flipChicken Soup with Matzo Balls (Kneidlach)
Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls (Kneidlach)
Why this dish? Gordimer's parents were Jewish immigrants—her father from Lithuania, her mother from England. This golden soup with floating dumplings, the emblematic dish of Friday night dinner and Jewish holidays, embodies the Ashkenazi heritage that the Charactorium file notes in the family kitchen of Springs.
A clear, amber chicken broth perfumed with dill, in which fluffy dumplings made from matzo meal float. The ultimate liquid comfort of Eastern European Jewish families transplanted under the Transvaal sun.
My father left Lithuania at thirteen, hardly a word of English, and it was this soup he found every Friday on our table in Springs, like a thread stretching back to a country he would never see again. The secret, you see, lies in patience: you let the chicken yield its gold over very low heat, for hours, never letting it boil, or the broth turns cloudy. The dumplings, you knead them lightly, with your fingertips—too tight, they fall like stones; too loose, they fall apart. I tell you: in a country that spent its time separating people, this shared bowl remained a stubborn way of bringing together.
- •Whole chicken — a fine bird (broth base)
- •Carrots, onion, celery — a handful of each (aromatics)
- •Fresh dill — a bunch (fragrance)
- •Matzo meal — two bowls (dumplings)
- •Eggs — a few (binder for dumplings)
- •Chicken fat (schmaltz) — a spoonful (dumpling tenderness)
Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls (Kneidlach)
A clear, amber chicken broth perfumed with dill, in which fluffy dumplings made from matzo meal float. The ultimate liquid comfort of Eastern European Jewish families transplanted under the Transvaal sun.
Why this dish? Gordimer's parents were Jewish immigrants—her father from Lithuania, her mother from England. This golden soup with floating dumplings, the emblematic dish of Friday night dinner and Jewish holidays, embodies the Ashkenazi heritage that the Charactorium file notes in the family kitchen of Springs.
My father left Lithuania at thirteen, hardly a word of English, and it was this soup he found every Friday on our table in Springs, like a thread stretching back to a country he would never see again. The secret, you see, lies in patience: you let the chicken yield its gold over very low heat, for hours, never letting it boil, or the broth turns cloudy. The dumplings, you knead them lightly, with your fingertips—too tight, they fall like stones; too loose, they fall apart. I tell you: in a country that spent its time separating people, this shared bowl remained a stubborn way of bringing together.
Ingredients (period version)
- Whole chicken — a fine bird (broth base)
- Carrots, onion, celery — a handful of each (aromatics)
- Fresh dill — a bunch (fragrance)
- Matzo meal — two bowls (dumplings)
- Eggs — a few (binder for dumplings)
- Chicken fat (schmaltz) — a spoonful (dumpling tenderness)
Ingredients
- Stewing hen (or chicken legs) — 1.5 kg (broth base)
- Carrots — 3 (aromatic and garnish)
- Onion — 1 large (aromatic)
- Celery stalks — 2 (aromatic)
- Fresh dill — 1 bunch (final fragrance)
- Matzo meal — 150 g (dumplings)
- Eggs — 3 (binder)
- Chicken fat or neutral oil — 3 tbsp (tenderness)
- Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Cover the chicken with cold water, bring gently to a simmer, and carefully skim off the gray foam.
- Add carrots, onion, and celery, salt lightly, and simmer covered for 2 to 3 hours, never boiling.
- For the dumplings: beat the eggs with the fat, mix in matzo meal, salt, and let rest 30 minutes in the fridge (the dough should thicken).
- Shape walnut-sized balls with wet hands, without pressing too tightly.
- Strain the broth, bring back to a simmer, and poach the dumplings covered for 25 to 30 minutes: they swell and become fluffy.
- Serve very hot, sprinkled with chopped dill and a few slices of cooked carrot.
How it was made : In Ashkenazi homes, matzo—the unleavened bread recalling the Exodus from Egypt—was ground into meal to thicken and bind all year round. Chicken fat (schmaltz), carefully saved in a jar, replaced butter, which was forbidden with meat under Jewish dietary laws.
The contemporary twist : Serve the soup in shot glasses as an appetizer, one mini-dumpling per glass, with a sprinkle of dill—a chic nod to grandmothers' 'Jewish penicillin'.
Sources : Claudia Roden, The Book of Jewish Food, 1996 · Nadine Gordimer, biographical interviews about her childhood in Springs (family of Lithuanian and English origin)
Nadine Gordimer · Charactorium
