3 Matzo Ball Soup Recipes to Celebrate the Jewish New Year

Matzo ball soup holds a special significance in Jewish culture. Widely regarded as “Jewish penicillin,” the soup is a staple at nearly every Jewish holiday party.

But what exactly are matzo balls? The fluffy spheres of deliciousness are made from matzo meal, which is ground up matzo (unleavened bread). The matzo meal is then combined with eggs and some kind of fat such as oil or schmaltz (chicken fat), formed into a dough, and then rolled into balls and boiled.

While it sounds simple enough, ask any Jewish person and they’ll have strong opinions about how matzo balls should be made. Do you prefer sinkers or floaters? Big balls or small balls? Boxed mix or homemade dough? The list goes on. “The best matzo ball soup is the one your bubbie made,” jokes Joshua Pollack, owner of Rosenberg’s Bagels & Delicatessen.

He’s right, though: I have fond memories of helping my nana prepare matzo balls during holidays like Passover and Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). I remember rolling the dough into little balls, watching them double in size as they boiled in the broth—then sitting around the Seder table and patiently waiting to dive into the soup.

“Jewish food in general is a representation of the Jewish immigrant experience. We use techniques and ingredients found in the places where we were pushed to and ran to throughout Europe,” Pollack says.

Safta chef Alon Shaya’s matzo ball wedding soup with duck is a perfect representation of this sentiment. “This merging of an Italian American and a Jewish classic—matzo ball soup and Italian wedding soup—feels almost second nature to me, given my culinary upbringing. Every Rosh Hashanah and Passover, I’d work on showcasing what the Jews would eat in the Italian ghettos,” Shaya describes in his cookbook, Shaya: An Odyssey of Food, My Journey Back to Israel.

Beyond creating delicious dishes, many traditional Jewish ingredients gained their significance during times of scarcity, Pollack points out: “A lot of the ingredients we use in Jewish cooking were a matter of survival. For example, schmaltz was used in everything because it was free. Chickens were raised for their eggs and meat, and the discarded products like the fat would be rendered down and used as cooking oil.”

Like most other cultures around the world, food and tradition are closely intertwined in Judaism.

“Our food reminds us of who we are and where we came from,” shares Rabbi Joe Black of Denver’s Temple Emanuel, who adds green chiles to his matzo balls. “The tastes and smells bring me back to my childhood when the delicious aromas of matzo balls and gefilte fish and kreplach (Jewish wontons) would fill the house. These recipes have been passed down for generations by our ancestors and allow us to carry on their traditions.”

Matzo (and, consequently, matzo ball soup) is most commonly associated with Passover, which commemorates the story of Exodus. As the Torah tells it, when the Israelites fled from their enslavement in ancient Egypt, they did not have time to wait for their bread to rise, so they baked the unleavened bread to take with them on their journey through the desert. Thus, matzo became a symbol of the Israelites’ liberation.

Today, matzo ball soup is consumed on nearly every major Jewish holiday, and with Rosh Hashanah approaching on October 2, many Jewish people will be pulling out their favorite matzo ball soup recipes to celebrate.

“The purpose of Rosh Hashanah is to begin a 10-day process of reflection, repentance, atonement, and forgiveness, which ends on Yom Kippur. It takes place during Tishri, the sixth month in the Jewish calendar, so that you can look back at where you came from and look ahead to where you’re going. You take stock in yourself and your soul, look at your community and your values, and evaluate how you can do better,” Black says.

Black encourages readers from all faiths and walks of life to join Temple Emanuel for Rosh Hashanah services, which are “open to the entire community.”

In honor of soup season and Rosh Hashanah, make your own matzo ball soup with the following recipes from Pollack and Shaya—and my home kitchen.

Don’t feel like cooking? Rosenberg’s matzo ball soup and Rosh Hashanah catering packages are currently available to order online. Safta will be offering a special Rosh Hashanah menu, October 2 to 4, which includes a seeded challah platter and pomegranate braised lamb shank, as well as a special Yom Kippur menu, October 11 to 12, with duck matzo ball soup and salmon malawach; make your reservation online.

Rosenberg’s Matzo Ball Soup Recipe

“Our matzo balls are not too dense, but not too fluffy. The key to a lot of the texture issues is time, so make sure to rest your dough for at least 30 minutes,” Pollack says.

Serves 4

For the matzo balls:
1 cup matzo meal
2 large eggs
¼ cup water or chicken broth
2 tablespoons shmaltz
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon fresh dill or parsley (optional)

For the soup:
2 tablespoons shmaltz
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large carrots, sliced
2 celery stalks, sliced
8 cups chicken broth, preferably homemade
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried dill
Salt and pepper, to taste
Fresh dill or parsley for garnish (optional)
Gribenes (crispy chicken skin) for garnish (optional)

1. Make the matzo balls: Crack the eggs and separate the yolks from the whites into two separate bowls. With a fork, beat the egg whites first until frothy. Then, break up the yolks and beat them until light yellow and bubbly, then incorporate into the egg whites.

2. Add the shmaltz and whip again until fully incorporated and bubbly. Add the matzo meal, chicken broth, salt, and pepper, and stir just until combined. Fold in the fresh dill or parsley. Cover the mixture and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

3. Prepare the soup: In a large pot, heat the shmaltz over medium heat. Add the diced onion and sauté until translucent (about 5 minutes). Add the minced garlic, sliced carrots, and celery. Sauté for another 5 minutes until the vegetables start to soften.

4. Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add the dried thyme, dried dill, salt, and pepper to taste. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer.

5. While the soup is simmering, bring a separate pot of salted water or broth to a boil. Wet your hands and form the matzo mixture into balls (about 1.5 inch in diameter). Drop the matzo balls into the boiling water or broth. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes, or until they have expanded and are cooked through (you should be able to pierce the fluffy balls with a spoon).

6. Once all the matzo balls are cooked, carefully transfer them to the pot of soup. Let everything simmer together for a few more minutes to meld the flavors.

7. Serve hot, garnished with fresh dill or parsley, and crispy gribenes (chicken skin cracklings) if desired.

Alon Shaya’s Matzo Ball Wedding Soup with Duck

A variation of Shaya’s matzo ball soup with duck is on the menu at Safta, his six-year-old RiNo restaurant. While this is a time-consuming recipe, the deeply savory soup is worth the effort.

Serves 10 to 12

For the broth:
1 duck (5 to 6 pounds)
3 pounds chicken feet
1 gallon plus 3 quarts water, divided
1 yellow onion, quartered
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
3 sprigs fresh thyme
3 tablespoons Morton kosher salt
1 cinnamon stick
8 whole allspice berries
2 star anise pods
2 dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorn

For the matzo balls:
1 ⅓ cups matzo meal
¾ teaspoon onion powder
¾ teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
½ cup schmaltz or ghee, melted
4 eggs
2 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 quart lightly packed fresh arugula
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Best quality extra-virgin olive oil, for serving

1. Make the soup: Butcher the duck, set the legs and wings aside to come to room temperature (you’ll be cooking them in about 1 hour) and refrigerate the breasts. Discard the giblets and neck (or save for another use).

2. In a large stockpot, combine the duck’s carcass with the chicken feet and 1 gallon water over high heat. Once the water is simmering, reduce the heat to medium and skim away any foam. Continue to simmer, skimming frequently, for about 10 minutes, until you’ve removed as much of the foam as you can.

3. Add the onion, carrot, celery, thyme, 1 tablespoon of salt, and all the spices. Gently simmer, uncovered, for about 1½ hours, until the chicken feet have softened but are not falling apart and all the aromas in the broth are coming together. Decrease the heat a bit if the stock is bubbling too rapidly.

4. Submerge the duck legs and wings in the stock, and cook for another 75 to 90 minutes, until the meat is pulling away from the bone (the wings may fall apart). Pull them out and reserve, then add the duck breasts to the stock and cook for just another 15 minutes or so, until they’re firm to the touch and no longer pink in the center. Reserve with the rest of the meat, and remove the pot from the heat.

5. Once the duck meat is cool enough to handle, trim away and discard all the skin and any remaining fat. Slice the breast against the grain, and then cut it into bite-sized pieces; pull the meat off the legs and wings, and roughly chop it. Store all the duck meat in the refrigerator until the soup is ready.

6. Strain the duck stock, reserving the solids, and allow the stock to cool. You’ll see some fat rise to the top, which adds flavor and body, but you can skim off some or all of it. While it’s cooling, make the second stock: Add all the solids to a separate wide pot or Dutch oven, which you’ll later use to cook the matzo balls, and cover them with 3 quarts of water and 2 tablespoons of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium, and continue to simmer for about 30 minutes, until it’s fragrant and tastes well seasoned.

7. While the second stock simmers, make the matzo balls: In a large bowl, combine the matzo meal, onion powder, garlic powder, and remaining 2 teaspoons of salt. Separately, beat the schmaltz and eggs together, and then add them to the dry ingredients and stir until well combined, with no dry pockets of matzo meal. Press a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the dough, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours.

8. Strain the second stock (discard the solids), and either store it for later use or, if you are finishing the recipe now, return it to the wide pot and bring it up to a simmer over medium heat.

9. Roll the chilled matzo ball dough into tablespoon-size balls, and as soon as you shape them, drop them into the second stock; they should float in a single layer with a bit of room between them (they will expand as they cook). Leaving the heat on medium, partially cover the pot to cook for about 1 hour. The matzo balls are done when they’re the same color throughout; if you cut one open, it should have the same texture as pound cake. Cover, and remove the pot from the heat while you assemble the soup.

10. Put the duck stock back in a pot, and bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, and immediately add the duck meat, tomatoes, arugula, and lemon juice.

11. To serve, place a couple of matzo balls at the bottom of each bowl, then ladle the soup over them. Discard the broth you used to cook the matzo balls. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil.

Sara Rosenthal’s Easy Matzo Ball Soup

Most matzo ball enthusiasts, like myself, will tell you that it’s perfectly fine to use the boxed mix. I follow the instructions on the box, but instead of boiling them in water, I cook the matzo balls directly in the broth so they absorb all that yummy flavor. I came up with this recipe using what I remembered from making matzo balls with my nana, asking my parents for advice, and, like any good millennial, scouring the internet.

Serves 6 to 8

For the matzo balls:
2 eggs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or olive oil, which is what my mom uses)
1 box of Manischewitz matzo ball mix

For the soup:
8 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth, preferably homemade (recipe below)
1–1 ½ cups of shredded chicken
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
½ medium onion, diced
½ shallot, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon dried dill
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 baby gold potatoes, cubed (optional)
2 cups of egg noodles (optional, but that’s what my nana used)

1. Make the matzo balls: Beat both eggs in a bowl, then add the oil and mix together until well combined. Add the matzo ball mix and stir with a fork until well combined. Store in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.

2. Prepare the soup: While the matzo balls rest, heat up the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and sauté the onions for around 5 to 7 minutes until translucent (add a dash of salt to sweat them down faster). Add in garlic, shallots, and dried rosemary, and cook for around 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add carrots and celery, and cook for around 5 minutes to soften. Add in chicken broth, salt, pepper, paprika, dill, and cayenne pepper. Bring the soup to a boil.

3. While the broth is working up to a boil, remove chilled matzo ball dough from the fridge. Put olive oil on your hands and roll the dough into balls that are a bit larger than a tablespoon in size. This should make around 9 to 10 balls.

4. When the broth is boiling, add in potatoes, egg noodles, and then matzo balls last. By letting the matzo balls cook right in the soup, they absorb all the flavor of the soup. Cover the pot and reduce it to a simmer for 20 minutes. You’ll know that the matzo balls are ready because they will double in size and they’ll be floating at the top.

6. After 20 minutes, open the pot, add in shredded chicken and simmer for around 5 more minutes. Be careful not to break the matzo balls when adding in the chicken.

7. If you’re enjoying the soup right away, serve it in a bowl and garnish with dill. To freeze it for later, remove the matzo balls from the broth (so they don’t get mushy), arrange them on a tray with parchment paper, and place them in the freezer. Once they’re frozen, store them in a freezer-safe container or bag. Freeze the broth in a freezer-safe mason jar or container.

Kitchen Scraps Broth

Something about homemade broth just hits different, and I love how easy it is to make. Here’s how to transform veggie scraps, herb trimmings, bones, and carcasses that would’ve otherwise been thrown away into a soothing and delicious homemade broth.

1 gallon bag filled with vegetable trimmings and scraps (good vegetables and herbs to use include onion skins, wilted celery, carrot tops, parsley, thyme, rosemary, shallots, garlic, the green part of leeks, etc.)
1–2 leftover chicken carcasses and bones
1 bulb of garlic, with the head cut off
1–2 bay leaves
Any additional fresh herbs you may have in the fridge or in your garden (like thyme, rosemary, or parsley)
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
½ teaspoon kosher salt (optional)

1. Once you’ve collected enough veggie and chicken scraps, add them all to a large pot or a slow cooker along with the entire bulb of garlic, bay leaves, herbs, black peppercorns, and kosher salt. Then cover it all with water.

2. Cook the soup down: If using a large pot, bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer with the lid on between 6 to 10 hours. (For just vegetable broth, cook for 3 to 6 hours). If using a slow cooker, put the lid on and slow cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, or on high for 4 to 5 hours.

3. Once it’s ready, remove all the scraps from the broth using tongs, a skimmer, or a strainer with a bowl underneath (don’t accidentally throw away all the broth!).

4. Use a fine mesh strainer as you add the broth to freezer-safe mason jars. Let the broth cool completely to room temperature and then store in the fridge for 3 to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.