Bakso - Indonesian Meatball Soup (Best Street Food!)

Beef meatballs in a soup broth with noodles and bok choy.

Bakso - Indonesian Meatball Soup (Best Street Food!)

Get ready for Bakso! A flavour packed meatball soup from the streets of Indonesia, with the chewy texture we know and love. Complete with sambal and kecap manis for a sweet and spicy zing!

Course Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine Indonesian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Total Time 40

Servings meatballs

Calories 80kcal

Author Wandercooks

Cost $10

Equipment

Blender or food processor

Ingredients

Bakso Ingredients:

400 g minced beef
100 g cornstarch / cornflour sub tapioca starch or potato starch
3 tsp garlic
⅓ cup ice water
1 egg
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp beef stock powder
1 tbsp crispy fried shallots

Broth ingredients:

3 cups beef stock bone broth is best
1 spring onion chopped
2 tsp garlic
½ tsp ginger
½ celery stalk
1 lemongrass whole and crushed
½ tsp sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Garnish ideas:

vermicelli rice noodles bihun
bok choy or gai lan, Chinese spinach etc
kecap manis / sweet soy sauce
sambal
eggs hard boiled
tofu

Instructions

For the Meatballs

Place the beef, garlic, fried shallot, baking powder, beef stock powder and egg into a large mixing bowl. Mix well to combine with your hands. Next, add half the cornstarch and mix through, then half the ice water and mix again. Repeat with the remaining half of the cornstarch and ice water.
400 g minced beef, 100 g cornstarch / cornflour, 3 tsp garlic, 1 egg, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp beef stock, 1 tbsp crispy fried shallots, ⅓ cup ice water
Using gloves, make the meatballs by squeezing the mixture a few times between your thumb and forefinger until smooth. The meatball should be the size of a ping pong ball. Scoop off with a teaspoon and place into a large pot of hot water. Note: Watch video for the technique. Alternatively, take tablespoon of mixture, and roll between your palms into a meatball shape.
Pop the pot onto the stove over high heat and bring to the boil. Make sure the meatballs don't stick to the bottom. They'll float once they're cooked through (around 15-20 minutes).

For the Soup

Pop your garlic, ginger, chopped celery, crushed lemongrass, sugar, spring onion and beef stock into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Continue to cook for 5 minutes before switching off the heat. Garnish with salt and pepper to taste.
3 cups beef stock, 1 spring onion, 2 tsp garlic, ½ tsp ginger, ½ celery stalk, 1 lemongrass, ½ tsp sugar, Salt and pepper

To Serve

In a large bowl, place 4-5 meatballs and any accompaniments you'd like (bok choy, noodles, tofu etc) before pouring 2-3 ladles over the top. Add your favourite sauces such as sambal and kecap manis, and enjoy!
vermicelli rice noodles, bok choy, kecap manis / sweet soy sauce, sambal, eggs, tofu

Video

Notes

Rolling Meatballs - If you find the traditional method for making meatballs difficult, just roll them in your palms instead.
Use Gloves - This helps stop the meat mixture sticking to your hands, which is so much easier when forming the meatballs.
Smoothest Texture - To get the super smooth texture of traditional bakso meatballs, you ideally need to use a food processor. If you don’t have one, you can still enjoy this dish with meatballs mixed by hand, so don’t let that stop you!
Lumpy Meatballs - If the surface of your meatballs is lumpy after cooking, you can smooth them out by rolling them between your palms once they’ve cooled down enough.

Nutrition