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Why I Love This Chicken Meatball Soup
Iowa winters can be grueling. The weather isn’t always full of snow and ice, but by the time February rolls around, you assume it’s almost spring. Then nature reminds you it definitely is not. Like so many Midwesterners, until the days are noticeably longer, I like to hibernate.
The perfect hibernation food — or really, food in general — is soup. For some, soup is the lesser food, something you dump together when you’re in a hurry. To me, soup is layers of flavor that can be slowly cooked or thrown together after work, yet still provide a nourishing, wholesome, and hearty meal.
What Makes a Good Soup
- Layered flavors – As opposed to throwing everything in a slow cooker, the ingredients should be added one at a time, “creating layers.”
- Aromatics – Herbs and spices help to elevate and round out the layered flavors.
- Hearty additions – Beans, potatoes, and meat help make a soup a meal.
- Sturdy greens – Kale added towards the end wilts and truly finishes a soup.
Some soups are more of a side or require a dish to complement them. Think tomato soup paired with grilled cheese. Tomato soup by itself isn’t often very filling. That’s not the case with this soup!
The best part of this soup may be the homemade chicken meatballs. This extra step seems like something that you won’t want to do on a weekend. But instead, the sausage goes together quickly with a perfect spice blend. Scooped onto a baking sheet and roasted in the oven, in just a matter of minutes, you’ll have homemade meatballs with more flavor than you’ll expect.
To start the soup, onion, celery, and garlic are sauteéd until translucent. Even though we read this step in a plethora of recipes, it’s truly important in this soup. This softens the vegetables and takes the hard, fresh flavor away to bring out the sweeter flavors underneath.
During the winter, I don’t have the luxury of pulling fresh herbs from the garden. So for ease, I use dried herbs. Dried are economical and packed with flavor.
Carrot, potato, and white beans are added to the stock to simmer. This is the best part: it only needs to be simmered until the potatoes and carrots are tender, but can be simmered longer if you want a slow, winter soup kind of day.
At the end, some pureed beans are added for their ability to thicken. This dish can really be ready in about one hour if needed. The soup hits all my needs: hearty, full of flavor, filling, and nourishing.
More Soup Recipes
- Creamy chicken and wild rice soup
- Slow cooker chili
- Curry butternut squash soup
- Slow cooker turkey, sweet potato, and kale soup
- Beef and barley soup
Have I Convinced You to Make This Recipe?
I hope you make this recipe and put some food on your table. Leave a comment and share a star rating so you can let others know how much you love this recipe. This helps show others that this is a recipe they, too, can make, enjoy, and love!
Chicken Meatball Soup
Ingredients
For the chicken meatballs
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 tsp fennel seed
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp herbs de Provence
- 1 ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¾ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tbsp pureed white beans (reserved from below)
For the soup
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 ½ cups diced onion
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ¾ cup diced celery
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp dried basil
- 1 ½ cups roughly chopped carrot
- 1 6-8 oz potato
- 2 cans white beans
- 5 cups chicken stock
- 1 bunch kale (approx. 10 oz) ribs removed and chopped
Instructions
For the meatballs
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Using an immersion blender or food processor, puree 1 can of white beans. Reserve 2 tbsp for the meatballs and set the rest aside for the soup.2 cans white beans
- In a bowl, combine the ground chicken, fennel seed, allspice, smoked paprika, herbs de Provence, salt, black pepper, garlic, and bean puree. Stir to combine spice and meat evenly.1 lb ground chicken, 1 tsp fennel seed, 1 tsp allspice, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp herbs de Provence, 1 ½ tsp kosher salt, ¾ tsp freshly ground black pepper, 1 clove garlic, 2 tbsp pureed white beans (reserved from below)
- Using a #100 (2 tsp) cookie scoop, make meatballs and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. This should make approximately 35 meatballs. Bake in the preheated oven until browned and an internal temperature of 165°F is reached. While baking, prepare the soup.
For the soup
- Heat olive oil over medium heat in a 6-quart stockpot or Dutch oven. Add onion, celery, and salt. Slowly sauté until the onion and celery are translucent and soft, 4-6 minutes. Add garlic, red pepper, oregano, and basil. Stir and heat until garlic is fragrant, 1 minute.2 tbsp olive oil, 1 ½ cups diced onion, 1 tsp kosher salt, ¾ cup diced celery, 3 cloves garlic, ½ tsp red pepper flakes, 1 tsp dried oregano, 2 tsp dried basil
- Add carrot, potato, 1 can of whole white beans with the liquid, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer until the carrot and potato are cooked, 25-35 minutes.1 ½ cups roughly chopped carrot, 1 6-8 oz potato, 2 cans white beans, 5 cups chicken stock
- Once the potatoes and carrots are cooked, add the reserved pureed beans to the soup. Continue to cook to remove the raw flavor, 15 minutes. Add the kale and baked meatballs to the soup. Allow the kale to wilt and the meatballs to warm through, 6 minutes.1 bunch kale (approx. 10 oz)
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment below!
Have not made this yet, but it looks like one we’d love. I think a little grated parmesan over the top would be good as well. Can’t wait to try!!!
This soup is DELICIOUS! My hubby, who isn’t a fan of beans, loves this soup!! The flavor is so good. You will not be disappointed if you try this recipe! I highly recommend.
This is amazing I have made it with chicken or lean organic ground pork with excellent results. Sometimes I use a cubed rutabaga instead of the potato. It is a winner! Freezes well too.
Yes! Loved it! Going to make it again! Thank you!!! LOVE your recipes!!!
I love your recipes and the way you present them.
You are fun to listen to but most of all your recipes are delicious and easy to make.
I always look forward to watching you on
UTube. You are adorable!
We LOVE this soup. Hearty, complex delicious flavors. Perfect for winter evenings or anytime…I’m making a pot of it now. I add extra beans usually. This is a wonderful recipe. Thank you!!!!
I live all your recipes ..right down to your canning.. I’ve sent to my Daughter in Cambridge ( england) I’m in Costa Blanca Spain.. I loved the caulifour rice with cod …I’m going to make this …and live your candy that you make ..I’ve made same.. I love your house and garden it’s beautiful.. cheers Pamela
I made this soup tonight for dinner. I cannot tell you enough how delicious it was. The chicken balls taste like sausage, but with fewer calories and fat. Thank you Kaleb for all of your superb recipes. You have inspired me! Thank you!
I just made this incredible soup. I added a large leek and I used Tuscan kale. I love celery so I doubled it. I didn’t have ground turkey so I used Italian pork sausage. The flavor profile is spot on. My new favorite soup. Thank you for sharing.
I have tried many of your recipes since the pandemic trying to stretch our meals, We are trying to make February a no-spend month by using what we have on hand. We live in Hawaii and try to only eat island grown veggies. Rather the canned beans and or potatoes we used Okinawan sweet potatoes the purple kind. We chopped them really small. The potatoes cooked down and made a sweet, savory, soap. Hawaiian style.
Mahalo,
Robert and Helen Kobzi
I loved this soup. I also put in a parmesan rind while it was simmering. I think it adds a little something, something. This was a huge soup so I had plenty to share with neighbors! They think I’m a rock star cook now. LOL I also LOVE that you include the nutritional information with your recipe. Thanks! I’ll be making this again and again!