Albondigas Soup or Mexican Meatball Soup.

Here’s a classic Albóndigas Soup (Mexican Meatball Soup) recipe — hearty, comforting, and full of flavor 🍲
This is the traditional home-style version.

🍲 Albóndigas Soup (Mexican Meatball Soup)

Ingredients

Meatballs

• 1 lb (450 g) ground beef (or beef/pork mix)

• 1 egg

• ¼ cup uncooked rice

• 2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• ½ tsp salt

• ½ tsp black pepper

• ½ tsp ground cumin

Soup

• 1 tbsp oil

• ½ onion, chopped

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 can (14.5 oz / 410 g) diced tomatoes

• 8 cups beef or chicken broth

• 2 carrots, sliced

• 2 potatoes, cubed

• 1 zucchini, sliced

• 1 tsp ground cumin

• ½ tsp Mexican oregano

• Salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Make meatballs
   In a bowl, mix ground meat, egg, rice, cilantro, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin.
   Form into small meatballs (about 1 inch).

2. Start the broth
   Heat oil in a large pot. Sauté onion until soft, then add garlic.
   Stir in tomatoes and cook 2–3 minutes.

3. Simmer soup
   Add broth, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper. Bring to a gentle boil.

4. Cook meatballs
   Carefully drop meatballs into the simmering soup.
   Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.

5. Add vegetables
   Add carrots and potatoes; simmer 10 minutes.
   Add zucchini and cook another 5 minutes until tender.

6. Finish & serve
   Taste and adjust seasoning.
   Serve hot with fresh cilantro, lime wedges, and warm tortillas.

Tips

• Rice cooks inside the meatballs and helps keep them tender.

• Don’t stir too much at first or meatballs may break.

• Soup tastes even better the next day.

If you’d like, I can also share:

• chicken albóndigas

• spicy version

• slow-cooker method

• or grandma-style variations