email this pageWhile classic chicken-based Matzo Ball Soup appears regularly at delis across town, trendy versions of the soup dubbed “penicillin in a bowl” can be found readily as well. Near Union Square, Pepi Di Giacomo, co-owner of Tarallucci e Vino, prepares the dish according to an old family recipe, mingling rich hen broth with the light Parmesan cheese-laced crepes known as scrippelle ’mbusse, or “wet crepes.” The restaurant received New York Magazine’s 2006 “Best Chicken Soup” award for Di Giacomo’s creation. In Chinatown, black-skin chickens known as “silkies” are the base of a deeply flavored, aromatic, amber-colored soup. Because the chicken’s color can be jolting at first, this Chinese immigrant favorite may take a while to enter the mainstream. And at Cubana Café in Soho, diners applaud the chicken soup with avocado, tomato, cilantro and yucca.
If you shy away from trendy, try the recipes below. Our classic version starts with a whole chicken in the pot and finishes with plump matzo balls. If you’re pressed for time, try our weeknight version using rotisserie chicken and good packaged stock, two staples of the contemporary American kitchen.
Chicken Vegetable Soup
Printer Friendly Version
Do you like to print recipes and add them to your collection? You're in luck. Use our printer friendly version of this recipe.
Ingredients
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 medium onions, chopped
1 (2-inch) piece of ginger, peeled
and chopped
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 parsnips, peeled and sliced
9 cups low-sodium, fat-free chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
˝ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 1/2 cups cooked egg noodles
2. Add broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.
3. Add shredded chicken and noodles; simmer until thoroughly heated. Serves 10.
Recipe by Margo Rudman Gold, "Soup and the City," Relish Classic Dishes, Feb. 2008.
Classic Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls
Printer Friendly Version
Do you like to print recipes and add them to your collection? You're in luck. Use our printer friendly version of this recipe.
1 (4- to 5-pound) chicken, giblets removed
2 stalks celery with leaves, halved
1 medium onion, quartered
3 carrots, peeled and halved
1 parsnip, peeled and halved
4 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley
4 sprigs of fresh dill
1 tablespoon salt
˝ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Matzo Balls:
2 eggs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unflavored seltzer or club soda
˝ cup unsalted matzo meal
2. Remove chicken and vegetables and strain broth. (Save chicken for another use.) Refrigerate broth several hours or overnight.
3. To prepare the matzo balls, beat eggs with a whisk until lemon-colored. Add oil, salt and seltzer; beat well. Mix in matzo meal; do not overmix. Let stand a few minutes.
4. Fill stockpot halfway with water; bring to a boil. Wet hands and form matzo mixture into 8 balls. Reduce heat to low and drop balls into water. Cover pot and simmer 45 to 60 minutes. Matzo balls are done when white and fluffy in the center. If yellow, cook 10 more minutes.
5. To serve, scrape off the layer of fat from the top of broth; reheat. Add cooked matzo balls. Serves 8.
Recipe by Margo Rudman Gold, "Soup and the City," Relish Classic Dishes, Feb. 2008.
Related Stories
If you enjoyed reading this story, Soup & the City, then you might enjoy these other stories.Share This Story With Others:
There are no current discussions for this article. Why not be the first?
