Easy Matzo Ball Recipe
Diane Zatz crafts and grows vegetables, and loves everything about food.
This recipe is featured in Matzo Balls: Classic Comfort Food
Matzo ball box mixes vary in quality, but many are very good. Making your own from scratch is just as easy as the mixes, and you have more control over the ingredients. Serve in hot homemade or good store-bought chicken stock.
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) vegetable oil or schmaltz (rendered chicken fat)
- 120 grams (1 cup) matzo meal
- 5 grams (1 teaspoon) salt
- 1.3 grams (1/4 teaspoon) finely ground black pepper
- Chicken broth, as needed for cooking and serving
- Fresh dill, parsley, cooked carrots, cooked celery, for serving (optional)
A dash of garlic salt and onion salt in the recipe will give the matzo balls more flavor.
Add up to 1/4 cup of water or seltzer if the mix is too dry to stir. It will firm up in the refrigerator.
Preparation
- In a medium bowl, beat the eggs until light and frothy. Stir in the oil or schmaltz, 60 ml (1/4 cup) water, matzo meal, salt, and pepper until well combined. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
2. In a large pot, bring chicken broth* to a boil over high heat. Using an ice cream scoop, form the matzo mixture into 4 cm (1 ½-inch) balls by rolling with wet hands, and drop them into the boiling pot.
3. Cover the pot and simmer until the matzo balls are cooked through and tender, about 20-30 minutes, depending on the size. They will rise to the surface.
4. Serve hot in soup, garnished, if desired, with fresh dill or parsley, cooked carrots, and celery.
*Matzo balls may be boiled in lightly salted water and added to chicken soup after they are cooked.
They can be made small and served several to a bowl or large, as the centerpiece of your soup.
Diane Zatz
Diane Zatz is a graphic designer, educator, and Associate Editor of The Cook’s Cook. Diane and her husband divide their time between Philadelphia and their family farm in Lancaster County, Pa. They enjoy their off-screen time planting seeds and pulling weeds.
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