This easy meatball soup with spinach is an amazingly flavorful soup recipe that you can make any day of the week.
This meatball soup with spinach is chock full of deliciousness – juicy meatballs, pearl couscous, spinach, and plenty of herbs. It’s easy to prepare, although a tiny bit time-consuming, but the finished product is well worth the effort.
How to make this Easy Meatball Soup with Spinach:
Making this recipe is fairly straightforward. You will start with a simple beef meatball. First, combine the meatball aromatics in a bowl, including minced shallot, garlic powder. white pepper, dry parsley, paprika, crushed red pepper, white pepper, and a touch of nutmeg. Add whisked eggs. panko or breadcrumbs, and milk (or a mixture of milk and cream). Combine it all together and season with salt and pepper and allow the panko to absorb the liquid and soften for about 10 minutes.
Add the beef and then mix with your hands until well-combined. At this stage, you can fry up a tiny piece of the meatball and adjust seasoning as necessary.
Next, roll into meatballs. This recipe will make about 40 meatballs.
From there, fry up the meatballs in batches until browned all over. They don’t need to be completely cooked through as they will cook in the broth later on.
Next, prepare the broth for the meatball soup. To the pot with all the yummy drippings from the meatballs, add a diced onion and cook until it begins to soften, about 6-7 minutes. Melt butter into the pot and add aromatics–thyme, minced garlic, and crushed red pepper. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a boil.
From there, it’s simply a matter of adding the pearled couscous and the meatballs back to the pot. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through and the couscous is al dente.
Finally, stir in the freshly chopped parsley and the spinach (I used a blend of spinach and arugula!) and cook for 3-5 minutes until wilted. That’s all!
Looking for more beef recipes? Check my archives!
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Easy Meatball Soup with Spinach
Equipment
Ingredients
Beef Meatballs:
- 2 pounds ground beef 90/10
- 1 shallot finely minced
- 1 tablespoon dry parsley
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon white pepper or black pepper
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper more or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon dry thyme lightly crushed between your fingers
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg optional
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- 1 cup whole milk or use a mix of milk and heavy cream
- 1 cup panko
- Salt, to taste
- 1 tablespoon oil for frying
Soup
- 1 yellow onion peeled and diced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic peeled and minced
- 1 teaspoon dry thyme
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup pearl couscous or fregola or ditalini
- 5 ounces spinach, arugula, or kale or use a blend
- ½ cup fresh parsley chopped; a pinch reserved for garnish
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Prepare the Meatballs:
- In a large bowl, combine the minced shallot dry parsley, garlic powder, paprika, white pepper, crushed red pepper, dry thyme, and nutmeg.
- Add the lightly beaten eggs, panko, and milk and stir to combine. Set aside for 10 minutes.
- Add the beef to the bowl and season all over with salt. Use your hands to mix the ingredients until completely combined. Optional: Take a small piece of the mixture and fry it in the pan to taste for seasoning and then adjust the seasonings as desired.
- Spoon out a tablespoon of the mixture and roll into a meatball. Continue on until all the meatballs have been formed.
Fry the Meatballs:
- In a wide, deep pot heat the oil over medium until hot. Add the meatballs in an even layer, cooking them in batches. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side until well-browned all over (About 8-10 minutes per batch). They do not need to be cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
Start the Broth:
- If the pot seems dry, add a touch more oil. Turn the heat to medium and add the diced onion. Cook for 6-7 minutes until beginning to soften and just turn golden around the edges.
- Melt the butter into the onion. Once frothy, add the minced garlic, dry thyme, and crushed red pepper. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil.
Simmer the Broth:
- Add the pearl couscous to the broth and reduce heat to low. Carefully add the meatballs to the broth. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the couscous is al dente and the meatballs are cooked through.
Finish the Broth:
- Taste and season the broth to your preferences. Add the spinach and all but a pinch of the parsley. Cook 5 minutes longer or until the spinach is wilted. Turn off the heat.
To Serve:
- Ladle the meatball soup into bowls and garnish with parlsey. Enjoy!
Hi. I want to try this recipe but only for 1 serving. How would i convert this?
Thank you, Joan
Make half and have leftover for another day
That’s what I did