Project Description

I  love the joy of accidentally discovering a new dish you love that you may not have ever expected to try.  Many years ago when our kids were little we lived in London, England.  During the summer we would come back to America to see the family and enjoy some much-needed rest.  On one of our journeys home our flights got delayed and we got booked into a hotel near the airport.   We were starving after a long day of waiting for flights to go nowhere so we headed to the only restaurant within walking distance which was a little hole in the wall Mexican restaurant.

We ordered our food and enjoyed some chips and salsa.  With every meal was served a small bowl of soup, when it came to the table I thought to myself I probably won’t like this.  From the first bite in my mouth, I fell in love with this soup!  This was the most amazing soup I had ever eaten.  I tried through to find out what kind of soup this was, through our sweet waiters English I was able to get the word ‘albondigas’.  When I got home I began to search for a recipe that matched this soup and tried to duplicate what I had tasted in that little hole in the wall!  After putting a few recipes together which seems to be my usual go to, always tweaking and changing, I came up with a version of the beloved Mexican meatball soup.  This soup is a favorite of family and friends to this day!  I will sometimes make a double batch and freeze half so I can take it out for a quick meal on a rainy day!

If you are looking for a soup that is a warm and cozy hug, well then this is it!  It’s straight up comfort in a bowl!

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Albondigas Soup (Mexican meatball soup)

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Ingredients

Scale

Meatballs

  • 1 lb of lean ground beef
  • 1 can diced green chili’s
  • 1/2 onion, chopped finely
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 teaspoons of oregeno
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 1 egg
  • Pinch of red peppers

Soup Base

  • 1/2 onion, chopped finely
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 teaspoon of oregeno
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 3 cups of beef boullion
  • 1 cans of red enchilada sauce
  • 1 can tomato sauce
  • 3 potatoes, chopped in small squares
  • 3–4 carrots, chopped in small pieces
  • 2 stalks of celery, chopped
  • 1/4 c fresh chopped cilantro

Optional toppings

  • cheese, shredded
  • green onions, chopped

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375.
  2. Mix all the ingredients together for the meatballs and make mini meatballs about 1/2 in diameter. Place meatballs in a glass baking dish and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
  3. While meatballs are cooking saute onions and garlic in olive oil until softened, then add remaining soup ingredients and simmer on medium high heat for about 15-20 min until veggies are tender, add meatballs and cook an additional 5-10 minutes on medium. If it is not as spicy as you would like add more spice by adding a few teaspoons of chili powder.
  4. Serve with warm bread or grilled cheese! Additionaly you can top with cheese and green onions.

Notes

  • This is one of those soups that the flavors enhance overnight. I often will make this soup the day before I need it so it has time for all the flavors to absorb together!

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 6