I developed this vegetarian matzo ball soup for meatless guests at my Seder. After that, as I started adopting a more meatless lifestyle, I began making it for my own family. One secret ingredient makes this the ultimate meatless matzo ball soup. As a result it has a savory chicken flavor without the meat, and no need for bouillon cubes. This recipe has a wonderful traditional flavor, and it’s kosher for Passover.
How do you infuse vegetable stock with savory flavor, golden color, and all of the yummy qualities that make chicken soup such a comfort? Of course it’s a challenge, but that has never stopped me from trying. Accordingly, over the years I’ve made several attempts at homemade vegetarian matzo ball soup with varying degrees of success. However the broth always turned out too sweet or too dark– just not quite right. Basically I was searching for a chicken-y flavor, but I didn’t want to resort to bouillon cubes or store-bought chicken-less broth. There had to be a better way.
It wasn’t until I added saffron to the mix that everything fell into place. Saffron spice is magic. It really is. The downside is that it’s pricey. However, a little goes a long way in helping to round out the flavor of meatless dishes. Consequently I use it in my Vegan Saffron Hollandaise and my Dairy-Free Saffron Scalloped Potatoes with amazing results. Here, adding it to a simple vegetable broth along with a touch of olive oil added the necessary “oomph” my previous vegetarian soup recipes were lacking. As a result a golden, savory stock emerged, as close to real chicken broth as I’ve ever gotten. I am really proud of this recipe.
The matzo ball part of the recipe below contains eggs. Undoubtedly I tried hard to develop a vegan recipe, but all of my attempts fell flat. I’ll keep trying… you know I love a good challenge! Since most vegetarians I know are ok with eating eggs, I opted to keep them in. Consequently this recipe works great for ovo-vegetarians. However if you’re vegan, please know I am hard at work on a vegan version of matzo balls. Whenever I get it just right, I’ll be sure to post it.
This soup is glorious. I couldn’t stop inhaling it. For vegetarians who are missing the chicken flavor of traditional matzo ball soup, give this recipe a try… you won’t be sorry!
Meanwhile, for more vegetarian Passover ideas, check out my Passover holiday index with vegetarian Ashkenazi and vegetarian Sephardic options.
Please see the note about saffron below. It’s important to buy a good quality saffron or this soup won’t have the proper flavor.
Looking for traditional chicken soup with matzo balls? Click here!
Need a gluten free matzo ball recipe? Click here!
Note: certain strictly kosher groups may consider saffron to be kitniyot on Passover; if you are concerned, please consult a trusted Rabbinical authority.
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Vegetarian Matzo Ball Soup
Ingredients
Soup Ingredients
- 1/2 pound carrots (about 3 medium carrots) sliced into 1/2 inch chunks
- 1/2 pound celery (about 5 stalks) sliced into 1/2 inch chunks, including leaves
- 1 onion (rinsed and halved, skin on)
- 1 leek, sliced and cleaned (white and light green parts only)
- 1 bunch fresh dill + 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill, divided
- 1 bunch fresh parsley
- 2 bay leaves
- 10 whole peppercorns
- 6 whole cloves (spice cloves, not garlic)
- Pinch saffron threads not American or Mexican saffron, which have no flavor – buy the good stuff! It’s expensive but necessary in this soup. Do not sub turmeric! The flavor is completely different.)
- 2 tablespoons good quality extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt
Matzo Ball Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 1 tablespoon seltzer water
- 1/2 cup matzo meal (see notes for gluten free option)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (if making for Passover make sure the brand is certified KFP)
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
- Pinch of saffron threads
NOTES
Instructions
- Combine all soup ingredients in a large pot with 1 tablespoon sea salt (reserve the 2 tablespoon chopped fresh dill for later). If you're salt sensitive, you can start with 2 tsp salt, however please note that for the saffron flavor to shine here, you do need salt in the mix. I really recommend 1 tablespoon if you're not watching your salt intake.
- Cover ingredients with 4 quarts (16 cups) water. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer (around medium heat). Let the stock cook uncovered for 60-90 minutes until the liquid reduces by a third and the stock is flavorful. Note: the olive oil may taste strange in the beginning, but don’t fret. As the stock slowly cooks the flavors will meld, and that olive oil will give the broth some much-needed richness and depth.
- While the stock is cooking, make the matzo balls. Whisk eggs in a small mixing bowl with vegetable oil and seltzer water. Use a fork to stir in the matzo meal, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, onion powder and chopped fresh dill to make a thick batter. Place the batter in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- While the batter is chilling, in a second pot combine 3 quarts (12 cups) of water with a pinch of saffron and 1 tablespoon sea salt. Bring to a simmer, stir to dissolve the salt. Keep the salted saffron water hot until the matzo ball mixture is fully chilled.
- Place a small dish of cold water beside the pot of saffron water. Take the chilled matzo ball batter out of the refrigerator. Bring the saffron water to a simmer. Wet your hands and roll the matzo ball batter into walnut-sized balls, then gently drop them into the simmering saffron water. Wet your hands between each ball; this makes forming them easier. Don’t make them larger than walnuts, they’ll expand a lot as they cook!
- When all of the matzo balls are in the water, bring back to a low bubbling simmer (not a heavy boil) and cover the pot. Let the matzo balls simmer for 30-35 minutes, keeping the pot covered for at least the first 30 minutes. No peeking! Keeping the pot covered will help the matzo balls become fluffy. Let the matzo balls simmer until they’re cooked through. When they are fully cooked, turn off the heat and keep the matzo balls in the hot saffron water until ready to serve. If you won’t be serving within an hour, remove the matzo balls from the pot with a slotted spoon and reserve (so they don’t get mushy and fall apart).
- When the vegetable stock liquid has reduced by a third, strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth into a large bowl.
- Separate out the carrots and celery from the cooked vegetables and herbs.
- Rinse the pot and pour the stock back into the pot. Add the carrots and celery back to the stock along with 1 tablespoon chopped dill. Adjust seasoning to taste, adding more sea salt if desired. Keep the stock warm till ready to serve.
- Serve 2-3 matzo balls per bowl; ladle the hot soup and vegetables over the warm matzo balls.
Nutrition
I decided to try my hand at this one because I recently went vegetarian and was looking for a good Jewish recipe for Rosh Hashana. It did turn out pretty tasty, but I don’t understand all the iron chefs saying it’s easy. Considering all the procurement of ingredients, chopping, separate bowls, timing it out right, separating the celery from the carrots, and following each step to the best of my ability, I’d say this is the most complicated recipe I’ve tested this year. Highly recommend you clean as you go – my kitchen got buried in bowls and mess within the first 30 minutes. To be fair, my mom generally just went for the boxed matzo ball soup mix and a nice easy brisket when I was growing up – I’m not accustomed to the real thing 😁
Glad you liked it Hillary! 😀 Quick tip… try to do all of the prep ahead of the recipe (so go through the ingredient list and do all of the chopping and measuring before you start cooking). This will help the cooking process go much smoother and make cleanup far easier.
Hi Tori, I love this soup. How much in advance can I make it with or without freezing it? I want to make it tomorrow to serve on Monday night for erev Rosh Hashanah. Thanks!
Hi Liora! Sorry I didn’t get to this sooner. Up to two days in advance should be no problem, as long as you refrigerate in a sealed container.
This was delicious and everyone loved it. I made it for 2nd night seder as I had vegetarians coming and I think I actually will just be making this instead of chicken soup for Passover going forward. I love chicken soup but this was so much easier and really just as good.
I think you made a mistake in Step 6. For the saffron water pot, you said add a pinch of saffron and 1 TBSP(?!!?) of salt in just 2 cups of water and then put in the Matzo Balls. My Matzo Balls were the saltiest matzo balls ever, as I just tried this recipe today. Ack! Everyone did eat them or throw them out discreetly out of politeness, as I only had 2 left (which I will put down the garbage disposal). You either meant maybe 1 tsp or maybe 1/4 tsp of salt. In fact, it’d probably be fine with just a dash of salt. Or no salt at all. In my opinion, too little salt is way better than too much.
Tim, you misread the recipe – it says 1 tbsp salt in 12 cups of water (3 quarts), not 2 cups. Cooking the balls in salted water is essential for flavor; one tablespoon of salt in 12 cups of water will render the water only mildly salty, just enough to give the matzo balls flavor as they cook. I’m not quite sure how you cooked the matzo balls in so little water, but if you indeed used 12 cups of water, they shouldn’t have been overly salty. As an alternative, you can cook these in vegetable stock (low sodium if anyone in the group is salt sensitive).
Hi there!
About how much is a “bunch” when it comes to the dill and parsley? I’m making this for my MIL because her mother passed away and I want to make sure to do it correctly. 🙂
About 2 ounces parsley and 1 ounce dill. Sorry to hear about your mother in law’s mom, sending a hug!
I am getting ready to make your recipe. Have you ever started with Vegetable Broth instead of water as the base for the soup? Would this help add color and flavor, or would it be too much?
I’m sure it would be good!
Hi Tori,
I am anxious to try this recipe but had two questions: could I save some time by using a mesh bag for the soup ingredients other than the carrots and celery? Also, have you tried boiling the matzoh balls in the soup itself rather than separately?
You could use a mesh bag (cheesecloth sack), yes. The trouble with cooking the matzo balls in the broth is that they soak up the broth like a sponge, leaving you with very little soup left when done.
I have made this soup for the past three years, and my family loves it. I only wish Saffron wasn’t so expensive, but I only buy it once a year. It doesn’t always taste the same every year, and I’m not a fan of the olive oil taste so I might use a little less. But this recipe has saved me from headaches from my vegan son.
Thanks for the recipe! I did everything according to the steps, but when I put the matzoh ball batter into the simmering water, the balls all broke apart and now I just have a pot of mush…do you know why this might’ve happened?
That’s very strange Zack! Did you chill the mixture first? Chilling is a very important step, it allows the batter to adhere together better. Did you by chance add noodles to the soup as well? Never cook noodles and matzo balls together or you’ll have problems. Also make sure the water is at a gentle simmer and not a full boil. Next time, test one matzo ball and if it falls apart, try stirring in a little more matzo meal to the mixture and let it chill a bit longer before trying again. Sometimes if your eggs are very large, the batter will be too moist and you’ll need the extra matzo meal to bind it together.
The best vegetable soup so far! I’ve made veg soup several times, and it was just nothing special. But this is delicious!