Charmie's Albondigas

Charmie777's Note:

After having the best albondigas of my life on vacation, I searched high and low to find a recipe similar. I suppose albondigas varies from place to place, cuz the recipes were so very different!! This one is the best one I've found, with changes to suit our tastes.

• Total Time: 45 mins
• Prep Time: 45 mins
• Cook Time: 0 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 2 (14 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 2 (14 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 3 cups water
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 2 carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 2 medium potatoes, diced
• 1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup rice, uncooked
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 2 -3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons ice water

Directions:

1. In a large pot combine broth, tomatoes, tomato sauce and water.
2. Add vegetables.
3. Bring to a boil.
4. Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients in large bowl.
5. Mix thoroughly.
6. Form into small meatballs.
7. Add carefully to soup.
8. Cook for 15-30 minutes until meatballs are cooked through.

Reviews

[JenniferK2]

This was fabulous! I did have a problem in that I got diced tomatoes with chiles by mistake instead of regular. For us that made it much too spicy (my fault). I wound up having to drain much of the liquid and adding broth to it just so we could eat it. But, that helped me discover a change I will make next time. At first I diluted with chicken broth, but when I had it for lunch the next day I used beef broth and it was much better. So next time I make this, not only will I be sure to use the right tomatoes, but I will use beef broth instead. And cilantro is a must here! I can't imagine it would have been good with mint, but then I am not a fan anyway. This recipe is a keeper!

[birdie #3 (andrea)]

okay it was put up to the taste test. this is the perfect recipe! i don't know what the comment below was all about. i mean cilantro gives this soup the perfect taste. i covered it after i added the meatballs and then cooked it on medium low for 35-40 minutes. (i had made the meatballs into 1 inch balls as well.i also liked that i didn't have to pre-cook the rice.) thanks again!

[CulinaryQueen]

This was....different. I'm not sure about the flavor of the meatballs, but it may be my fault. I had no fresh coriander/cilantro so used a mixture of fresh parsley and fresh mint. (I've seen other recipes for this with mint) I think I may have used too much mint as it seemed overpowering. The flavor of the broth however was very nice. I will try this again and make sure I use the cilantro as I'm sure it will be much better. I will update my review when I make again. Thanks Charmie!