Ciorbă de perișoare à la grec, Romanian meatball soup

Ingredients

• 500 g mixed ground meat
• 1 large onion (200 g)
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1000 ml water
• 1 teaspoon salt for the meatballs
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper for the meatballs
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 10 g fresh parsley for the meatballs
• 1 medium carrot (100 g)
• 1 medium parsnip (100 g)
• 1 large red pointed pepper (150 g)
• 1 large potato (250 g)
• 4 egg yolks
• 200 ml milk
• 200 ml cooking cream with at least 20% fat
• 30 ml vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt for the soup
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper for the soup
• 5 g fresh parsley for finishing

Preparation

1. Finely chop the onion. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pot and sauté the onion for 5 minutes, until translucent. 2. Pour in 1000 ml of water and bring to a boil, about 8 minutes. 3. Mix 500 g of ground meat with 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, the thyme and 10 g of chopped parsley. Shape into meatballs about 3 cm across. 4. Add the meatballs to the pot and cook for 15 minutes over medium heat, until firm on the outside. 5. Peel and grate the carrot and parsnip. Dice the pepper and peeled potato. Add the vegetables and cook the soup for another 15 minutes, until the potato is tender. 6. Mix the egg yolks with the milk and the sour cream, taken out of the fridge 15 minutes beforehand. Gradually add two ladles of hot broth, stirring constantly. 7. Pour the egg mixture into the pot, add 30 ml of vinegar, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Let the soup simmer gently for one minute, then turn off the heat and add the remaining parsley.