Albondigas Soup (Meatball Soup)

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Albondigas Soup is a delicious meatball soup with a richly flavored broth. Delicate meatballs seasoned with fresh herbs bump up the flavor and make this a satisfying dinner!

Step by step photos and instructions below!

This recipe first appeared at The Salty Marshmallow where I am a contributor.

In my household, soup is absolutely considered an entire meal, instead of just part of it. We amp it up with some crusty bread or serve a salad on the side if we’re super hungry. Or we just eat 2 bowls…

Now that the weather is cooler, I am LOVING being able to make soup as a main meal again. I like that it’s all done in one-pot, and has enough of “everything” to really satisfy the whole family.

Frequently Asked Questions

All you’ll need to make this is a large sheet pan to hold the meatballs, a Dutch oven (or another large saucepan), and a spoon to eat it with!

You can make this in the slow cooker if you wish, just add add the ingredients to the crockpot, and cook for 4-6 hours on low. When you are ready to eat, add the meatballs in – and turn the heat up to high, and cook for 30 minutes (or until the meatballs are cooked through)

If you are looking for other hearty one-pot recipes, try my 4 Ingredient Meatball Casserole, Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup, or this Crockpot Chili!

I have included step by step photos and instructions, as well as tips and tricks in the post. If you’d rather skip all that, scoot right on down to the full recipe card located at the bottom of the post.

About the beef meatballs

I almost always have leftover rice, so I use cooked rice in my meatballs to keep the simmer time down (so that the rice doesn’t have to cook in the broth). If you don’t have cooked rice, you have 2 choices: 1) cook some rice, or 2) use uncooked rice (you’ll only need a tablespoon or 2) and simmer the meatballs longer.

This soup lends itself well to making ahead, or at least the components. I regularly make the meatballs ahead and freeze them, just cooking a little longer when I want to serve this Albondigas Soup recipe.

For the meatballs

• Ground Beef. I use a lean ground beef, 93/7 to keep the saturated fat content down.
• Egg. This helps to bind the meatballs so they stay together vs falling apart.
• Garlic. Minced garlic. Prefer fresh if you can!
• Fresh Cilantro. Don’t sub dried!
• Fresh Oregano. Don’t sub dried!
• Cumin, Coriander, Salt & Pepper
• Cooked White Rice

For the soup base

• Garlic. Mince it fresh if you can!
• Cumin, Oregano, Salt & Pepper
• Fire Roasted Tomatoes. The fire roasted tomatoes add a smokey flavor. If you can’t find them, no worries. Regular canned tomatoes will be totally fine.
• Potatoes. Any kind of potato will do. Just make sure to cut them reasonably small as they will need to cook quickly.
• Chicken Broth. You can make your own or buy a carton. Or you can sub beef broth (doing half chicken, half beef is awesome too).

How to make this recipe

Make the meatballs

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl until well mixed.

Roll into meatballs – I use a cookie scoop to create even-sized meatballs. Place them on a tray, and refrigerate or place in the freezer while you make the soup base.

Make The Soup Base

Heat the olive oil over medium, high heat.

Sauté the onion, celery, and carrots until softened (pic 1, below).

Add garlic, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper and cook 1 minute (pic 2, below).

Add the chicken stock, tomatoes, and potatoes (pic 3, below).

Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the meatballs – lower them in gently using a slotted spoon (pic & 5 below).

Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for about 15-20 minutes, until meatballs are cooked through (should be 160 degrees F when tested with an instant-read thermometer).

Sprinkle the cilantro over the top of the soup, and serve (pic 6, below).

Want more one pot recipes? Here are some of my favorites:

• Butternut Squash Soup (with apple) – my all-time favorite soup, it’s healthy AND low-fat!
• Homemade Hamburger Helper – a VERY popular weeknight dinner. Simple. Homemade. Delicious!
• Tuna Noodle Casserole – this one will bring you right back to childhood. Budget-friendly and easy to double for a crowd!
• ALL SOUP RECIPES
• ALL ONE-PAN RECIPES

If you have tried this recipe or any other recipe on Kylee Cooks, leave a comment and rating – I truly love to hear from you!
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Albondigas Soup

4.91 from 10 votes

Albondigas Soup is a delicious meatball soup with a richly flavored broth. Delicate meatballs seasoned with fresh herbs bump up the flavor and make this a satisfying dinner!

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes minutes

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Recommended Equipment

• Sheet Pan
• Dutch Oven
• Ladle

Yield: 6

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Ingredients

MEATBALLS

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp garlic
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro
• ¼ cup fresh oregano
• 1 tsp cumin
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp cracked pepper
• ½ cup cooked rice

SOUP BASE

• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1 cup onion
• 1 cup celery
• 1 cup carrot
• 1 tsp garlic
• ½ tsp cumin
• ½ tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp cracked pepper
• 6 cups chicken
• 15 oz fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 8 oz potatoes (chopped into small pieces)

GARNISH

• extra cilantro

Directions

MAKE THE MEATBALLS

• Combine all ingredients in a large bowl until well mixed.
• Roll into meatballs – I use a cookie scoop to create even sized meatballs. Place them on a tray, and refrigerate while you make the soup base

MAKE THE SOUP BASE

• Heat the olive oil over medium, high heat.
• Sauté the onion, celery and carrots until softened.
• Add garlic, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper and cook 1 minute.
• Add the chicken stock, tomatoes and potatoes.
• Bring to a boil, the reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
• Add the meatballs – lower them in gently using a slotted spoon.
• Cover and simmer over medium low heat for about 15-20 minutes, until meatballs are cooked through (should be 160 degrees F when tested with an instant read thermometer).
• Sprinkle cilantro over the top and serve.
• Devour.

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Notes

How do you know when meatballs are cooked? –
o Meatballs should be 160 degrees F when tested with an instant-read thermometer. They’re gently simmered so they don’t fall apart!
• How to store Albondigas
o This soup will be good in the refrigerator for 2-3 days in a tightly sealed container.
• Easy Substitutions
o Beef broth can be used in place of the chicken broth. You could also do a combination of the two.
o Brown rice can be substituted for white rice if you wish – we only use 1/2 cup, so it will do the same job!
o Parsley will work in place of the fresh oregano in the meatballs!
o You may wish to add a little Italian Seasoning to the soup base – it makes a nice change if you make this recipe a lot as I do!

Nutrition

Calories: 309kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 1129mg | Potassium: 862mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 4042IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 107mg | Iron: 5mg

Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.

Author: Kylee Cooks