Mexican Meatball Soup

Easy, one pot soup made with Mexican beef meatballs and quite a kick. This delicious Mexican Meatball Soup can be made in a healthier veggie and meatball version or a heartier version with rice.

MEXICAN MEATBALL SOUP

I like it hot and I like it spicy! Unfortunately, it’s just me that likes spicier stuff (and my spicy is not extreme by any means), my family is not with me. I made so much of this fantastically delicious soup, but everyone is afraid to try it because it’s spicy.

I didn’t even realize that it had quite a kick to it (I may have added an extra chipotle chili pepper just for fun) until it was already cooked and I had a whole pot of it. So I spend a whole day texting my family, asking if they want some. The first question I get is, “how spicy? Coz I don’t do very spicy.” Ugh.

Well, what can I say…I compared the heat in this soup to be somewhere between “oh goodie, my sinuses cleared up” and “I’m a fire-breathing dragon!”

So, if you’re familiar with chipotle chilies in adobe sauce and can take the heat, use two (or more, oh brave one) but if you don’t know how much heat these chilies pack, start with one or you will turn into a fire-breathing dragon and those are hard to put out. Milk won’t help as much as you’d hope.

There is also a recipe for Mexican meatballs hidden in here. They are awesome and you can always pull this recipe just for the meatballs. Don’t miss out!

HOW TO MAKE MEXICAN MEATBALLS:

Combine all ingredients for meatballs in a medium mixing bowl and mix until all evenly incorporated.

Grease your hands with some cooking spray. Scoop out some meat using a cookie scoop and roll meatballs. (You can make meatballs bigger or smaller according to your own preference. Just remember to adjust cooking time if making bigger or smaller meatballs by a few minutes.)

Cook meatballs on stove-top and then oven:

Preheat a large, oven-safe skillet or a pan over medium heat and add some oil.

Once all the meatballs are rolled, add them to the hot pan. 

Sear on one side for a couple of minutes and then flip. Sear for a couple more minutes and then place into the oven that has been preheated to 350°. Bake for about 20 minutes, until meatballs are done.

Cook meatballs in the oven:

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place rolled meatballs snugly into the casserole dish.

Cover casserole dish with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Take off the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes. (Since size of meatballs will vary, time might vary slightly.)

Making meatballs for soup:

Heat up a large pot over medium heat and add vegetable oil.

Place rolled meatballs in the heated pot and saute for about 5 minutes. Flip all meatballs and cook for a couple more minutes.

Add diced veggies, tomato paste, and chipotle chili. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Stir, cover, and cook for a few more minutes.

Add beef stock, pressed garlic, salt, and cumin. Bring to boil then lower to medium-low. Cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Stir in fresh cilantro right before taking off heat.

More Delicious Soup Recipes:

Roasted Garlic Rosemary Meatballs

Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meatballs and Orzo

Spicy Meatball & Gnocchi Soup

Borscht Recipe

Chicken Tortilla Soup

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Mexican Meatball Soup

This delicious Mexican Meatball Soup can be made in a healthier veggie and meatball version or a heartier version with rice.

Course Main Course, Soup

Cuisine American, Mexican

Keyword meatballs, soup

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Servings 7 About 7 cups (about 15 meatballs) more if adding rice

Calories 259 kcal

Author Lyuba Brooke

Ingredients

Mexican Meatballs

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/4 cup plain bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1/2 small red onion minced
• 2 garlic cloves pressed
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce diced
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• Salt

Soup:

• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• Meatballs from above
• 2 to matoes diced
• 1/2 red onion diced
• 1 red bell pepper seeded and diced
• 1 orange bell pepper seeded and diced
• 1 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
• 2 garlic cloves pressed
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 cups of beef stock
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 2 Tbsp minced cilantro
• Salt
• 1 cup uncooked rice optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients for meatballs in a medium mixing bowl and mix until all evenly incorporated. Roll about 1-inch meatballs.
2. Heat up a large pot over medium heat and add vegetable oil. Place meatballs in the heated pot, cover and cook for about 5 minutes. Flip all meatballs, cover and cook for a couple more minutes.
3. Add diced veggies, tomato paste and chipotle chili. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Stir, cover and cook for a few more minutes.
4. Add beef stock, pressed garlic, salt and cumin. Bring to boil then lower to medium-low. Cover and cook for 15 minutes.
5. Stir in fresh cilantro right before taking off heat.
6. If using rice: you can choose to cook rice separately and just add some to each dish or you can cook rice right in the soup. If you add rice separately, you will avoid rice soaking up all the broth. If you cook rice in soup, it will soak up the broth and you will need to add an extra cup and a half of beef broth to compensate. Cooking rice in soup will make it more flavorful. Decision is ultimately up to you!

Recipe Notes

All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe. Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have a slight variation.

Nutrition Facts

Mexican Meatball Soup

Amount Per Serving

Calories 259 Calories from Fat 153

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 17g 26%

Saturated Fat 8g 40%

Cholesterol 69mg 23%

Sodium 336mg 14%

Potassium 459mg 13%

Total Carbohydrates 9g 3%

Dietary Fiber 1g 4%

Sugars 3g

Protein 14g 28%

Vitamin A 30.7%

Vitamin C 56.1%

Calcium 3.6%

Iron 13.1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.