An easy chicken meatball soup with a savory, lightly spiced soup and sweet butternut squash. A wonderful summer-to-fall transition soup.
Juicy chicken meatballs with sweet butternut squash in a savory broth with rice noodles.
I’ve never met a chicken meatball I didn’t like, but one of my favorite ways to enjoy them is in a simple broth. I especially love this recipe because it requires no frying. Just roll the meatballs and drop them straight into the hot broth. Since we are still doing a gluten-free trial in our house, I use gluten-free panko and serve them over rice noodles. Of course, traditional panko will work just fine with no modifications needed to the recipe. You could easily serve these over ramen, soba, or udon instead.
What you need
- Meatballs: I use ground chicken, but you could make these with ground turkey or ground pork instead. I season them simply with tamari, sesame oil, and minced ginger. They’re held together with an egg and gluten-free panko.
- Soup: The soup is a simple combination of onion, scallions, ginger, and chicken stock. I season it with tamari, mirin, sesame oil, and chili oil for a little heat. I add butternut squash for its natural sweetness.
- For serving: I finish the soup with a few shakes of Yuzu furikake. There are so many furikake flavors out there, so pick one that speaks to your soul and try it with that! A simple nori furikake would be lovely, or an ume shiso furikake would add a unique tartness! I also love serving this over cooked noodles, but you can eat it as-is as well.
How to make it
Step 1: Start the broth.
Sauté the broth aromatics until softened and fragrant. Add the chicken stock and simmer briefly to meld the flavors.
Step 2: Make the meatballs.
While the broth simmers, combine all the ingredients for the meatballs and roll into tablespoon-sized balls.
Step 3: Finish the soup.
Return the broth to a boil and add the tamari, mirin, sesame oil, and chili oil. Add the butternut squash and chicken meatballs. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the squash is tender and the meatballs are cooked through.
Step 4: Cook the noodles.
As the broth simmers, cook the noodles according to package directions and divide between four bowls.
Step 5: Serve it up.
Finish the chicken meatball soup with furikake. Ladle over the noodles and serve with the green parts of the minced scallions.
Chicken Meatball and Squash Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
Chicken meatballs:
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 3 tablespoons tamari
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1 egg
- ½ cup panko (plus more if needed; I used gluten-free panko)
Broth:
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil
- 1 yellow onion (peeled, halved, and sliced thinly into half-moons)
- 5 scallions (trimmed and minced; white and light green parts kept separate from dark green parts)
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 6 cups chicken stock
- ¼ cup tamari
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon chili oil (more or less depending on heat tolerance)
- ¾ pound diced butternut squash (yield from about half of a butternut squash)
- 2 teaspoons yuzu furikake (I used a yuzu furikake, but try it with your favorite flavor)
For serving:
- Noodles of choice (cooked according to package directions; see Note 1)
Instructions
Prepare the broth:
- Heat 1 tablespoon neutral oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the sliced onion, white and light green parts of the scallions, and 2 teaspoons minced ginger. Sauté for 5 to 6 minutes until the onions begin to soften. Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
Make the meatballs:
- As the broth simmers, combine the ground chicken with 3 tablespoons tamari, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 1 teaspoon minced ginger, 1 egg, and ½ cup panko. Mix with a rubber spatula until incorporated. If the mixture seems very wet, add a few more shakes of panko. The mixture may feel sticky, but you should be able to form ragged meatballs with it. They do not need to be rolled into perfectly smooth meatballs.
- Scoop out a tablespoon of the mixture and work it quickly into a ball; do not overwork the meat. Continue with the rest of the mixture. They will look a little ragged around the edges. Transfer to a plate and refrigerate until needed.
Finish the broth:
- Return the broth to a boil. Add ¼ cup tamari, 2 tablespoons mirin, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, and 1 tablespoon chili oil. Add the diced butternut squash and the chicken meatballs. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through and the squash is tender.
Cook the noodles:
- Cook the noodles according to package directions. Divide between four bowls.
Finish the soup:
- Taste the broth and season to your preference. Finish by sprinkling 2 teaspoons furikake on top. Turn off the heat.
To serve:
- Spoon the broth and meatballs over the cooked noodles. Serve with the reserved green parts of the scallions. Enjoy!
