“Cooking really helps me with the stress of being sequestered,
…so I have been making a lot of soups, stews and pasta dishes during this unprecedented time. This way, I can also provide ready-to-eat meals for my two children that live close by, as well as for my 91-year old father-in-law that lives an hour away. It makes for a great road trip with my wife and our dog when we deliver food and other supplies to him. Today, I made Albondigas soup (Mexican meatball soup). I hope you enjoy making it for your family, too! Stay safe, all!”
-SFE Chef, Bill Harod
Albondigas Soup (Mexican meatball soup)
Note: The zucchini and meatballs go into the simmering soup for the last 10 to 15 minutes to cook thezucchini a bit al dente and to finish cooking the seared meatballs so the flavor of the meatballs meld together with all of the other flavors.
MEATBALL RECIPE:
1-pound ground beef
2 whole eggs
2 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 cup cooked rice (I use brown rice)
1/2 cup fine chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Fresh cracked black pepper
1 tsp. Ground cumin
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs or enough to bind.
MEATBALL COOKING INSTRUCTIONS :
Combine all ingredients except the bread crumbs; mix well to completely combine, add bread crumbs and fold together until the mixture becomes formable. I use a 3/4-ounce scoop for uniformity and get about 24 meatballs from this mixture. You can bake the meatballs or pan fry as I did in the photo above. The meatballs do not have to be completely cooked, they will finish in the broth and at the same time add tons of flavor.
SOUP RECIPE:
1 Tbls Vegetable oil
1 cup diced onions
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced zucchini (1/2-inch dice)
10 cups chicken broth (I use Better Than Bouillon) 2-14.5 oz cans of fire roasted diced tomatoes w/juice 1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
3/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 cup cooked rice (I use brown rice)
SOUP COOKING INSTRUCTIONS
Heat the oil in a large stock pot over medium heat, add the onions, celery, carrots, chopped garlic, cumin, oregano and salt and pepper. Sauté these ingredients for about 5 minutes to help bloom the spices. Add the 2 cans of fire roasted tomatoes in juice and the 10 cups of chicken broth. Bring the soup to a boil, then simmer for about 15 minutes. Place the meatballs in the pot and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Add the diced zucchini, cooked rice and chopped cilantro, bring back to a simmer for another 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed. The soup can be accompanied by some charred corn tortillas and topped with additional diced onions, chopped cilantro and a squeeze of fresh lime.
