Our family’s favorite matzo ball soup; a.k.a., the long asked for ‘Bubby’s homemade matzoh ball soup recipe’, is rich, velvety, full of fresh herbs, and the best ever matzo balls, and is hands-down one of my favorite childhood memories (that I make again and again.)
Nothing quite takes me right back home, to my childhood, to growing up in my big loud house, full of laughter and good food and endless movie quotes, quite in the way that matzo ball soup does.
Like most people, I’m absolutely certain that my mom’s; a.k.a., Bubby’s homemade chicken soup is hands down THE BEST chicken soup there is. Add in light and fluffy matzo balls and you’ve basically got my version of heaven in a bowl.
Not only is matzo ball soup delicious, but according to pretty much any Jewish mother, it cures everything. Move over windex, matzo ball soup is coming in hot! (Okay someone please tell me they were obsessed with the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding as much as my family was!?)
I’d also venture to guess that if you polled most of our friends and family and basically anyone who’s ever come to my house for dinner on Shabbat or really any Jewish holiday, they’d tell you that my mom’s homemade matzo ball soup is THE matzo ball soup to beat. It’s not only insanely amazing, but it’s really popular in our group. Any dinner at our home where matzo ball soup was served, a whole lot of slurping and mmm-ing followed. 🤣
And growing up in a very big Jewish family means that I’ve tried my fair share of matzo ball soup (and chicken soup, for that matter.) Cook down chicken and veggies in a great big pot with the right amount of seasoning and in all likelihood, you’ll wind up with a pretty good bowl of chicken soup. My mom’s chicken soup though – it’s warm and rich from the chicken fat, velvety, full of bright, fresh herbs, and subtly sweet from parsnips and sweet potato. It’s exactly how I think matzo ball soup should be.
What Makes Bubby’s Homemade Matzo Ball Soup Special
The recipe for this homemade matzo ball soup is my family’s official recipe for homemade matzo ball soup. Like I said before, my mom; a.k.a., Bubby, has been making a version of this chicken soup all my life, and I’ve made it, with some minor variations, for a good ten years on my own.
I love recipes like this. Passed down over the years; shared from one family member to the next; tweaked and expanded, shaped by years of memories. I can remember making matzo ball soup on my own for the first time, fresh out of college; calling my mom, like I’ve done for most of her cherished recipes through the years, listening as she walked me through the steps; no measurements, just quantified by the handfuls and pinches.
These days, I make matzo ball soup by memory, but I realized, after getting so many messages any time I shared the matzo ball soup on instagram, texts from friends, calls from family, and begged for after being served in big heaping bowls at the holidays since we’ve moved from home over the years, etc., that it was probably high time I actually type up the recipe and share it.
So here we are: our family’s homemade matzo ball soup, tweaked to perfection, in all it’s glory.
How to Make Bubby’s Homemade Matzo Ball Soup
INGREDIENTS
Homemade Chicken Soup
1 whole raw chicken (or 2-3 chicken breasts on the bone)
3 or 4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
3 or 4 stalks of celery, cut into chunks
1 large onion, peeled and cut into chunks
2 parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
1 bag of frozen corn (optional)
handful of fresh dill, torn from the stems
handful of fresh parsley, torn from the stems
Kosher salt
fresh ground pepper
water to cover, about 4 quarts
chicken bouillon (optional)
Matzoh Balls
1 cup matzo meal
4 large eggs, stirred in a bowl
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
4 tablespoons oil or 4 tablespoons melted schmaltz (i.e., reserved chicken fat) – I use vegetable oil or sunflower oil
1-2 teaspoons baking powder* (optional)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 tsp white pepper (optional)
1/4 tsp nutmeg (optional)
1-2 tablespoon(s) chopped fresh dill (optional)
DIRECTIONS
To Make the Chicken Soup:
Put the chicken, carrots, celery, onion, parsnip, sweet potato, and small handfuls of dill leaves and parsley leaves in a large soup pot and cover with cold water. Bring all ingredients to a boil in an 8- to 10-quart heavy pot. Reduce to low heat to simmer and skim any fat floating at the top and discard that fat. (It will be foamy.)
Heat and simmer, uncovered, until the chicken meat falls off of the bones, about 3 hours.
Skim any fat floating at the top of the soup and discard. Take the chicken out of the pot, careful to get all of the bones. Pick the chicken meat off of the bones and return the chicken, without the bones, to the pot.
Season the broth with salt, pepper and chicken bouillon to taste, if desired.
Make the matzoh balls. (SEE BELOW.)
Add the frozen corn (optional), stir together, and allow to simmer until the corn is cooked through.
To Make the Matzo Balls:
Mix all matzo ball ingredients in a bowl. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes and up to 3 hours. (I omit the baking powder because I like my matzoh balls a little bit more dense on the inside, perfectly fluffy and soup-soaked on the outside.)
Bring 1 1/2 quarts of well-salted water to a brisk boil in a large pot. (Separate from the soup.)
Reduce the flame to low heat. Run your hands under cold water so they are nice and wet. (This is my mom’s trick to keep your matzo balls from sticking to your hands as you form them.) Form matzo balls by dropping spoonfuls of matzo ball batter approximately 2-inches in diameter into the palm of your wet hands and rolling them loosely into balls. Drop them into the simmering salt water one at a time. (You can splash your hands with more cool water from the sink every few minutes if the matzo ball batter is starting to stick to your hands more.) Cover the pot and cook them on low for 30 to 40 minutes. (If you cook for an additional 10-20 minutes you will get lighter, less firm matzo balls. I just feel like the 30-40 minute cook time produces the perfect matzo ball!)
About ten minutes before the matzo balls are ready, if you’ve already turned off your cooking chicken stock, bring prepared chicken stock to a simmer to warm it back up.
To make a bowl of matzoh ball soup to, ladle one or two matzoh balls, strained, in the bowl. Top with soup and vegetables. Garnish with parsley and dill and serve.
NOTE: To store leftover matzo ball soup, store the remaining strained matzo balls in a separate container from the leftover soup. (You can even freeze cooked matzo balls in a ziplock bag or airtight container and re-heat them in the soup when you’re ready to eat your matzo ball soup!)
*A Note on Fluffy Matzo Balls: Everyone likes their matzo balls a certain way – some are team fluffy all the way, others like their matzo balls dense with a little bit of chew. Adding baking soda (or a tablespoon or two of seltzer) will make your matzo balls super light and fluffy. (You can also cook the matzo balls – minus the baking powder – for an additional 10-20 minutes for lighter matzo balls as well.) Omitting the baking soda, and following this recipe otherwise, will make a perfect in-between matzo ball: light and fluffy on the outside, a little bit dense on the inside. Basically, the perfect happy matzo ball medium – and my favorite way to eat them!
I also love a generous pinch of fresh chopped dill in my matzo balls, but with two little kids at home, any time I do that I get a whole lot of, “Mommmmm! What’s this green stuff in my matzo balls?!” To avoid their utter shock and dismay over the “green stuff” I sometimes just skip that addition. And of course, that’s the beauty of matzo balls – you can tweak them to make them YOUR family’s favorite matzo balls!
Scroll on down for the printable recipe for Bubby’s matzo ball soup!
Our family’s favorite homemade matzo ball soup; a.k.a., Bubby’s matzoh ball soup recipe, is rich, velvety, full of fresh herbs, and the best ever matzo balls, and is hands-down one of my favorite childhood memories (that I make again and again.) To Make the Chicken Soup: Put the chicken, carrots, celery, onion, parsnip, sweet potato, and small handfuls of dill leaves and parsley leaves in a large soup pot and cover with cold water. Bring all ingredients to a boil in an 8- to 10-quart heavy pot. Reduce to low heat to simmer and skim any fat floating at the top and discard that fat. (The fat will be foamy.) Heat and simmer on low, uncovered, until the chicken meat falls off of the bones, about 3 hours. Skim any fat floating at the top of the soup and discard. Take the chicken out of the pot, careful to get all of the bones. Pick the chicken meat off of the bones and return the chicken, without the bones, to the pot. Add the frozen corn (optional), stir together. Season the broth with salt, pepper and chicken bouillon to taste, if desired, and allow to simmer until the corn is cooked through. Make the matzoh balls. (SEE BELOW.) Mix all matzo ball ingredients in a bowl. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes and up to 3 hours. (I omit the baking powder because I like my matzoh balls a little bit more dense on the inside, perfectly fluffy and soup-soaked on the outside.) Bring 1 1/2 quarts of well-salted water to a brisk boil in a large pot. (Separate from the soup.) Reduce the flame to low heat. Run your hands under cold water so they are nice and wet. (This is my mom’s trick to keep your matzo balls from sticking to your hands as you form them.) Form matzo balls by dropping spoonfuls of matzo ball batter approximately 2-inchEs in diameter into the palm of your wet hands and rolling them loosely into balls. Drop them into the simmering salt water one at a time. (You can splash your hands with more cool water from the sink every few minutes if the matzo ball batter is starting to stick to your hands more.) Cover the pot and cook them on low for 30 to 40 minutes. About ten minutes before the matzo balls are ready, bring prepared chicken stock to a simmer to warm it back up. To make a bowl of matzoh ball soup to serve, ladle one or two matzo balls, strained, in the bowl. Top with soup and vegetables. Garnish with parsley and dill and serve. NOTE: To store leftover matzo ball soup, store the remaining strained matzo balls in a separate container from the leftover soup. *A Note on Fluffy Matzo Balls: Everyone likes their matzo balls a certain way – some are team fluffy all the way, others like their matzo balls dense with a little bit of chew. Adding baking soda (or a tablespoon or two of seltzer) will make your matzo balls super light and fluffy. Omitting the baking soda, and following this recipe otherwise, will make a perfect in-between matzo ball: light and fluffy on the outside, a little bit dense on the inside. Basically, the perfect happy matzo ball medium – and my favorite way to eat them! 
Homemade Matzo Ball Soup; a.k.a., Bubby’s Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
To Make the Matzo Balls:
Notes
Finally getting around to writing this post is making me crave a big bowl of homemade matzo ball soup all over again. I think I know what’s on the menu this Friday night!
So there you have it: how to make our family’s favorite matzoh ball soup!
More Delicious Homemade Soup Recipes from Glitter, Inc.:
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Slow Cooker Chicken Vegetable and Quinoa Soup
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