Romanian Meatball Soup

Ok, so I’ve already somewhat provided the recipe in an earlier blog but here’s something more exact. This is my family’s favorite soup (or is it just my favorite?) and it’s very easy to make.

Serves 6-8

8 cups of water

½ pound of ground beef

1/3 cup of uncooked white rice

1 egg

1 teaspoon of dried herbs (parsley, basil, etc.)

½ teaspoon of salt

¼ teaspoon of paprika

3 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 celery sticks, chopped

1 small onion, diced

3 dried bay leaves

3 beef bullion cubes

1 can of crushed or diced tomatoes

1 tablespoon of tomato paste

Add the carrots, onion, celery, and bay leaves to the water in a soup pot and heat over high heat. Once the soup comes to a boil, add the bullion cubes. In the meantime, mix the meat, egg, rice, salt, paprika and dried herbs in a bowl. Form golf ball size meatballs and place on a plate until they are all formed. You should get about 15 meatballs, depending on how big or small you actually form them. Turn down the heat to low so the soup stops boiling completely. Gently lower each meatball with a long spoon (I use a wooden spoon) into the soup, careful not to burn yourself. Once all the meatballs are in the soup, turn the heat up to medium-high. Add the can of tomatoes and tomato paste and simmer for at least two hours. Check the seasoning and add more salt if necessary. During the cooking process, skim off any fat that may rise to the surface.

This soup is great served right away and even better the next day when some of the rice from the meatballs has become loose and thickens the soup a bit. In Romania, people serve it with a dollop of sour cream as well, but that’s a matter of preference.