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!
Want another cozy dinner that eats like a whole meal? Put chicken and dumplings on your list next.
Step-by-step photos and instructions are below, but you can jump right to the recipe card if you wish!
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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.
Check out my EASY meatball soup for a cheater version or my delicious Chickarina Soup for a yummy twist.
Frequently Asked Questions
Albondigas literally means “meatballs” in Spanish – for me, it is a fancy and exotic way of saying “Meatball Soup”. The base is a vegetable-filled well-seasoned tomato broth that is heated to a boil, then reduced to a simmer to gently cook meatballs (that are made with meat and rice). It has roots in Latin America but is made the world over!
This soup will be good in the refrigerator for 2-3 days in a tightly sealed container
Meatballs should be 160 degrees F when tested with an instant-read thermometer. They’re gently simmered so they don’t fall apart!
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.
Key Recipe Ingredients
Remember: this is just an overview and the why of the ingredients I choose here. The full list of ingredients and amounts is found in the printable recipe card below.
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 Albondigas
This next part is only a photo tutorial of the recipe steps. The full list of ingredients, quantities and instructions can be found in the printable recipe card below.
JumpMake 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).
Kylee’s Notes
Easy Substitutions
Beef broth can be used in place of the chicken broth. You could also do a combination of the two.
Brown rice can be substituted for white rice if you wish – we only use 1/2 cup, so it will do the same job!
Parsley will work in place of the fresh oregano in the meatballs!
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!
How to store Albondigas Soup
This soup will be good in the refrigerator for 2-3 days in a tightly sealed container
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
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Albondigas Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
MEATBALLS
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons garlic
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
- ¼ cup fresh oregano
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoons cracked pepper
- ½ cup cooked rice
SOUP BASE
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup onion
- 1 cup celery
- 1 cup carrot
- 1 teaspoon garlic
- ½ teaspoons cumin
- ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- ½ teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoons cracked pepper
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 15 ounces fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 8 ounces potatoes chopped into small pieces
GARNISH
- extra cilantro
Instructions
MAKE THE MEATBALLS
- Combine all meatball 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 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium, high heat.
- Sauté the 1 cup onion, 1 cup celery, and 1 cup carrot until softened.
- Add 1 teaspoon garlic, ½ teaspoons cumin, ½ teaspoons dried oregano, ½ teaspoons salt, and ¼ teaspoons cracked pepper and cook 1 minute.
- Add 6 cups chicken stock, 15 ounces fire roasted diced tomatoes, and 8 ounces potatoes (chopped into small pieces).
- 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°F when tested with an instant read thermometer).
- Sprinkle cilantro over the top and serve.
- Devour.
Notes
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!
Would you like to save this recipe?
We’ll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Nutrition
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.
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About Kylee Ayotte
I am a born and raised New Zealander (a Kiwi), now living in Phoenix, Arizona. I’m happily married to the love of my life – a hot American boy I met while traveling the world. I’m a mama to 2 awesome little boys and love red things, rugby, cheesecake, and bacon. Mmmmm. Bacon. Meet Kylee
This albondigas soup looks so warm and comforting. I love that it’s so filling and perfect for the winter.
Thanks for all the great tips to make this soup. The substitutions came in very handy and my family loved it!
This soup looks amazing! Can you take the meatballs and turn it into a spaghetti and meatball recipe?
You could, of course!
Soup is the best sinner option any day. This was yum and delicious and definitely comforting too. Thanks for your awesome recipe.
We’ve been doing soup once a week! I actually need to make some beef broth today for tomorrow’s soup!