Notes: Original from Nana Rose Jacobson with major modifications by Debra Steppel
Ingredients
4-5 lbs. of chicken drumsticks (Nana’s recipe used 1 whole fryer cut up, but drumsticks are easier to remove the bones)
extra chicken carcasses if available (I save rotisserie chicken carcasses during the year in the freezer)
3-4 quarts of water
3 stalks celery, diced
3 carrots, cut into chunks
1 onion, diced
1 bay leaf
fresh parsley, cut
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
The day before the seder, wash chicken and put in a large stock pot. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, chop vegetables (celery, carrots, onion) and put in the pot. Add bay leaf and some salt and pepper. Simmer. (It is reasonable to expect it to take an hour for a large stockpot to reach the boiling point, especially if the chicken is cold.) After simmering for a solid hour, use a slotted spoon to remove chicken bones and tear chicken into bite-sized pieces. Simmer another hour. Refrigerate overnight, covered.
On seder day, remove the fat (schmaltz) which has congealed on the top of the soup. (Use some of the schmaltz and the soup broth to make matza balls.) Bring the soup back to a boil and add matza balls. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If desired, garnish individual bowls of soup with snipped fresh parsley.
Matzah balls
(Original recipe from Grandma Tillie Block with modifications by Debra Steppel)
For Passover we double the recipe to make 24.
2 eggs - add salt and beat well
1 tsp. chicken fat (schmaltz)
1 cup matzoh meal (or matzah that was pulverized in the food processor)
1 cup salted water or chicken soup/broth
Directions
Mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Wet hands and form into 12 little (~1") balls.
Either drop in simmering soup or cook in boiling salted water for about 15 minutes.
Makes 12 balls.
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