Emahs Mazto Balls Recipes

BEST MATZAH BALLS

Steps:

• Whisk eggs and olive oil in a bowl until combined; stir both amounts of club soda and salt into egg mixture. Mix matzo meal into wet ingredients to form a workable dough; if mixture is too wet, stir in 1/4 cup more matzo meal. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Wet your hands and form matzo ball dough into walnut-size balls. Gently place matzo balls into boiling water. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer matzo balls until tender, 25 to 30 minutes.

MATZO BALLS

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together the margarine and eggs until well blended. Combine the matzo meal and salt; lightly stir into the egg mixture until the liquid is absorbed, and the meal is damp. Gradually mix in the water so that the mixture holds together, but is not too wet. Cover and refrigerate while bringing the water to a boil.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. When the water is at a full boil, remove the matzo mixture from the refrigerator. Using wet hands, shape spoonfuls of the dough into balls. Do not pack the balls together too tightly.
• Drop balls into the boiling water, and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from water and serve in soup or cold milk. Do not let the matzo balls sit out too long, or they will harden.

FLOATER MATZO BALLS

Steps:

• In a medium mixing bowl, use a fork to stir together the matzo meal, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and white pepper.
• In another small mixing bowl, use another fork to mix together the eggs and schmaltz (or oil), stirring briskly to make sure they are well blended.
• Pour egg mixture into the dry ingredients, and add the minced dill or parsley. Mix all ingredients together with a fork until just combined. Do not over-mix.Put the bowl of matzo ball mixture into the refrigerator and let it rest for 30 minutes.
• Bring your 5 quarts of chicken stock (or saffron water stock outlined in Notes section) to a boil over medium heat.While your broth or water is warming, form the chilled matzo ball mixture into 1-inch balls (roughly walnut-sized). Don't overwork the mixture when you roll the balls.
• When your broth or water boils, reduce heat to a simmer and drop the matzo balls gently into the liquid.
• Cover the pot with a lid and let the balls cook for 30-50 minutes until fluffy and soft. Keep the pot covered-- no peeking until at least 30 minutes have gone by! If you've followed instructions carefully, the balls should be floating on the surface of the water like billowy clouds of deliciousness. If they still seem dense or tight, they haven't cooked long enough. The should look soft and airy.
• Test for doneness by slicing a test matzo ball in half. It should look the same all the way through the center - tender, with no dark spot in the middle. If the middle is darker than the edges, it will need to simmer a little longer - it's not quite cooked yet. Don't be afraid to cook longer if it seems dense in the center, as it really won't be light and fluffy unless it is fully saturated with broth and cooked all the way to the center.
• If you're not using baking powder, you may wan to use avocado or safflower oil instead of schmaltz. I've noticed these oils tend to render a fluffier result, though they are not as flavorful as schmaltz. Separate the egg whites from the yolks, putting the whites in one of the medium mixing bowls and the yolks in the small mixing bowl. Use a fork to stir together the egg yolks and oil, stirring briskly to make sure they are well blended. Gently stir in 1/4 cup of seltzer.
• In the second medium mixing bowl, use a fork to mix together the matzo meal, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and white pepper.
• Pour egg yolk mixture into the dry ingredients, and add the minced dill or parsley. Mix with a fork until just combined. Do not over-mix.
• Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer to stiff peaks.
• Fold the whipped egg whites into the batter. Do not over-mix; you want the egg whites well integrated, but over-mixing will deflate them.Put the bowl of matzo ball mixture into the refrigerator and let it rest for 30 minutes.
• Bring your 5 quarts of chicken stock (or saffron water stock outlined in Notes section) to a boil over medium heat.While your broth or water is warming, form the chilled matzo ball mixture into 1-inch balls (roughly walnut-sized). Don't overwork the mixture when you roll the balls.
• When your broth or water boils, reduce heat to a simmer and drop the matzo balls gently into the liquid.
• Cover the pot with a lid and let the balls cook for 30-50 minutes until fluffy and soft. Keep the pot covered-- no peeking until at least 30 minutes have gone by! If you've followed instructions carefully, the balls should be floating on the surface of the water like billowy clouds of deliciousness. If they seem dense, they need to cook longer.
• Test for doneness by slicing a test matzo ball in half. It should look the same all the way through the center - tender, with no dark spot in the middle. If the middle is darker than the edges, it will need to simmer a little longer - it's not quite cooked yet. If you formed your balls any larger than the recommended size, you may need 10-15 minutes (or longer) than the suggested cooking time. Go by texture and doneness. It won't be light and fluffy unless it is fully saturated with broth and cooked all the way to the center.
• Serve two or three matzo balls per bowl with hot chicken soup ladled over them. If you don't plan on serving the whole pot of soup at one sitting, make sure you remove the matzo balls from the broth and let them come to room temperature before storing them in a separate sealed container kin the refrigerator. If left to sit in the broth, they'll become mushy.
• Once your matzo balls are fully cooked, line a baking sheet with wax paper or plastic wrap. Use a slotted spoon to remove the matzo balls from their cooking liquid and place them gently on the lined sheet. Let cool to room temperature.
• Place the matzo balls in the freezer and let them freeze until they are firm to the touch, around 2 hours or so. Once they are firm, you can place the matzo balls into a freezer bag (I use reusable silicone freezer bags).
• Label them with a label maker, if you want, so it will be easier to remember what you have on hand in future. They can be thawed and reheated directly in hot soup (or a pot of soup stock) just before serving.
• Additional Notes: You can cook matzo balls directly in your soup broth (which will give them excellent flavor), but it will soak up a lot of the yummy stock, leaving you with very little broth for serving.

MATZO BALL SOUP

Steps:

• For the matzo balls: Beat the 3 egg whites and the cream of tartar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.
• In a separate large bowl, combine the garlic powder, onion powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, 3 egg yolks and 2 whole eggs. Sprinkle with pepper and whisk to incorporate. Mix in the schmaltz and matzo meal. Fold in the egg whites until fully combined. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.
• For the soup: Meanwhile, place a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the olive oil and onion and season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Saute for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Add the rutabaga, celery, carrot, shredded rotisserie chicken and parsley.
• Remove the matzo mixture from the fridge and roll into golf ball-sized balls. This recipe will make roughly 18 matzo balls. Carefully place the balls in the soup, cover and cook over medium-low heat until the matzo balls are puffed and tender, 25 minutes. Serve the soup garnished with dill.