Cure the Cold with Gluten-Free Matzo Ball Soup

Matzo Ball Soup

Guys, we’re covering one of my favorite recipes today! It’s been cold here in Florida since… Well, I don’t remember the last time I wore shorts. Between the weather and that it’s cold and flu season, I figured I should have a batch of the cure on hand. So today I’m making my take on matzo ball soup. It’s perfect for fighting viruses and for warming you up.

So we’re going to start with 2 boxes of Streit’s gluten-free matzo ball & soup mix. We’re also going to make a batch of homemade chicken soup. This is one of my recipes that takes about 3 hours and will fill your biggest pot. I love recipes like this because for a few hours of cooking one day, I can have several days of meals.

Now I’m really excited to dive into this recipe, so let’s get started!

Ingredients:

Soup-
2 tbsp. butter
6 ribs celery, diced
6 carrots, diced
1 onion, diced
1 whole chicken, giblets removed, 4-5lb.
1 lemon, zest & juice (or halved inside bouquet garni)
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. dry parsley
1 tsp. dry thyme
1 tsp. (2 cloves) garlic, minced
Salt
Pepper
Water to cover
2 packets soup mix

Matzo balls-
2 packets matzo mix
6 tbsp. vegetable or canola oil
4 large eggs
2 32-oz. boxes chicken broth

Directions:

In largest pot over low-medium heat (3/10), add butter, celery, carrots, and onion. Add salt to help draw out moisture, then cover and sweat vegetables while preparing other soup ingredients.
Rinse chicken and add to pot. Add lemon juice, zest, bay leaves, parsley, thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper. Optional: for a clean broth, cut lemon in half and wrap in cheese cloth with herbs and tie into a bouquet garni. Leave garlic, salt, and pepper out of the bouquet and add directly to the soup base. (See video)
Cover soup ingredients with water until all ingredients are submerged. Cover with lid and bring soup to a boil on high heat (7.5/10), then lower heat (3.5/10) to reduce to a simmer. Simmer about 1 ½ hours, or until chicken begins pulling off the bone at the ends of the legs. Remove bouquet garni or bay leaves from soup about 1 hour into cook time.
When chicken is done, remove from soup pot and set in strainer in sink to cool. While chicken cools, prepare matzo balls. In medium-sized bowl, beat eggs and oil together. Whisk in matzo ball mix, then set aside and let stand 15 minutes. Bring broth to a slow boil in widest pot (if pot isn’t wide enough, make matzo balls in 2 batches).
Prepare a bowl of water for rolling matzo balls. Using wet spoon, scoop appropriate amount of dough into wet hands. GENTLY roll matzo dough into balls, being careful NOT to press dough any more than necessary. Matzo balls will expand in the broth. Make raw matzo dough balls between 1-1 ½” each, and try to make them all the same size so they cook at the same time.
Cover and simmer matzo balls in broth on medium-low heat (3.5/10) 30 minutes, turning once around 18 minutes into cook time if necessary.
While matzo balls simmer, pull the cooled chicken (doesn’t need to be completely cool, just cool enough to handle). Remove skin with fingers and pull all flesh off the bones, avoiding connective tissues. Don’t forget meat from the back of the bird. Chop any long pieces of meat with a knife, like pieces from the breast. Add meat back to the soup pot, along with the 2 packets of soup mix. Stir to combine.
When matzo balls are ready, scoop desired number of balls into a bowl, then add desired amount of soup. Top with a few grinds of fresh black pepper and enjoy!

If you can’t find Streit’s gluten-free matzo ball and soup mix near you, Manischewitz also offers a gluten-free version. I use Streit’s because Publix carries the gluten-free box around the major Jewish holidays, so I stock up when I see it on the shelf. Look for it in your local stores or online. If you purchase Manischewitz, follow their instructions on the box to make your matzo balls.

Now there’s a bowl of soup calling my name, so I’m going to go devour some more hot homestyle goodness. I hope you enjoy making this soup at home for your friends and family! Or you could hoard it all to yourself like a dragon. That’s my favorite thing to do with this soup. Please leave your thoughts in a comment below, or get in touch with me directly by filling out the form on the contact page.

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Cure the Cold with Gluten-Free Matzo Ball Soup

Jamie

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