Chicken soup with kreplach – a classic Jewish tradition that many families can’t do without. With this recipe, even those who never made kreplach will want to make them. Preparation and cook time below are for kreplach. Cook time for soup is about 4 hours.
Chicken Soup with Kreplach
Servings
6 Servings
Ingredients
- 1 3 to 5 pound chicken, quartered
- 12 cups water
- 3 carrots sliced
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 to 2 parsnips
- 1 onion
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 clove garlic peeled
- Several sprigs fresh dill
- Several sprigs parsley
- 1 tablespoon Hawaij optional
- 1 3/4 cups flour
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 1 cup ground beef
- 1 small onion grated
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
Soup:
- Clean chicken. Fill an 8-quart pot with the 12 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Place chicken and vegetables in pot. Add salt and pepper. Add garlic and herbs and Hawaij if using.
- Simmer covered for about 2-4 hours. Remove garlic. Allow to cool and put in fridge overnight. The next day skim, off the layer of fat and remove vegetables and chicken. Remove chicken from bones and put in soup together with sliced carrots if desired or strain soup and use broth as is. Reheat and serve with kreplach.
Kreplach:
- Dough:
- You can use store bought wonton wrappers, but if you have the time, it’s worth it to make your own.
- In a large bowl combine flour, eggs, salt and oil. Wrap in a damp cloth and let sit for one hour. Knead and roll out the dough very thin on floured board. Cut into 3-inch squares.
- Filling:
- In a large frying pan, saute onion and beef and add salt to taste. Allow to cool.
- Assembly:
- Place a teaspoon of filling carefully into center. Fold one side over the other into a triangle, moisten edges with a bit of water and seal with fingers while pressing out any air.
- Now you can boil the kreplach for 20 minutes or until they float or you can saute them in hot oil.
- Set aside until ready to serve in soup.
- Adapted from Spice and Spirit.
I just had to comment on this, though haven’t made kreplach in years. I always made them the way my mother did; first she made soup, bean and barley usually, including lots of meat and the bones that in those days the butcher gave you for free. Then, we ground the meat from the soup. Added onions, meat was already do delicious no other seasonings needed. I still have her meat grinder (also used for chopped liver), as well as her wooden chopping bowl, with curved blade for chopping (if I remember correctly this was usually for the gefilte fish). I’m now 85, so my cooking is usually simpler but perhaps this will inspire me. And I thank you for taking me down memory lane.
I make mine using beef chuck roast or London broil and shred the meat. Add garlic, ginger, allspice and seal. Then add to rich broth for cooking…20
min’s and then into the place. My kids also like home made noodles with this in chicken soup.
Great ideas. thanks.
Many possibilities to fill kreplach:Spinach leaves(with garlic),champignons(hacked to small pieces),broccoli,seasoned and mashed chickenpeas (like hummus) etc.
I just made these with whole wheat flour and they came out great!
I want to make non meat kreplach, I imagin most vegetables would let off too much moisture inside the dough. Would mashed potato be an option and if so what could make it special.
your suggestions very welcome.
regards
It’s been so long since I’ve made my own pasta – Can I “knead” the dough in a processor? How much kneading either way?
Does it make a difference if I use whole wheat flour?
No, freeze them before boiling them and then throw the frozen ones in to boil without defrosting.
if i want to make kreplach and not use them immediately, but freeze them, do i still boil them for 20 minutes, or for less time?
these kreplach sound just like the ones my bubby used to make! except i think she used chicken