by Stracciatella Soup is also known as Italian egg drop soup. It’s a comforting and flavourful soup packed with shreds of eggs, cheese, and parsley mixture.
This recipe with the mini veal meatballs is one I grew up with and makes for a soul-satisfying meal your whole family will love!
What is Stracciatella Soup?
Stracciatella soup is a classic broth-based, egg drop soup and quite popular in the Lazian countryside of Italy where I was born.
In Italian, stracciatella means little shreds. The shreds refer to the beaten egg mixture poured into a simmering broth and then stirred to form soft, pillowy shredded morsels.
It’s comfort food at its best and quite prominent during my childhood. It was traditionally served at the start of our Christmas or Easter meal.
Of course, growing up Italian, this simple soup was only a prelude to a more lavish 5 or even 6-course meal; generally, mamma would serve it in small portions. The tiny meatballs floating at the top of the simmering broth always brought smiles to our faces!
Now let’s get cooking!
Ingredients for Stracciatella Soup with Mini Meatballs
For this classic Italian soup with mini meatballs, you’ll need a good-quality store-bought or homemade chicken broth and the ingredients listed below to make delicious mini meatballs.
- Minced veal (you can also substitute with minced chicken or turkey)
- Eggs which act as a binding agent and add moisture
- Breadcrumbs also act as a binding agent and soak up flavours
- Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated for optimal flavour
- Garlic, a fundamental flavouring agent
- Parsley, fresh is best
- Salt and pepper brighten up the flavours.
How To Make Stracciatella Soup With Mini Meatballs
Making your meatballs from scratch is an easy process.
A simple trick for shaping perfectly round meatballs is to rub a small amount of oil on your hands, which helps the mixture roll smoothly and prevents sticking.
Once the seasoned minced meat is prepared, you’ll need about 30 minutes to form the tiny meatballs.
- For tender and well-seasoned meatballs, combine minced meat with grated cheese, breadcrumbs, beaten eggs, minced garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Once the ingredients are well mixed, form mini meatballs or slightly bigger ones if you wish. However, you’ll have to increase the cooking time to compensate for the larger-sized meatballs.
Set the meatballs aside while you prepare the stracciatella mixture.
- Gather the eggs, freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, chopped parsley, salt and fresh ground black pepper in a medium-sized bowl.
- Whisk the ingredients until well combined and set aside while you heat the chicken broth.
- In a large stock pot, bring the chicken broth to a simmer.
- Add the meatballs and let simmer for approximately 10 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through, then slowly pour in the egg drop mixture. The egg mixture will firm up creating soft pools of shredded egg drops.
Let the egg drop mixture set for about 30 seconds, then give the soup a gentle stir to break it up into large shreds. Cook’s Tip: Don’t overstir. Use a gentle hand so that the ribbons are not broken up too small.
Tips for the Perfect Stracciatella
Use Fresh Ingredients: When a recipe is this simple, always go for the freshest ingredients.
Don’t Overstir. Use a gentle hand so that the ribbons are not broken up too small.
Customize your Egg Drop Soup: Add a handful of spinach or baby kale leaves to the simmering broth for more vitamin C.
Serving Suggestion: Top with a generous sprinkle of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and chopped parsley for extra goodness.
Stracciatella soup is one of my all-time favourite Italian soups. It’s packed full of delicious flavours, and it’s quite simple to make!
Whether you enjoy this egg drop soup as a starter or main dish, it’s sure to become a new family favourite and one to be on repeat.
If you make this recipe remember to tag @marisasitaliankitchen on Instagram so I can see your creation!
This recipe was originally published on January 18, 2018, and updated with new content and photos on February 13, 2025.
Stracciatella Soup with Mini Meatballs
Ingredients
For the Mini Meatballs
- 10 cups chicken broth (I used store bought no added salt, fat free and gluten free)
- 640 grams ground veal
- 2 large eggs (lightly beaten)
- 2 small garlic cloves (minced)
- 1 teaspoon salt (I use fine sea salt)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 3 tablespoons bread crumbs (I used dry bread crumbs)
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley plus 1 tablespoon more for garnish
For the Stracciatella: Egg Drop
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine together the minced veal, beaten eggs, salt and pepper, Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs, minced garlic and 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley.
- Mix well by hand and shape into tiny meatballs about 1/2 inch in diameter. (rub your hands with some vegetable oil for easy rolling)
- Bring the chicken broth to a simmer and slowly add in the meatballs.
- Let the meatballs simmer for about 10 minutes or until cooked through.
- Skim any of the residual fat from the top of the broth.
- Meanwhile whisk the stracciatella ingredients in a small bowl.
- When the meatballs are cooked through, slowly pour the stracciatella into the soup, let it set for 30 seconds and then give it a gentle stir.
- Let simmer for one minute.
- To serve, ladle into soup bowls and top with a sprinkle of chopped parsley and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Nutrition
This looks delicious!
Thanks so much!
I truly love your recipes! Need to start trying them out really soon 🙂
I’m glad to hear your enjoying the recipes! I’d love to hear from you if you try any! Thanks for dropping by!
I shall update you once I try something out ! 🙂
Sounds great!?
I’m so sorry the flu-bug hit you this year, I hear it’s a nasty strain. Many around me have fallen to it. This soup looks like the perfect comfort food to eat! I crave a bowl of it right now it looks so good. 🙂
It’s a pretty nasty flu season isn’t it! There’s nothing better in my opinion then a yummy bowl of soup when hit with the flu…I would so love to share with you! Thanks Kathryn?
It’s awful to hear you were sick over the holidays Marisa, hope you began the year healthy! This is the perfect soup and conjures happy memories. Thanks for sharing!
The New Year was a little better thanks Nadia! I’m so happy hear it brings back happy memories for you! Mini meatball soups were the absolute best while growing up! Thanks so much?
Glad to hear you’re better. Chicken soup is indeed a great remedy for cold, and this one looks so very tasty! 🙂
Nothing beats a great soup when feeling under the weather for sure! Thanks so much Ronit!
Italian style wedding soup with egg drop, BUONA!
Hi Antonio…..yes some refer to it as Italian style wedding soup and spinach is usually tossed into it! Growing up it was always called stracciatella soup at home! Thanks so much for dropping by!
Now, I’m confused. At an Italian restaurant, we enjoyed stracciatella as an hors d’oeuvres, after being told it was the “inside” of Bugatti. Is this a different spelling? No matter what, this soup looks divine. Hope you feel better soon!
Stracciatella for me is rather a term that’s used to reference the egg drop mixture that greatly resembles “shreds or rags” in appearance. It’s what my mom always called her broths or soups that contained this egg mixture! But now I’m confused…what is the “inside” of Bugatti? I’d love to know?
our Fresh Stracciatella is the stuff dreams are made of. With a name meaning “little rags”, this soft-textured cheese is made from cow’s milk cheese churned into curds. Following Italian style methods, the curds are stretched and shredded into ivory-hued strands that are soaked in heavy cream, providing a soft, milky and delicious cheese with hints of saltiness. Most famously, stracciatella is used as a luscious filling for burrata, but it can also be enjoyed by itself, alongside juicy tomatoes and veggies, on top of salads, or spread onto bread and topped with a sweet jam or spread. In this way, what was once a simple peasant dish has now become a beloved gourmet cheese in its own right. This cheese is made by
I’m sorry, auto correct! Buratta!!! I send you a copy of text from Amazon about stracciatella – looks like we’re both right. I’ve just only had it the one way, and was told it is the soft inside of buratta.
Ah yes….lol! Now that I’ve heard of as well! Also stracciatella ice-cream which has ripples of chocolate strands or other flavoured strands of add ins!I actually googled Bugatti and came up with the “car” and restaurants by that name! That’s too funny!
OH! I was wondering why the autocorrect kept going to Bugatti!
Speaking of Buratta cheese…I am actually working on a recipe using it!
It’s so good! I have a photo I took of stracciatella while shopping in Eataly in NYC. It’s freshly made and doesn’t last long, so I didn’t buy it. We had it at Manza, a restaurant in Eataly, served simply with grilled bread. Amazing.
Hope you are fully recovered now dear. I’ve had to spend a Christmas lying in bed because of a flu and know that it is not pleasant. My husband tells me that during his bachelor days, he use to try to mimic this soup by dropping an egg into a pot of Lipton Chicken Noodle Soup. He is very grateful for this recipe. Thank you once again Marisa!
Lol….I can just imagine a bachelor doing just that and am sure he’s much more adventurous nowadays! But it’s really simple to put together and the tiny meatballs are optional if pressed for time!
I’m feeling so much better now, thank-you Annika? Enjoy the soup and I’m sure your husband will be all too happy to make it for you?
Perfect for the season! Brilliant share Marisa.
It’s definitely a good for the soul soup….thanks Sumith!
I always get sick when I finally have time to relax (AKA the holidays!). Glad you’re feeling better. This soup sounds like the perfect remedy. Delicious!
Thank you Ann! Funny enough just the day before I fell ill I had so much energy and ventured out in all that snow to finish my Christmas shopping! Thanks for dropping by Ann?
There is nothing worse than being hit with the flu… glad to hear you are feeling better. Where would we be without netflix! This soup has brought back so many childhood memories… great post Marisa. Thanks for sharing ♥
Foods that bring back so many fond memories are so comforting, aren’t they! Netflix is great but sometimes too much of a distraction….? thanks for dropping by Maria!
Soup is great comfort food if you’re feeling under the weather, and this certainly fits the bill. Sorry to hear about your flu. I just Netflixed through a short bout myself.
It seems the flu has not escaped many this year! There’s nothing better then a bowl of heart warming soup for sure during these times. Thanks Stefan!
This Meatball Stracciatella soup looks like just the soup for when you have the flu. I hope you had someone make you some! Even though I’m Italian we never have meatballs in our stracciatella soup but I think I like it better your way. I was never really a fan. Meatballs are a great addition!
Hi Marcellina, my mom always marked special occasions with tiny meatballs in our Stracciatella soup. I always marvel at how dishes are prepared differently from one region to another in Italy but then again that’s the beauty of Italian cuisine. Thank you for your comment Marcellina?
The coming together of two of my favorite soups, brilliant! What could be better when feeling under the weather in the midst of winter. I must try this soup Marisa and let me say, your photos are fantastic.
Thanks so much Paula! I must say soups with tiny meatballs are a definite “pick me up” for me especially when feeling under the weather and always remind me of my childhood! Hope you get to try it 🙂
Hi Marisa it’s your cousin Johnny, you inspired me to make this tasty soup. It too brings me back 🙂 I much prefer it during the winter months but damn I got a craving!
Hi cugi…yes I’m sure your mom has made this same soup for you as well while growing up! They make it the best don’t they!! Hope you get to try…I could have it just about any time of the year! Enjoy and thanks for dropping by ?