YOUVARLAKIA SOUP (Meatball-egg/lemon soup)

Youvarlakia Avgolemono (Greek Meatball-Egg/Lemon Soup)

       As we are in the heart of the winter I thought I'd share with you a delicious hearty Greek soup called Youvarlakia. It is one of the most favourite soups of the season and very easy to make.

 


       In Greece we love soups and stews especially when they are accompanied by a warm crusty bread for dipping in the sauce. 




       Avgolemono (av-go-LE-mo-no), a creamy egg-lemon sauce, is a staple of Greek cooking that we often add to our soups and not only. You could cook the soup without it - it would still taste good!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1/3 cup long grain rice, uncooked for the ground meat
• 1/3 cup long grain rice (or more depends how thick or watery you prefer your soup)
• 1 onion,minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced fine
• 2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley, or 1 1/2 tsp. dried
• 1 tsp. dried mint and rubbed between fingers into powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 large egg
• 2-3 cups chicken stock or broth (if desired)

For the sauce:

• 2 large eggs (at room temperature)
• Juice of two or three large lemons, strained

 

Preparation:

In a large bowl combine ground beef, rice, onion, garlic, parsley, mint, 1 egg, just a little olive oil, salt, and pepper in a bowl. 

                    

Knead for a few minutes, then shape into walnut-sized meatballs and set aside. 

                   

  In a soup pot, bring the water (or you can use stock for added flavor) to boil and then carefully add the meatballs. Don't forget to add a little salt and olive oil to the water. 

                      

 Simmer semi-covered over low heat for 15 minutes and then add the rest of the rice to the water. If you would rather not add any rice then let it cook for about 25-30 minutes or according to taste.  Add more water/broth as you would like.

 

In the meantime prepare your avgolemono sauce:

 

     

 Using a whisk, (I find that a simple fork does an excellent job) in a medium bowl, beat firstly the 2 eggwhites alone until frothy. Then add and beat the egg yolkes.

Slowly whisk in the lemon juice while beating all the while. Ladle one cup of the pot liquid little by little into egg-lemon mixture to temper the eggs beating steadily, until nearly all the hot liquid has been added. 

     Remove the soup pot from heat and add egg-lemon mixture stirring gently. Heat over very low heat until sauce thickens (3 minutes perhaps) and is heated through. Be careful not to allow the sauce to boil or the eggs will curdle.

ENJOY! A rich soup that will fill and warm you up!

 

Don't forget to serve feta cheese and crusty bread alongside.

First and last photos are courtesy of Google images.