Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls

For a main dish soup, remove the meat from the bones, cube the meat, and return 2 cups cubed chicken to the broth with the vegetables.

Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls
Photo:

Blaine Moats

Prep Time:
1 hr
Cook Time:
2 hrs
Total Time:
3 hrs
Servings:
10

Ingredients

  • 1 4 pound roasting chicken

  • 2 ½ quart water

  • 1 cup chopped onion (2 medium)

  • ½ cup sliced leek (1 large)

  • 1 ½ cup sliced celery (3 stalks)

  • 1 tablespoon salt

  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 1 cup sliced carrot (2 medium)

  • 1 cup sliced parsnip (2 medium)

  • 4 parsley sprigs

  • 4 sprigs fresh dill weed or 1/4 teaspoon dried dill weed (optional)

  • 1 recipe Matzo Balls

Matzo Balls

  • 1 cup matzo meal

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • Dash ground black pepper

  • 4 slightly beaten eggs

  • ¼ cup chicken fat

  • ¼ cup carbonated water

Directions

  1. Place chicken in an 8- to 10-quart pot. Add the water, onions, leek, celery, salt, and pepper. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, for 1-1/2 hours or until chicken is almost tender. Add carrots and parsnips; simmer, covered, for 30 minutes more or until chicken and vegetables are tender.

  2. Remove chicken from pot. When cool enough to handle remove and discard skin from chicken. Pull meat from bones, discarding bones. Chop meat, reserving 3 cups (cover and chill or freeze any remaining chopped chicken for another use).

  3. Using a slotted spoon, remove vegetables from broth; set aside. Strain broth through two layers of 100-percent cotton cheesecloth placed in a colander; discard solids. Skim fat from broth. Return broth and vegetables to pot. Add parsley and, if desired, dill weed; heat through. Serve in bowls with Matzo Balls.

Matzo Balls

  1. In a mixing bowl combine matzo meal, salt, and pepper. Beat in eggs and chicken fat (schmaltz) until well blended. Stir in carbonated water. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours. With wet hands, shape dough into 1-inch balls. Carefully drop dough into a large pot of gently boiling salted water. Cover; simmer for 30 minutes or until Matzo Balls test done (they should be light and cooked all the way through). Do not uncover pot until end of cooking. Remove carefully with a slotted spoon. Serve in hot Chicken Soup. Makes about 30 balls.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

276 Calories
14g Fat
16g Carbs
20g Protein
Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe 10
Calories 276
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 14g 18%
Saturated Fat 4g 20%
Cholesterol 127mg 42%
Sodium 451mg 20%
Total Carbohydrate 16g 6%
Protein 20g 40%
Vitamin C 4.1mg 5%
Calcium 30.3mg 2%
Iron 2mg 11%

*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

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