This soup of turkey meatball and kale braised in a lemony, citrus garlic broth is nourishing and tasty, perfect for the whole family. It's easy to make and keeps well for 2-3 days in the fridge.
Ingredients
For the meatballs
- ½ leek pale part only, roughly cut (or 2 spring onions)
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley about 10 grams, roughly chopped
- A few mint leaves if available
- 4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme leaves only (or 2 teaspoons dry thyme)
- 1 large garlic clove minced or dice
- Zest of 1 lime or lemon
- 1.2 lbs. ground turkey mince, chicken can also be used (600 g)
- 1 teaspoon salt + ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil for cooking
For the soup
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ leek green and pale part
- 5 peels lemon
- 1 large carrot peeled and diced
- 1 large white potato or 1 parsnip, peeled and diced into small cubes
- 3 cloves of garlic sliced
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds or ground cumin
- 2 star anise pods
- 4 cups chicken stock or broth
- 1.5 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- A good pinch of black pepper or chilli flakes
- 10-12 kale leaves torn off the stem and cut into smaller pieces (about 5 cups loosely packed)
- Juice of ½ lime
- Juice of ½ small lemon about 2 tablespoons
Instructions
- If you have a food processor, place leek, parsley, mint, thyme, garlic and lime zest inside with an S-blade attached. Blitz a few times, until the ingredients are finely ground up. Alternatively, chop everything very finely using a knife. Transfer to a large mixing bowl together with the turkey or chicken mince, salt and pepper. Mix really well, until well incorporated.
- Heat coconut or olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Roll the mixture into small meatballs; about 25 g / 1 oz. each, smaller than a ping pong ball. Fry the meatballs for 7-8 minutes, turning them throughout so they turn golden brown on all sides.
- In the meantime, add the olive oil, the other part of the leek, lemon peels, carrot and potatoes to a medium saucepan. Sauté for a few minutes, then add the garlic, cumin, star anise, chicken stock and fish sauce. Season with some salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Add the meatballs and cook over medium heat, covered, for 3-4 minutes.
- Prepare the kale and add to the soup, stir through and cook for a further 5 minutes, covered. Test the potato and once soft, remove from the heat and add the lime and lemon juice. Stir and taste for salt. Let it sit for 5 minutes off the heat before serving.
Notes
If you don't have limes, replace with lemon where stated.
- Meat: Turkey, chicken or pork mince can be used in this recipe. Even fish would work really well with the flavours of the soup. If you can’t find ground-up chicken or turkey mince, get some thighs (skin and bone off) and grind it up using a food processor.
- Herbs: Other herbs like sage and oregano can be used instead of thyme; coriander and basil would work well instead of parsley.
- AIP: Omit the chilli and use parsnip or sweet potato instead of white potato.
Nutrition
Calories: 446kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 82mg | Sodium: 1768mg | Potassium: 1503mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 18029IU | Vitamin C: 157mg | Calcium: 420mg | Iron: 6mg
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