5 servings
Youvarlakia, or meatball soup, is a soothing and delicious meal perfect for when the weather becomes cooler. This soup is simple to make, but has an incredible depth of flavor derived from the traditional greek avgolemono (egg and lemon) sauce.
To make youvarlakia, or meatball soup:
Place ground beef, uncooked rice, parsley, dill, onion, egg, olive oil, salt, and pepper into a large bowl.
Mix and squeeze the mixture with your hands until everything is thoroughly incorporated.
Chill the meat mixture in the refrigerator until the next step is done.
Pour four cups of chicken stock and two cups of water Into a large pot and bring to a boil.
Once it's boiling, turn the heat down to medium.
Take the meat mixture out of the refrigerator and start forming the meatballs with your hands (about the size of a golf ball).
As each meatball is formed, add them to the lightly boiling water. There should be enough water to almost cover the meatballs.
Once all the meatballs are in the water, put a lid on the pot and let them gently simmer for half an hour.
Once the meatballs are cooked, take them off the heat, remove the lid, add an extra 1 cup of water, and let everything cool for 10 minutes.
While the meatballs are cooling, whisk together 3 egg yolks, the juice of 2 lemons, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch.
Slowly add some of the hot liquid to the lemon and egg mixture.
Whisk quickly (I use my 1/2 cup measuring cup, but you can use a ladle if you prefer).
Keep adding the hot liquid (slowly) by 1/2 cup and mix until the lemon and egg mixture has tempered and is the same temperature as the soup. Add at least 2 cups of liquid.
Stir in the tempered lemon and egg mixture into the youvarlakia.
Turn the heat on to medium-low (stirring often) and allow the soup to thicken.
Taste and add salt if needed.
Ingredients
Directions
To make youvarlakia, or meatball soup:
Place ground beef, uncooked rice, parsley, dill, onion, egg, olive oil, salt, and pepper into a large bowl.
Mix and squeeze the mixture with your hands until everything is thoroughly incorporated.
Chill the meat mixture in the refrigerator until the next step is done.
Pour four cups of chicken stock and two cups of water Into a large pot and bring to a boil.
Once it's boiling, turn the heat down to medium.
Take the meat mixture out of the refrigerator and start forming the meatballs with your hands (about the size of a golf ball).
As each meatball is formed, add them to the lightly boiling water. There should be enough water to almost cover the meatballs.
Once all the meatballs are in the water, put a lid on the pot and let them gently simmer for half an hour.
Once the meatballs are cooked, take them off the heat, remove the lid, add an extra 1 cup of water, and let everything cool for 10 minutes.
While the meatballs are cooling, whisk together 3 egg yolks, the juice of 2 lemons, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch.
Slowly add some of the hot liquid to the lemon and egg mixture.
Whisk quickly (I use my 1/2 cup measuring cup, but you can use a ladle if you prefer).
Keep adding the hot liquid (slowly) by 1/2 cup and mix until the lemon and egg mixture has tempered and is the same temperature as the soup. Add at least 2 cups of liquid.
Stir in the tempered lemon and egg mixture into the youvarlakia.
Turn the heat on to medium-low (stirring often) and allow the soup to thicken.
Taste and add salt if needed.