Turkish Meatball and Orzo Soup
Ingredients
- 250 g ground meat
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- a pinch of salt
- orzo (slightly more than half a tea glass)
- 1.6 liters boiling water
- 1 small onion
- olive oil (as needed)
- 1 tea glass cooked chickpeas
- 1 cup strained yogurt or 2 cups plain yogurt
- 1 heaping tablespoon flour
- juice of half a lemon
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon dried mint
Preparation
Knead the ground meat with black pepper and salt, shape into small balls, and place on a floured plate.
Place the orzo and boiling water in a pot and let it cook.
Finely chop the onion and sauté it in a pan with olive oil, then add the meatballs and cook until browned.
Transfer the cooked onion and meatball mixture to the soup pot with the orzo.
Add the cooked chickpeas to the soup.
Mix the yogurt, flour, lemon juice, egg yolk, and garlic together in a bowl.
Add two ladles of hot soup broth to the yogurt mixture and stir well, then slowly pour it into the soup while stirring continuously.
Stir the soup constantly until it comes to a boil.
Melt the butter in a small pan, stir in the dried mint, and pour it over the boiling soup.
Tips
Prepare the meatballs in advance and freeze them for convenience.
Keep the meatballs small, about the size of a chickpea, for best results.
