Italian Wedding Egg Drop Soup has to be one of my favorite soups ever!. It's also called Egg Drop Soup, Italian Wedding Soup, or Stracciatella Soup and they're all made with two similar ingredients.
The main ingredients in wedding egg drop soup are chicken broth and silky strands of eggs. Italian Wedding Soup adds chicken or chicken mini meatballs, parmesan cheese and sometimes includes pastina.
Love Pasta dishes? Try my recipe for Orecchiette Pasta with Sausage and Rapini, my delicious Beet Gnocchi with Alfredo Sauce or this Italian Seafood Pasta.
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Although many people believe that Italian Wedding Soup has nothing to do with weddings, I'll say that growing up, it was a traditional Italian soup that was served at Italian weddings as the first course. Italian wedding soup is a savory broth, hearty and nutritious meal that looks sophisticated and tastes absolutely delicious.
Minestra maritata is the Italian translation, which sounds kind of funny directly translated to Marriage Soup.
The best part is you don't need to wait for a wedding to eat this simple soup though. Although, the winter months are a great time to make it. The ingredients are readily available all year round and it's a perfect soup to make for a special holiday or a Sunday dinner with the family.
Soup recipes are a great way to use leftovers like this turkey soup uses up your leftover roast turkey which is a perfect way to re-purpose leftovers so that they don't go to waste. Beef Stew, Chili Con Carne and Roasted Butternut Squash Soup are also great soup recipe options for cooler weather.
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Ingredients Needed
Here are the basic ingredients need to make this Italian Wedding Soup recipe:
- Ground chicken
- Whole Eggs
- Parsley
- Ground Black Pepper
- Grated parmesan cheese
- Garlic or garlic powder
- Breadcrumbs (for gluten free use almond flour or potato flakes)
- Chopped onions
- Olive oil
- Chicken broth
In traditional Italian Wedding Egg Drop soup, we don't use a cornstarch slurry to thicken the soup or yellow food coloring. Instead we enjoy it's amazing depth of flavor.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Italian Wedding Egg Drop Soup
Make the meatballs by combining the ground meat, egg, grated parmesan cheese, pepper, parsley, garlic, bread crumbs.
Mix to combine the ingredients but don't over mix as it will result in tough meatballs.
Make 1 to 1 ½ inch meatballs, place them on a plate or baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
While they sit, on medium heat, sauté garlic and chopped onions in olive oil in a large pot until translucent. Add chicken stock or chicken broth and bring to a soft boil. Prepare your beaten eggs in a small bowl and set aside.
Add meatballs one at a time. Do not stir. Let sit while the soup is at a gentle boil for about 5 minutes.
Stir and let simmer for about 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon remove the meatballs and place them in a dish. Taste the soup to see if it needs any more seasoning.
Once your soup is boiling gently, beat 2 eggs in a small bowl, and add your raw egg mixture to the boiling broth, stirring in a circular motion until you get beautiful egg ribbons. You've just made stracciatella for your egg drop soup. Return the meatballs to the pot and continue to simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes.
Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley
Top tip
If you forgot to take your eggs out of the fridge, place them in warm water for 5 minutes.
Substitutions and Variations for Italian Wedding Soup
Here are some ideas on how you can make this great recipe for Italian Egg Drop Soup Keto, Vegetarian or Gluten Free.
- Vegetarian - eliminate the chicken meatballs or make mushroom meatballs and use vegetable stock to make this soup vegetarian.
- Gluten Free - make it gluten free by substituting bread crumbs with almond flour or potato flakes to make a gluten free Italian Egg Drop Soup
- Spice - spice it up by adding chili flakes
- Pasta - add pastina or couscous
- Greens - add spinach or kale for more leafy greens
- Stracciatella alla Romana - add nutmeg to make the classic Roman Stracciatella all Romana a variation of Italian Wedding Soup.
- Parmesan - Top with more parmesan cheese or mozzarella to make this Egg Drop Soup Keto
Have other ideas? Try them and let me know in the comments how it turned out.
Equipment
The equipment you use has a big impact on the food you make. For this recipe, you will need a large pot, a baking sheet, mixing bowls and some parchment paper.
Storage
Leftover egg drop soup tastes even better the next day. Store leftover egg drop soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. Warm up leftovers in a microwave safe bowl or on the stove top.
I don't recommend freezing this soup.
Dessert Recipes to Compliment Your Meal
Recipe Details
Italian Wedding Egg Drop Soup Recipe
https://easyhomemaderecipes.caIngredients
For Meatballs
- 16 oz ground chicken
- ⅓ cups parmesan cheese
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 whole egg
- 1 sprig parsley chopped
- ½ clove garlic
- ⅓ cup bread crumbs
- pepper to taste
For Soup
- ½ cup onion chopped
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 3 sprigs parsley chopped for garnish
- 2 eggs at room temperature
Instructions
- Combine the ground meat, egg, grated parmesan cheese, pepper, parsley, garlic, bread crumbs. Mix, but don't over mix as this will result in tough meatballs.
- Make 1 to 1 ½ inch meatballs, place them on a plate or baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- While they sit, sauté garlic on medium heat and chopped onions in olive oil in a large pot until translucent. Add chicken stock or chicken broth and bring to a soft boil.
- Add meatballs one at a time. Do not stir. Let sit while the soup is at a gentle boil for about 5 minutes.
- Stir and let simmer for about 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon remove the meatballs and place them in a dish. Taste the soup to see if it needs any more seasoning.
- Lightly beat 2 eggs and then add your raw egg mixture slowly to the pot, stirring in a circular motion until you get silky strands of eggs, as the soup boils gently. You've just made stracciatella for your egg drop soup.
- Return the meatballs to the pot and continue to simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes.
- Remove from hot burner and let site for 10 minutes before serving.
- Serve and top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley
Notes
Top tip
If you forgot to take your eggs out of the fridge, place them in warm water for 5 minutes.Nutrition
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Food Safety
Note that the storage guidelines provided on this page and site are estimates from personal experiences. We are all adults and as an adult you are responsible to ensure that the food you eat is safe to eat. Since, I'm not a food safety expert, you are responsible to review your local guidelines on food storage prior to storing any food left-overs.
Remember to:
- Not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
For Canadian Guidelines check the Government of Canada Food Safety Guidelines or see more guidelines at USDA.gov.
Cassandra says
Absolutely delicious! We will definitely be making it again. By the way, I’m a complete novice cook having just started cooking a year ago. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
AmyG says
Hi Cassandra,
I'm so happy to enjoyed this!