Creating Hearty Wedding Soup Broth: A Step-By-Step Guide

Italian wedding soup is a hearty dish that combines meatballs, vegetables, and pasta in a rich broth. Despite its name, the soup has nothing to do with weddings. The name comes from the Italian phrase minestra maritata, which means married soup, referring to the marriage of flavours and ingredients. The soup is easy to make, requiring basic ingredients such as ground beef, eggs, breadcrumbs, vegetables, broth, and pasta. The meatballs are browned separately and added to the soup, along with fresh spinach or other greens. The broth can be made with chicken or beef broth, and the pasta used is typically small, such as orzo or pearl couscous.

How to make meatballs for wedding soup broth

Making meatballs for wedding soup broth is simple. Here is a step-by-step guide:

Ingredients

Firstly, you will need the following ingredients:

• Ground beef
• Egg
• Bread crumbs
• Parmesan
• Fresh herbs (such as basil, oregano, or parsley)
• Onion powder or a yellow onion
• Garlic
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• Ground pork (optional)
• Ground Italian sausage (optional)

Method

• Combine the ground beef, egg, bread crumbs, Parmesan, fresh herbs, onion powder/onion, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. If you want to add ground Italian sausage for extra flavour, add it here.
• Mix the ingredients until they are well combined. You can use your hands to do this, making sure to mash the mixture until it is evenly combined.
• Roll the mixture into small meatballs, about 3/4 inch to 1 inch in diameter.
• Place the meatballs on a baking sheet or oven-safe rack. If you are using an oven-safe rack, place it over a baking sheet lined with aluminium foil and spray the rack with nonstick cooking spray.
• Bake the meatballs in the oven at 350°F for 15 to 18 minutes, or until they are lightly browned and cooked through.
• Set the meatballs aside until you are ready to add them to your soup.

Tips

• You can make the meatballs ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator or freezer.
• If you want to add extra flavour to your soup, try browning the meatballs in olive oil before setting them aside.
• Be sure to roll the meatballs nice and small—this is soup, not a big bowl of pasta!

How to make the soup base

To make the soup base for Italian wedding soup, you'll need a combination of broth and vegetables.

The broth is typically made from chicken or beef broth, or a combination of the two. You can also add in some dry white wine for a touch of acidity. For a richer flavour, you can brown the meatballs first and use that fond in the bottom of the pan to add depth to the broth.

For the vegetables, you'll need a combination of onions, carrots, and celery, which form the flavour base for the soup. You can also add garlic and spinach to taste.

To make the soup, heat some olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add your vegetables and cook, stirring frequently, until they are softened. This should take around 8 minutes. Then, add your broth and bring to a boil. Add the pasta and cook at a gentle boil until the pasta is al dente.

You can also add in some flavour enhancers like hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, or mustard powder. Just a teaspoon of each will do—they add flavour without being overpowering.

Browning the meatballs

To brown the meatballs, first combine the meatball ingredients and roll the mixture into small balls, about 3/4 inch in diameter. Heat some olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs to the pot in batches and brown them for about 2 minutes. You don't need to cook them through at this stage, as they will continue cooking in the soup. Remove the meatballs from the pot and set them aside.

Adding vegetables and seasoning

Once you've made your meatballs, you can start adding vegetables and seasoning to your soup.

For the vegetables, you'll need chopped yellow onion, garlic cloves, carrots, and celery. Some recipes also include spinach, escarole, or other leafy greens. You'll want to cook these vegetables in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat until they're softened, which should take around 8 minutes.

Then, you can start adding your seasonings. You'll need to add broth—chicken or beef broth, or a combination of both—and bring it to a boil. You can also add salt and pepper to taste. Some recipes also include bay leaves, dry white wine, or a combination of hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and mustard powder for extra flavour.

Once your broth is boiling, you can add your pasta. You'll want to use a small pasta shape like ditalini, orzo, pearl couscous, or acini de pepe. Cook the pasta at a gentle boil until it's al dente, which should take around 8 to 10 minutes.

Finally, you can add your spinach or other leafy greens and meatballs, and simmer until they're warmed through and the spinach is wilted.

Serving suggestions

Italian wedding soup is a hearty meal in itself, but there are plenty of serving suggestions to elevate this dish and make it a true feast.

First, let's talk about what to serve with the soup. A warm dinner roll is a great, simple option, or you could go for crusty, airy no-knead bread for dipping. If you want to be truly indulgent, serve it with warm garlic bread.

If you want to make a more substantial meal, you could serve a salad on the side. A simple arugula salad or a radicchio salad with Parmesan are both good options. Alternatively, a classic Caesar salad would pair well with the soup.

Now, let's talk about the soup itself. The type of pasta you use can change the dish. Pearl couscous is perfect for this recipe because it's small and cooks well in the broth. If you can't find pearl couscous, any short pasta will work, like mini shells, orzo, ditalini, or acini de pepe. If you use couscous, make sure it's pearl couscous, as regular couscous will absorb too much liquid.

You can also experiment with different types of greens. The soup traditionally calls for escarole, a broad-leafed, less bitter form of endive, but you could also use spinach, kale, Swiss chard, or collard greens.

Finally, don't forget the garnish! Freshly grated Parmesan cheese is a must, and you can also add some chopped fresh parsley and black pepper.

Frequently asked questions