Happy belated Passover. Being a goy (or is that goyum?), I have no Jewish grandmas to ask about the intricacies of the soup of soups: Matzo ball. Through the years, I’ve somehow become responsible for making the soup for all Jewish occassions, sick friends, and, well, when I really want some dough balls. I’ve gleaned a few nifty tricks throughout the years, but I want to run them by some other Matzo lovers and see if they can add (or subtract) any special little secrets
-Veggies: I use carrots, onions, celery, and parsnips, always parsnips. Veggies are sauteed in butter & a little oil for awhile before they are doused in chicken stock.
-Matzo Balls: Do you use seltzer water instead of regular water? I do, but I’ve heard gripes, so now I do a half & half. Legend has is that seltzer water makes the balls a little fluffier. (Insert your nonsensical sexual joke here)
-Stock: With chicken or chicken bones if possible, with store-bought if not, and the avoidance of bullion cubes is paramount. They are frightening things.
-Noodles: those little eggy ones. You know, the ones that are basically little dots.
I’m most curious about your tricks for the balls themselves, the veggies you use, and how you spice the soup overall (I just use salt & pepper. A lot of salt & pepper).
Seems like all is good with what you’re doing so I am going to assume you already know to put the matzoh balls in the fridge for 30-45 minutes before cooking them, right?
Oh, and I’ve always used regular water snd have been happy with the result but now I want to try the seltzer or half of each just to see what that’s like.
Oh, and I’m fond of putting a little fresh minced garlic in the stock.
