Albondigas Soup

Heather says:

This is my family’s version of the spicy Mexican meatball soup often called Albondigas. The recipe came from my mother, who I think got it from her sister or mother.

The meatballs are a little tedious to make, but if you crank the radio or bribe your kids, spouse, or a friend into assisting it goes quickly.

Warning: if you don’t like cilantro, albondigas is not the soup for you.

When I first adopted this recipe for albondigas I used to bring the soup to a roiling boil and drop in the meatballs, but this made the soup rather greasy. Baking the meatballs completely fixed the problem.

As with many meals, this one is even better the next day. The meatballs absorb more of the broth’s flavor and of course there’s no prep time for leftovers.

Double or triple this recipe, it freezes very well and goes well with margaritas (virgin if alcohol isn’t your thing). This is a meal people frequently request for the pot lucks I attend. (Pot lucks sound lame, but they fit the budget).

Here’s a printable shopping list for the ingredients.

Albondigas Meatball Ingredients:

• 2lbs lean ground beef
• 1 small can diced green chilies
• 1/2 bunch green onions – chopped
• 2 cloves garlic – minced or pressed
• 1/2 bunch cilantro – chopped
• 1/4 cup rice
• 1 egg
• salt
• pepper
• Tabasco or Chalula to taste

Albondigas Meatball Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400˚F. Combine all ingredients by hand and roll into 1″ meatballs, bake on a cookie sheet for 10 – 12 minutes. Place on a papertowel to absorb grease. Set aside.

Albondigas Broth Ingredients:

• 1 qt water
• 1 qt beef stock (or substitute an equivalent amount of beef broth, base or bouillon)
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 small can diced green chilies
• 2 cans diced tomatoes (feel free to use fresh, in season)
• 1/2 bunch green onions -chopped
• 1/2 bunch cilantro – chopped
• 1/4 cup rice
• salt/pepper/hot sauce to taste

Albondigas Broth Instructions

Bring water, beef base, garlic, chilies, and tomatoes to a roiling boil. Add meatballs and rice. Reduce the heat and simmer until the rice is soft. Add cilantro, green onions, and season to taste, simmering for an additional 10 minutes to allow the flavors to combine. Longer is better, but I usually can’t wait.

Serve hot with fresh, warm flour tortillas.

Tagged as: Beef, Gluten Free, Recipe, Soup Recipes, Stock the freezer, Tex Mex