Clear Chicken Broth with Kneidlach
A golden chicken broth, long and patient, in which float kneidlach: fluffy matzo meal dumplings that swell when cooked. Served piping hot at the start of a festive meal, fragrant with dill and carrot.
A golden chicken broth, long and patient, in which float kneidlach: fluffy matzo meal dumplings that swell when cooked. Served piping hot at the start of a festive meal, fragrant with dill and carrot.
Inspired by a living tradition: we do not reproduce a rite here, we approach it with respect. On Friday evenings at home, the meal always began with this broth—and my mother did not joke about cooking. The hen had to simmer for hours, never boil vigorously, otherwise the liquid would cloud and the honor of the table with it. The dumplings, we wanted them light as a cloud: too much flour, and they would sink like stones. I tell you as a scientist: patience is the first of techniques, at the bench as at the stove.
- •Fat hen — one (broth base)
- •Carrot, onion, parsley root — a few (aromatics)
- •Dill — a bunch (aroma)
- •Matzo meal — as needed (dumplings)
- •Eggs — a few (binder for dumplings)
- •Poultry fat (schmaltz) — a spoonful (dumpling tenderness)
Clear Chicken Broth with Kneidlach
A golden chicken broth, long and patient, in which float kneidlach: fluffy matzo meal dumplings that swell when cooked. Served piping hot at the start of a festive meal, fragrant with dill and carrot.
Why this dish? In a Jewish family from the Russian Empire and then America, clear broth with dumplings opened the festive Friday evening meal. It is the comfort food and gathering dish of the culture in which Sabin grew up—the 'Jewish penicillin' his mother would have served.
Inspired by a living tradition: we do not reproduce a rite here, we approach it with respect. On Friday evenings at home, the meal always began with this broth—and my mother did not joke about cooking. The hen had to simmer for hours, never boil vigorously, otherwise the liquid would cloud and the honor of the table with it. The dumplings, we wanted them light as a cloud: too much flour, and they would sink like stones. I tell you as a scientist: patience is the first of techniques, at the bench as at the stove.
Ingredients (period version)
- Fat hen — one (broth base)
- Carrot, onion, parsley root — a few (aromatics)
- Dill — a bunch (aroma)
- Matzo meal — as needed (dumplings)
- Eggs — a few (binder for dumplings)
- Poultry fat (schmaltz) — a spoonful (dumpling tenderness)
Ingredients
- Chicken thighs and carcass — 1.2 kg (broth base)
- Carrots — 3 (aromatic)
- Onion — 1 (aromatic)
- Celery stalks — 2 (aromatic)
- Fresh dill — a few sprigs (aroma)
- Matzo meal — 100 g (dumplings)
- Eggs — 2 (binder for dumplings)
- Poultry fat or neutral oil — 2 tbsp (dumpling tenderness)
- Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Cover poultry with cold water, bring gently to a simmer and skim. Add carrots, onion, celery, and half the dill. Simmer 2-3 hours without ever boiling hard. Salt at the end.
- Prepare kneidlach: beat eggs with fat and salt, then mix in matzo meal and 2 tbsp broth. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
- Form walnut-sized balls with wet hands, without compacting.
- Strain broth, return to a simmer and poach kneidlach covered for 25-30 minutes: they should swell and become light.
- Serve broth piping hot, two dumplings per bowl, a few carrot slices and fresh chopped dill.
How it was made : Chicken broth with kneidlach (knaidel singular) is a pillar of Eastern European Ashkenazi cuisine, served at the start of the Shabbat meal and major holidays. Matzo meal traditionally replaces leavened bread during Passover. The lightness of the dumplings, achieved by resting the batter and using schmaltz, was a source of pride for cooks.
The contemporary twist : Serve the broth in a tall cup with a single perfectly round dumpling in the center, in a 'author's consommé' style—a nod to Sabin's taste for precision.
Sources : Claudia Roden, The Book of Jewish Food, Knopf, 1996 · Joan Nathan, Jewish Cooking in America, Knopf, 1994
Albert Sabin · Charactorium
