Ingredient Notes

You’ll discover the total ingredient checklist within the recipe card beneath.

For the Meatballs:

• Floor turkey: I take advantage of 93/7 floor turkey which is pretty lean. Floor turkey breast is extra lean however tends to be considerably harder and dry.
• Panko breadcrumbs: Do-it-yourself breadcrumbs would additionally work as a binder. In case you use common breadcrumbs versus panko, the feel of the meatballs will probably be a bit extra dense and fewer tender.
• Parmesan cheese: You should utilize freshly grated, however it is a recipe the place store-bought would even be nice.
• Seasoning: The meatballs are seasoned with freshly minced garlic, Worcestershire sauce for a touch of umami, dried Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.

For the Soup:

• Greens: Diced onion, carrot, and celery kind a savory trio known as mirepoix.
• Diminished sodium rooster broth: Rooster inventory, which is unseasoned, additionally works.
• Italian seasoning: A straightforward means so as to add plenty of Italian taste to this meatball soup.
• Raw orzo: You may use one other very small pasta for those who’d like. (Children love alphabet pasta!)
• Child spinach: I like child spinach as a result of it wilts rapidly, however for those who choose a heartier inexperienced, kale can be nice too.

Recipe Variations

Use store-bought meatballs. For a shortcut, purchase a bag or container of cooked meatballs from the grocery retailer and use these on this soup as a substitute of creating your individual. Whereas I do choose selfmade, utilizing store-bought makes this meatball soup come collectively even sooner! You may as well kind the meatballs forward of time, and both refrigerate them till you’re able to make the soup, or freeze them to make use of later.

Toss in a Parmesan rind. In case you use freshly grated Parmesan or occur to have a Parmesan rind available (I maintain them within the fridge or freezer for making soups, moderately than throwing them away!), you may drop that into the pot of soup while you add the broth. It’ll add wealthy, deeply savory taste to the soup. Simply notice that you just’ll need to be conservative with the quantity of salt you add, because the Parmesan can add saltiness to the soup too.

Serving Solutions

Fridge: Retailer leftover meatball soup in a coated container within the fridge for as much as 4 days.

Freezer: You may as well freeze this recipe for as much as 3 months in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag. Thaw within the fridge earlier than reheating.

To reheat: Heat leftovers in a pan set over medium warmth or heat particular person parts within the microwave.

• Add all meatball components to a big bowl. Combine till simply mixed. Type into small meatballs, about 1 inch in diameter (we use a 2 teaspoon scoop, making 34 meatballs). Place meatballs on a plate till able to prepare dinner.

  16 ounces floor turkey, ½ cup panko breadcrumbs, ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, 2 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning, ¼ teaspoon coarse floor black pepper, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt

• When the meatballs are rolled, warmth a big pot over medium-high warmth.

• Add the oil. When the oil is sizzling, add the meatballs in a single layer. Prepare dinner with out stirring till browned on the underside, about 4 minutes. In the event that they don’t appear to be they need to transfer, maintain cooking for one more 1 to 2 minutes. Gently stir or flip the meatballs and proceed to prepare dinner for 4 to five minutes or till browned on all sides. They don’t need to be absolutely cooked. Take away meatballs from pot.

  3 tablespoons olive oil

• To the identical pot, add onions, carrots, celery, salt and pepper, and prepare dinner, stirring regularly, till onions are translucent, 4 to five minutes.

  1 cup diced onion, 1 cup diced carrot, 1 cup diced celery, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon coarse floor black pepper

• Add broth, water, Italian seasoning, and meatballs and improve warmth to excessive to deliver the soup to a boil.

  4 cups diminished sodium rooster broth, 2 cups water, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

• As soon as the soup is boiling, add orzo, reducing warmth to take care of a simmer, for 9 to 11 minutes, or as directed on bundle, till pasta is al dente.

  ½ cup raw orzo

• If the spinach leaves are giant, roughly chop them. Add spinach to the soup and stir till spinach is wilted, about 2 minutes.

  5 ounces child spinach

• Add water or extra broth as obligatory after pasta is cooked to skinny soup to desired consistency. Test the seasoning, and add extra salt or pepper, if wanted.

• Serve instantly.

• Floor turkey: In case you choose, you may make the meatballs with lean floor beef. Floor rooster works, too, however tends to be softer. I’d advise browning these in a nonstick pan to verify they don’t collapse.
• Meatball shortcut: Skip making your individual meatballs and as a substitute use your favourite store-bought fully-cooked meatballs (14 to 18 ounce bundle). Add them to the soup with the broth, after you sauté the greens. If meatballs are frozen, you don’t must thaw them.
• Utilizing kale: You may substitute child kale for the spinach. In case you use mature kale, it would take longer to prepare dinner. Chop it into small items, and add it to the soup in terms of a boil, earlier than you add the orzo. Convey the soup again to a boil earlier than including orzo.

 
Recipe retested and revised 11/2025. The unique recipe was comparable however used frozen rooster meatballs and complete wheat orzo, which generally is a little troublesome to search out.

Serving: 1.5cups, Energy: 379kcal, Carbohydrates: 27g, Protein: 27g, Fats: 19g, Saturated Fats: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fats: 4g, Monounsaturated Fats: 10g, Trans Fats: 0.1g, Ldl cholesterol: 71mg, Sodium: 679mg, Potassium: 775mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 7149IU, Vitamin C: 13mg, Calcium: 154mg, Iron: 3mg

Vitamin info is mechanically calculated, so ought to solely be used as an approximation.

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