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Italian Meatball Soup

A hearty soup of turkey meatballs with vegetables and pasta in a seasoned broth.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 14 ingredients
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Why it works: Garlic and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 25,665 recipes. Both carry linalool, which smells floral, citrus. The science ↓

Italian Meatball Soup

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the meatballs

  1. Mix ground turkey meat, egg whites, bread crumbs, 2 cloves of garlic, and 2 tablespoons of Italian seasoning until well blended.

  2. Shape mixture into 32 meatballs.

  3. Spray large saucepan with cooking spray. Heat over medium heat until hot. Cook meatballs until browned on all sides (5 to 7 minutes).

Make the soup

  1. Add chicken broth, water, green beans, carrots, onions, remaining 2 cloves of garlic, and remaining 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning to saucepan. Heat to boiling.

  2. Reduce heat and simmer, covered until vegetables are almost tender (about 8 minutes).

  3. Heat soup to boiling. Add pasta and tomatoes.

  4. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until pasta is al dente (about 10 minutes). Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

979Calories
55 gProtein
25 gFat
132 gCarbs

Counts 12 of 14 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 12 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Chicken100g cooked165
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Bell Pepper1 medium (119g)31
Plum1 medium (66g)30
Carrot1 medium (61g)25
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Meatnot in our table0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Garlic + olivetop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  2. Turkey + chickentop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together688 recipes

    Shared aroma: (z)-4-decenal (green, must).

  3. Garlic + chickentop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,850 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine (roasted, nutty).

  4. Olive + chickentop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together11,888 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid hexyl ester (sweet, green).

  5. Bread + olivetop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,091 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Ground turkey meat
Forms the meatballs and provides the main protein of the soup.
Egg whites
Bind the meatball mixture so the meatballs hold their shape while cooking.
Seasoned dry bread crumbs
Absorb moisture and help keep the meatballs tender rather than dense.
Thin spaghetti
Adds starch and body to the broth as it cooks until al dente.
Green beans
Add texture and fresh vegetable flavor as they soften in the broth.
Plum tomatoes
Add acidity and fresh tomato flavor to the broth.

The step that matters

Simmering the pasta uncovered. Pasta keeps absorbing liquid and softening after it is drained or left in hot broth. Checking it near the stated time keeps it al dente and stops the broth from becoming starchy and thick.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (turkey, meat, egg, bread, garlic, olive, chicken):

  1. Thymefits better
  2. Parsleyfits better
  3. Rosemaryfits better
  4. Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against turkey, meat, egg, bread, garlic, olive, chicken. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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