Chicken Noodle Meatballs Soup (Mie Ayam Bakso)

This soup can be found almost every where in Indonesia, from street vendors to restaurants and hotels. Needless to say, one bowl is not enough ;-)

As I am not a professional meatball makers, mine aren't so round, but they taste divine :)

400 g ground beef - store bought, if you are grinding yourself, get 500 g beef

4 tbsp tapioca flour (at health food store or Asian stores)

Ice cubes, a lot (at least 4-5 trays)

2 1/2 tsp Hungarian Vegeta seasoning or something similar (available at big grocery stores and or European stores - if not, just salt is fine)

a pinch ground white pepper

1/2 tbsp sugar

1/2 tbsp baking powder (if you can find the double action one, would be better)

2 tbsp vegetable oil

Mix ground beef with tapioca flour and seasoning, then process in blender/food processor into a fine paste. While processing, add in ice cubes and vegetable oil as needed (so your blender/food processor should be the one that is able to crush ice - this is to make sure your motor won't be too hot and result for the meatballs would be great). This can be done in stages instead all beef as one (depending the size of your food processor)

Once paste is reached, add in the rest of the ingredients, mix well

Bring water to a boil and shape meatballs between your point finger and thumb, scoop it with a spoon. Drop meatballs into boiling water and cook until floating

Prepare a bowl with ice water

Once meatballs are floating, take them out with slotted spoon and drop them into ice water to cool

Take out cooled meatballs with slotted spoon and store in container.

Ice water is to make sure that once meatballs are cooled and stored together, they won't stick one to another.

Your soup will be using 300 g chicken breast. Do buy the ones with skin. Once you skin the breast, fry the skin with 2-3 crushed garlic until fat oil is produced, on medium heat.

Set aside the oil.

300 g chicken breast, cubed thinly

3 garlic

5 shallots

1 tsp coriander seeds

3 cm fresh turmeric

3 cm fresh ginger

4 candlenuts (no subs. can be found at Asian stores or online)

Hungarian Vegeta seasoning to taste (or Royco/Masako or even just salt)

3 tbsp sweet soy sauce, Indonesian product preferably (available at Asian store or online, ABC brand is best)

2 tbsp Worcester sauce

Make a fine paste of garlic, shallots, coriander, turmeric, ginger and candle-nuts

Heat 1 tbsp oil and saute chicken until changed in colors

Add in sweet soy sauce and worcester sauce, adjust taste with seasoning/salt

A little water maybe added

2 L water

1/2 kg chicken bones

a tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground white pepper (or just a pinch)

Bring water to boil, lower heat

Drop in chicken bones and cook until broth is produce

Add in meatballs and adjust taste with salt and white pepper

Store bought fried onion, as needed, optional but oh so good on the soup!

2 green onion, thinly sliced

1 package of egg noodle, prepare as directed on the package

Bokchoy, chop/slice and boiled, drain

Cut wonton/spring roll wrapper into quarters and fry (or you can leave them as in, no need to cut, just fry)

Into a serving bowl, spoon 2 tbsp chicken fat oil and sprinkle a little Vegeta seasoning

Add cooked egg noodle and boiled bokchoy

Spoon 2 tbsp chicken topping and a couple of meatballs on noodle

Add sliced green onion

Pour hot broth and serve soup with wonton chips

And if you have fried onion, by all mean, please sprinkle some!

Enjoy :)

PS: Indonesians love adding specific meatballs ketchup, additional sweet soy sauce, and hot sauce called sambal for this soup