped herbs.
Do it ahead: Keeping the meatballs/broth mixture and separate noodles is great for keeping leftovers, too. Reheat the soup over medium heat in a covered pot until it boils. Let the soup warm the noodles when serving.