What could be a better way to warm up than a big bowl of soup filled with fresh vegetables and meatballs? Although this recipe for Turkey Albondigas Soup does not call for it, I went ahead and roasted the poblano peppers under the broiler to bring out that sweet smoky flavor - you could skip this, but the intensity they bring roasted is worth the extra few minutes. Poblanos can also range in degree of heat - while roasting can mellow that somewhat, you could use just one or two if you know you don't enjoy a spicy flavor. The meatballs are made from ground turkey, panko breadcrumbs, an egg, cumin and oregano. When you add the oregano, be sure to crush the dried leaves between your fingers - it is something I've always done and seems to perk them back up. These meatballs do need to be done ahead of time (at least 20 minutes) as they need to chill so they will keep their shape when you add them into the soup.
The base of the soup is made by softening onions and carrots, then adding the roasted poblanos and some chopped plum tomatoes. Chicken broth is added and the mixture simmers for a few minutes so the flavors can meld together - the meatballs are then dropped in, followed by some cooked brown basmati rice a few minutes later. To pop the flavors in the soup, we stirred in a couple tablespoons of fresh lime juice right before serving. We topped each bowl with chopped fresh cilantro and few pieces of minced jalapeño for an additional burst of heat.
Recipes
Turkey Albondigas Soup
Turkey Albondigas Soup
Long time lurker and big fan here...
ReplyDeleteI love, love, love turkey albondigas soup. I used to work at a Mexican restaurant in Tucson and the chef there made fantastic albondigas soup -- I modifed it at home to be much like the version you made here. I tend to sprinkle cilantro in both the meatballs and the soup -- but that is just because I have a sick infatuation with all things cilantro. :)
Great post!
Kristel
(www.thebestsoupever.blogspot.com)
Kristel - Hmm, I think some cilantro in the meatballs would be a good tie-in as well! Great idea!
ReplyDeleteAnother great recipe! Celantro in the meatballs would be a good addition, I agree. We used 2 pablanos and one Italian frying pepper becuase we couldn't get 3 decent pablanos. Nice heat and flavor. We actually prepped all the vegetables and meatballs a day ahead and had a quick cook the next day. We thought that small dice ripe avacodo would be a good garnish too! I could have used the turkey stock in the freezer, but I forgot!
ReplyDeletePaul
Paul - I like your idea of doing a lot of the prep the day before! I agree about avocado and will write it down in my notes!
ReplyDelete