Robin: If there were a Nobel Prize for the dish most likely to take the chill out of the body and heal the wounds of the soul, this hearty Mexican soup would definitely be a finalist. Albóndigas (Spanish for meatballs, and made here with rice rather than bread crumbs) and vegetables come together in good-for-what-ails-you deliciousness. Despite—or perhaps due to—its straightforward simplicity, this is a seriously good soup.
You’ll be using this simple meatball formula to start with, then continuing with the recipe below to turn the albóndigas into a soup. Though you may make the meatballs themselves whatever size you like, I recommend keeping them on the small side so that they will be more proportionate to the other ingredients in the dish and easier to eat with a spoon.
This soup stretches a pound of ground meat into 8 servings, once the vegetables and broth are included. Should you need it to yield even more, however, don’t hesitate to add cooked rice or cubed, cooked potatoes to the broth before serving.
Important serving note: Adding fresh-squeezed lime juice to a brothy dish such as this one is standard practice in Mexico, and—even though the soup is definitely tasty even without lime—I highly recommend you use it, as well. Lime juice adds a bright, fresh, acidic note that puts the final touch on this comforting, aromatic delight.
Mexican Meatball Soup (Caldo de albóndigas)
Ingredients
- 1 recipe of Mexican meatballs see link to recipe below
- 6 cups (1.5 liters) seasoned beef broth homemade or from a jar/box
- 1 cup diced tomatoes, fresh or canned
- 1/4 medium onion, diced diced
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 rib celery, with leaves, diced
- 1 cup finely chopped cabbage
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Fresh Mexican limes and chopped pickled jalapeños for garnish optional but highly recommended
Instructions
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Follow the albóndigas recipe up through the step where the meat mixture is rolled into balls, but do not boil the meatballs yet; set them aside.
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Bring all the ingredients in the recipe except the meatballs to a boil in a large pot. Turn the heat to medium low, then drop the meatballs, 2 or 3 at a time, into the broth; we want the soup to continue to bubble but not to boil violently (which would damage the meatballs). When all the albóndigas are in the soup, let it continue to boil gently for 20-30 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through.
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Ladle the soup into deep bowls to serve.
Cut the limes into halves and place them and the pickled peppers on the table so that each person can squeeze lime juice and spoon the peppers (or their pickling juice) to taste into his or her bowl.
More Mexican meatballs:
Additional authentic Mexican classics:
Other hearty soups:
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