Meatballs - probably one of the most comfortable culinary inventions of mankind! The word comes from the Italian frittatella (originally: a fried dish consisting of balls of meat, as well as minced fish). It is difficult to disagree: for example, potato soup with meatballs is always convenient for any housewife in that it can be cooked very quickly, and it does not take long to wait until the meat is cooked, the broth is prepared. In such a first dish, tasty and aromatic, you can add additional ingredients, such as bell peppers, tomatoes, or make a very simple and budget option. In general, as they say, generously express their imagination. Well, will we try?
Taste and aroma familiar from childhood
There are such dishes, one smell of which instantly recalls childhood, a kindergarten or a school canteen, dinners in the circle of home cooked by a generous grandmother. Potato soup with meatballs, like a time machine, returns in those days. Moreover, this is a delicious and easy to prepare first course! Well, it's time to start.
Ingredients
For potato soup with meatballs, we take a pound of minced meat (preferably pork and beef assorted). We will also need potatoes in the amount of a little more than half a kilogram, 2-3 medium carrots, a couple of onions, 3 tablespoons of breadcrumbs for breading, a couple of parsley, ground pepper mixture, black peppercorns.
Advice
Because of such a useful and satisfying supply of meat products, potato soup with meatballs was often cooked and cooked in institutions. Responses of the hostesses say that it will be a win-win option when you want to quickly "bungle" dinner for the family. Even if you often have such a situation that you don’t have time to cook meatballs, then make minced meat preparations in advance. While the meat balls are boiled, you can prepare the vegetables for the dish. Thus, after half an hour the maximum dinner is ready, and a hungry husband with children get culinary pleasure. And an important bonus, which is often noted by women who monitor their figure, is the calorie content of potato soup with meatballs is quite small, about 70 kcal per 100 grams. Provided, of course, if you do not start to fry, using a large amount of oil, fat. By the way, you can lower the calorie content of a dish if you replace meat with fish.
Cooking Potato Soup with Meatballs
- First, let's get vegetables. There are two cooking methods. Are you used to making grilled soups? Then three carrots, and finely chop the onion. We leave it aside, we will do the frying when we have tossed the meatballs to cook. But if fatty is not included in the plans, with vegetables we are already doing differently.
- Cut the potatoes into cubes (cubes), pour into boiling water. Chop the onion finely if you want it to remain in the final product (but this, say, is not for everyone). Option: put the whole onion, and when the potato soup with meatballs is almost ready, take it out. Thus, onions will give a taste, and children, for example, will not catch it from a ready-made dish.
- With carrots, you can also "show creativity." Instead of chips, we cut it in the form of flowers with asterisks - such an innovation, judging by the reviews of young mothers, the kids will really like it.
- Vegetables are boiled, and we will deal with our minced meat. Culinary art loves experimentation, so what kind of meat is better to make stuff from is a matter of personal taste and your preferences. If you want to make a leaner soup, take chicken, turkey meat (rabbit is not advised, its pulp is not suitable for cooking). And for a richer taste, we make assortments of different types of meat. This option will definitely not be a loser for meatballs. Minced salt a little, add pepper and spices for a bright taste. And so that the balls come out dense and even, beat off the minced meat (we take it in our hands and drop it on the table - several times will be enough).
- Form the meatballs (moisten your hands with water). If the minced meat is too liquid, then the balls may fall apart. Then we’ll use a teaspoon, soaking it in cool water. And for the density of the stuffing, you can introduce a little breading there, thoroughly mixing the mass.
- 15 minutes passed and the potatoes were almost cooked. Throw the formed meat. Cook for 15 minutes on low heat. So the potato soup with meatballs is ready. Its calorie content is low, but it perfectly saturates. And before serving, let him infuse for half an hour, so that the added seasonings maximize their taste and aromatic qualities.
How to Make Potato Soup with Fish Meatballs
The same delicious first course can be prepared on a fish day. In addition, the soup will turn out super-dietary. To do this, just replace the minced meat with a fish option. Fillet of sea fish (even the most banal hake and pollock) is best suited, but many housewives say that they used the river one - you just need to free it from the bones. In order for the meatballs not to fall apart, you can add an egg and bread crumbs (or a little flour) to the mass. We leave the rest the same as in the basic recipe.
French version (mashed potatoes)
If you like to use an experimental approach, do not stop at cutting carrots. You can turn an ordinary soup into a delicious dish. To do this, when the soup has cooked, take out the meatballs, catch all the vegetables and grind them with a blender, then return them to the pan along with the meatballs. And for the softness of taste, add a small piece of butter or a little cream.
DIY Meatballs
If you want to "get confused," you can make minced meat with your own hands, rather than buying a store. Judging by the reviews, the most delicious mixed meatballs are minced beef and pork, chicken and turkey, even veal or lamb.
- For a kilogram of minced meat, we take 900 grams of meat in a ratio of fifty to fifty, 100 grams of bread (it’s better to take it dried, but without a crust, it will make our meatballs more tender), half a glass of milk, onion, pepper with salt and garlic - little by little and by to taste.
- We cut the meat into cubes, scroll in a meat grinder, combine it with bread soaked in milk, salt and pepper, add chopped or grated onions (it will add meatiness to the meatballs).
And already from this forcemeat, we form the meatballs, observing the further recipe, as in the original version above. Yes, and enjoy your meal!