Mom's Meatball Soup With Pinto Beans

Submitted by laurenpie

"Delicious, but takes a while to make. You'll need to soak the dry pinto beans overnight in water first! That very important step isn't included in the total prep time. Soak the beans in an oversized saucepan (I use the largest of the Farberware saucepans). If you use a smaller saucepan, the beans will foam up and over during cooking. Mom always used that same "soaking" water for cooking the soup; she said it gives the soup more flavor. I follow Mom's advice, of course! However, another friend suggests that replacing the "soaking" water with clean water before cooking helps to reduce stomach gas later."

 

• Ready In: 4hrs 15mins
• Ingredients: 22
• Yields: 10 12-oz bowls
• Serves: 10

ingredients

• soup
• 1 cup dry pinto beans
• 8 cups water
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 beef bouillon cubes
• 1 tablespoon california chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1⁄4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 chopped onions, divided
• 2 fresh garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (4 1/4 ounce) can sliced olives, drained
• 1 cup celery, halved lengthwise and sliced to 1/4-inch
• 1 cup carrot, halved lengthwise and sliced to 1/4-inch
• 2 (14 1/2 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 1⁄2 cups cabbage, shredded
• meatballs
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 egg
• 1⁄2 cup breadcrumbs
• 1⁄4 cup onion, minced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon oregano

directions

1. Soak 1 cup pinto beans overnight in 8 cups room-temperature water before starting soup.
2. Add salt, bouillon, chili powder, parsley, garlic and half the chopped onion to beans in water. Cover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours or until beans are tender.
3. Meanwhile, combine meatball ingredients, shape into 1" balls. Saute until brown on all sides. Set aside until beans have finished simmering that first 1-1/2 hours, then add meatballs to soup.
4. If too much of the soup broth has evaporated away, add water at this point, to desired consistency. Then add celery, carrots, tomatoes and remaining chopped onion to soup. Bring to a boil, then turn down, cover and simmer 25 minutes.
5. Add cabbage and simmer 15 minutes.