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Mini Chicken Meatballs ‘n Vegetable Soup

With autumn and winter schedules ramping up, leaving precious available time for meal prep, you will appreciate the simplicity of this tummy-warming one-pot meal. And everyone loves meatballs, right? Just add these easy to make mini morsels to a pot of simmering broth. Toss in a bunch of nutrient-packed veggies plus brown rice for added “staying power” and you’ve created a satisfying meal your family will ask for again and again.

Yield: about 4 servings
Author: Linda Shapiro, © Meal Planning Maven

Ingredients

Meatballs

  • 4 teaspoons olive oil divided
  • 1 medium onion finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 large carrot peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 pound ground chicken or ground turkey or lean ground beef
  • 1 large egg beaten
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley or 1 teaspoon dried
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt or as desired
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper or as desired
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat or gluten-free breadcrumbs or ground oats may need more if mixture is loose

Soup

  • 8 cups all-natural reduced-sodium chicken broth like Saffron Road or Imagine or homemade chicken stock
  • ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 2 large carrots peeled and sliced
  • 1 cup snow peas trimmed and sliced into thirds
  • 2 cups broccoli florets
  • 2 cups baby bok choy or regular size, trimmed and coarsely chopped
  • 2 cups sliced asparagus
  • ¼ cup sliced green onions
  • 1 cup cooked brown rice or brown rice couscous, whole wheat orzo or quinoa

Instructions

Meatballs

  • In a medium pan, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil over medium-high setting until hot. Sauté chopped onions, garlic and carrots for about 5 minutes or until softened and just beginning to brown. Set aside to cool.
  • In a large bowl, mix together remaining meatball ingredients plus reserved sautéed vegetables. (Mixture may need some additional breadcrumbs or ground oats to form meatballs.)
  • Form mixture into 1-inch sized meatballs. (will make 24-36)
  • In a large frying pan, heat remaining 2 teaspoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Brown meatballs on all sides, about 3 minutes.
  • Remove from heat; drain on paper towels (Meatballs will finish cooking in soup.)

Soup

  • In a medium stockpot (about 6 quarts), bring chicken broth (or stock), salt, pepper and Italian seasoning to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; add meatballs.
  • Simmer, uncovered for about 10 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through, with no pink color remaining.
  • Reduce heat to low. Stir in carrots, snow peas, broccoli, bok choy, asparagus, green onions and rice. Cover; simmer for about 3 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Taste; adjust seasonings as desired.
  • As this soup is a hearty one-pot meal, simply serve with salad, crackers or bread sticks with fruit for dessert and dinner is done!

Notes

Make Ahead and Storage Tips: soup may be prepared up to 3 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Reheat over medium-low setting for 5 minutes or until hot. Soup may be frozen for up to 3 months.