I want to show you how to make authentic matzo ball soup at home. It’s that time of the year to make some of the Best Matzo Ball Soup that will remind you of Family Dinners past! In the past, the job of making the soup might have been handled by your “Bubbe” (Yiddish for Grandma). Hanukkah is one of those times for all the Jewish Bubbe’s to show their prowess in the kitchen! More often than not, they will tell you to leave the kitchen so you don’t see the magic happening! If Grandma is still holding back her recipe, feel comfortable knowing that you now have a recipe that will give Bubbe’s recipe a “run for her money!”

What Makes This Soup So Good

If you’ve had the pleasure of enjoying a great Matzo Ball at your local Jewish Deli; then you know what I mean! In my soup, we are looking to make a “floater” matzo ball. You have “sinker” and “floater” matzo balls. The sinker matzo ball is denser and does exactly as it is named; it sinks when cooked. A floater matzo ball is light and tender and floats in your broth. You will notice your matzo balls floating to the top of your soup pot as they cook. That’s a good indication that your matzo balls are going to be just right! Just remember not to open the top of your pot that you are using to cook your matzo balls before its time. Opening the pot too early would have the effect of hindering the growth of your matzo balls.

Chicken fat (called “schmaltz” in Yiddish) is an ingredient that should not be substituted for when making this recipe. It’s the one ingredient that brings the flavor that cannot be replaced.

How About Garnishes?

It’s not just about making your bowl of soup look good. We all know part of enjoying the dish is the presentation. And when the presentation includes garnishes that actually add flavor; all the better! Let’s add some fresh dill. Not only is dill in the broth, but we add it to the matzo ball recipe. It makes the dish look great and brings some freshness to the soup.

I also love using the leaves that are in your stalks of celery. You may not even pay attention to the leaves but they are typically attached to the younger stalks. You need to keep those leaves! They are so good to use whether in your chicken or tuna salad and our chicken soup.

My favorite garnish is to add some crispy chicken skin to your bowl. We make the skin crispy by slowly rendering down the fat in the chicken skin. It’s almost as good as crispy bacon! Did I actually say that? Yes, I did! You can peel the cooked chicken skin off your poached chicken. After your chicken has cooled down the skin will come right off. Flatten out the skin and place it on your large skillet. Turn the heat to low and slowly render out the fat.

There is another Yiddish term you may come across called “gribenes”. This combines rendering chicken skin and frying some onion with chicken fat. These little bits of crunchy awesomeness can bring some extra texture and flavor to your soup.

Fried onions and chicken skin called “gribenes”

For more of my Holiday Meals, check out my recipes here!

I wish you all a Happy Holiday Season. Let me know your favorite Holiday Dish down below and if you have any comments or questions. As always, thanks for Spending Time in My Kitchen!

The Best Matzo Ball Soup

Recipe by David Frank – Spending Time In My Kitchen

0.0 from 0 votes

# of Matzo Balls

servings

Prep time – Matzo Balls

minutes

Cooking time – Matzo Balls

minutes

Servings of Soup

Rest Time – Matzo Balls

minutes

Prep time – Soup

minutes

Cooking time – Soup

2 1/2

hours

Ingredients

Matzo Ball Ingredients
1 Cups Matzo meal
5 Lg Eggs ?????
1 tsp Baking powder
1 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1/4 tsp White pepper
1 Tbl Fresh dill/parsley or both!
1/4 Cup Schmaltz (Chicken Fat)
3 Qt Chicken Broth
Soup Ingredients
1 Whole Chicken (Approximately 4 lbs)
2 lbs Celery
1 lb Carrots
1 Yellow onion
2 oz Fresh parsley
1.5 oz Fresh dill
2 Bay leaves
1 Tbl Sea salt

Directions

Matzo Balls
Add matzo meal, baking powder, salt, and white pepper to a mixing bowl. Lightly mix the ingredients with a fork. Do not over-mix.
Mix the eggs and chicken fat in another mixing bowl. Mix until ingredients are well combined.
Mix wet ingredients into the dry ingredients bowl. Add minced dill and parsley to the mixing bowl. Mix all ingredients together until just combined. Do not over-mix.
Place plastic wrap over the mixture and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.
Place 5 quarts of chicken stock on the stove to boil over medium heat. (See Note Below)
Time to start making the Matzo Balls: Roll your balls to one inch in diameter. (or whatever size you like-remember your matzo balls will expand almost double in size as they cook due to the baking powder) Do not overwork your matzo ball mixture. Place on a tray and set aside.
Reduce heat on broth to simmer once it has started to boil. Gently add matzo balls to the simmering broth.
Cover your pot with a lid and simmer your matzo balls for approximately 40-50 minutes. Do Not Open the Lid On Your Matzo Balls! Don’t look till they are almost done. You will hinder the growth and tenderness of your matzo balls if you release the heat and steam that is in the pot. Your matzo balls should be floating proving to you their potential tenderness and airy texture.
After 40 minutes, remove one matzo ball to test. You should note that your ball should have expanded to almost double the original size. Cut it in half and make sure the inside is light and not dark potentially indicating that your matzo balls need a little more time to cook.
Congratulations on making the best airy and light Matzo Balls just perfect for your chicken soup. Remove them from the pot of broth and set them aside to plate. See also Notes Below…
Making the Chicken Stock
Cut your onions in half. Cut off the root. You don’t need to remove the skins. Rinse your onions and set aside.
Rough-cut your celery and set aside. (1 pound)
Rough-cut your carrots and set aside. (1/4 pound)
Place your chicken into a 10-quart pot. Add water to your pot enough to cover your chicken and veggies (5 quarts). Note: Make sure you pull the bag of gizzards and other chicken parts out of the inside of the chicken before placing the chicken into your pot.
Cover your pot and place on the stove over medium heat to boil. Once the pot is boiling, reduce the heat to simmer. Let the chicken simmer for 15 minutes.
Skim the water to remove any foam that rises to the surface.
After you have removed all the foam, place your celery, onion, and carrots into the pot. Add your parsley and 2/3 of the dill to the pot. Add 2 tablespoons of salt and bay leaves to the pot.
Bring the heat back to a low simmer. Periodically check your pot so it doesn’t boil. Cooking your soup too hot may make your broth cloudy. Cover your pot and cook for 90 minutes.
The leg of the chicken should easily come off when it’s time to remove the chicken from the pot.
Gently pull the chicken from the pot. It will be tender and hot and may fall apart. Place the chicken in a bowl. Set aside.
Let the chicken and broth cool down for 30 minutes.
When your pot is cool to touch, strain the broth into a smaller (8 quart) pot. Discard all the other contents of the pot. Those contents would not be good to eat. All their flavor is in the broth.
Cut your remaining carrots (1 pound) and celery (1 pound) into 1-inch pieces. (You may cut your carrots lengthwise into larger chunks. Your choice!)
Place veggies into the pot of clear and clean broth. Bring broth to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes
Remove the stems from your dill and finely chop.
Now that your chicken has cooled, shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. Set aside.
Once the veggies have become tender, add the chopped dill and the shredded chicken into the soup.
Taste your broth and add additional seasoning to your tastes. I find myself typically adding some salt and pepper to bring up the flavor.
Warm up your matzo balls in broth and it is time to plate!
Garnish with dill, celery leaves, fried chicken skin!
Enjoy!

Notes

Ratio of Baking Powder to Matzo Meal-1/4 tsp of Baking Powder to 1/4 cup of Matzo Meal.
If you want to plan ahead of schedule, you can freeze your Matzo Balls to use later. When you have completed making them, place them on a tray and set them in the fridge. When they have completely cooled off, place the tray in the freezer. When completely frozen, place them in zip-lock bags or vacuum seal them.
Making matzo balls using the pot of clear chicken broth that you made for soup can make your soup cloudy. If you are OK with that, by all means, use the chicken broth you are serving to make your matzo balls. You want to use chicken broth to poach your matzo balls. Make an additional 1/2 order of soup to make your matzo balls. Even if the broth turns cloudy, don’t throw it away. Save it and freeze it to make a quick cup of soup!