Homemade Matzo Ball Soup for Passover or Anytime! Fluffy balls of matzo in a light, clear broth. Add chicken for a heartier meal.
BE PICTURED IN; CHARACTERIZED IN:
When it comes to matzo ball soup, the real stars of the show are the fluffy matzo balls. They’re swimming in a clear chicken broth with some carrots and celery, but that’s about it!
Options for a heartier ball of matzo soup
If you want to make a heartier soup, you can add chicken. Simply poach some chicken breasts or chicken breast fillets in the chicken broth until cooked through, then shred or cut into bite-sized pieces before adding the meat back to the soup.
If you make your chicken broth yourself, you can also poach some chicken breasts or thighs along with the bones and add them to your soup before serving.
When Passover is over and you no longer need to abide by the holiday’s dietary laws, consider adding some noodles or kreplach (aka meat-filled dumplings) for a truly luxurious bowl!
Tips for perfect matzo balls
- Refrigerate the matzo mixture for at least two hours before forming the matzo balls (or up to a day in advance). This gives the matzo flour plenty of time to absorb the liquid, resulting in better textured matzo balls that won’t fall apart during cooking.
- Keep the pot covered while you cook the matzo balls! As a result, they cook faster and more evenly.
- When you are ready, The matzo balls should all be floating on top of the water and have doubled in size.
Make your matzo balls float
One final note on making the matzo balls: Dense matzo balls are “sinkers.” They stay on the bottom of the pot. Proper matzo balls (aka “floats”) should bounce to the top of the pot as they cook.
Note that the matzo balls aren’t fully cooked when they first float — they still need a full 40 minutes of cooking time — but floating matzo balls is a good sign that you haven’t messed up your matzo balls !
Can you free matzo balls?
The texture might not be quite as perfectly fluffy, but yes, you can freeze matzo balls! Boil them first, then let them cool completely and pat dry. Freeze them in a single layer on a baking sheet, place in a ziplock bag or freezer container, and freeze for up to a month.
Reheat frozen matzo balls by gently simmering them in chicken broth or broth until warmed through.
More Great Passover Recipes!
- Charoset with apples, dates and walnuts
- Chocolate Hazelnut Mazo Toffee
- Boiled eggs with horseradish and dill
- Instant Pot Beef Brisket
- matzo porridge
0:52
Check out this classic recipe for Matzo Ball Soup
matzo ball soup
ingredients
For the matzo balls:
-
2 big eggs
-
2 tablespoon Lard (chicken fat), melted or plain flavored oil
-
2 tablespoon water
-
1 teaspoon kosher salt
-
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
-
1/2 Cup matzah meal time
For the soup:
-
6 cups chicken brothhomemade or store bought
-
1 big carrotpeeled and thinly sliced (about 1/8-inch thick)
-
2 inner ribs from celerypeeled and thinly sliced (about 1/8-inch thick)
Serve:
-
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or dill
-
Freshly ground black pepper
method
-
Make the Matzo Ball Mixture:
Make the Matzo Ball Mixture: In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, lard, water, salt, and pepper. Stir in the matzo flour. Cover the bowl tightly and chill in the refrigerator at least 2 hours, or up to 1 day in advance.
-
Form and cook matzo balls:
In a large saucepan or stockpot, bring 3 liters of water and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt to a boil. When the water boils, reduce the heat to medium-low.
Use your hands to roll the matzo ball mixture into roughly 1-inch balls. As you finish rolling each ball, gently drop them into the simmering water.
When all of the matzo balls are in the water, immediately cover the pot and reduce the heat to low. Cover and let the matzo balls simmer for 40 minutes, until they float to the top and have roughly doubled in size. Avoid uncovering the pot while the matzo balls are cooking (a covered pot will help cook the matzo balls more evenly and quickly).
-
Warm the broth and vegetables:
While the matzo balls are simmering, bring the chicken broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan (3 quart) over medium-high heat. Add the sliced carrots and celery and reduce the heat to low.
Simmer the vegetables in the broth until tender, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the broth covered to keep it hot while the matzo balls cook.
-
Surcharge:
Use a slotted spoon to place 3 matzo balls in each soup bowl, then scoop 1 1/2 cups of broth into each bowl. Garnish each bowl with a sprinkling of parsley or dill and a few black peppercorns. Serve hot.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 445 | calories |
| 22g | Fat |
| 39g | carbohydrates |
| 21g | protein |
