Ingredients
For the chicken soup
2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
1 lg Yellow Onion Quartered
2 lg Carrots cut into 3-4 inch pieces
4 stalks Celery cut into 3-4 inch pieces- 1 lg Turnip Quartered
1 Whole chicken 2½–3 lb, giblets removed
6 cups Chicken broth- 4 sprigs Dill fresh, plus a little chopped dill for serving, optional
4 sprigs Parsley Flat leaf
Water enough to just cover the chicken
To taste for the soup
Kosher Salt
Ground black pepper
For the Matzo Balls
4 lg Egg- ½ cup Chicken fat schmaltz, melted and cooled
- ½ cup Seltzer
- 1 cup Matzo meal
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 pinch Ground black pepper
Equipment
1 Large pot (plus a second pot for the matzo balls)
Instructions
- Warm the olive oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the quartered onion, carrots, celery, and turnip and stir for 2–3 minutes. Add the chicken, broth, dill sprigs, parsley sprigs, and enough cold water to just cover the chicken.
- Bring to a gentle simmer and skim foam from the surface. Partially cover and simmer for about 1½ hours, until the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165°F away from bone and the meat is tender. Add a little hot water if needed to keep the chicken mostly covered.
- Meanwhile, beat the eggs in a bowl. Stir in the melted, cooled chicken fat, seltzer, matzo meal, measured salt, and a pinch of pepper until combined. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour while the broth cooks.
- Bring a separate large pot of lightly salted water to a simmer. With wet hands, gently form the chilled mixture into small balls about 1 inch across, without packing tightly. Add them to the water, cover, and simmer gently for 30–40 minutes, until expanded and cooked through with no wet center.
- Lift the chicken from the stockpot onto a clean board. Strain the broth into a clean pot, reserving the carrots, celery, and turnip. Discard the spent herb stems and onion. Remove the chicken skin and bones and shred the meat; cut the reserved vegetables into bite-size pieces.
- Return the chicken and vegetables to the broth and heat through. Add cooked matzo balls with a slotted spoon and finish with chopped fresh dill if desired. Taste before adding additional salt or pepper.
Nutrition
Notes
Makes about 8 generous soup servings; the matzo ball count varies with size. The matzo mixture chills while the broth simmers, so its 1-hour chill is included in the total time. Use plain matzo meal, not matzo ball mix. Contains egg and wheat. For Passover, use ingredients certified for your observance; this recipe is not a certification. Refrigerate leftovers in a covered container within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), at 40°F or below. Use within 3 days. Reheat cooked leftovers to 165°F. Adapted from Delish’s Matzo Ball Soup.
