Sephardic-Style Vegan Matzo Ball Soup

Matzo balls aren't always a part of the Sephardic tradition, but a Turkish friend remembers them from his childhood Seders. No matter where you're from, the Passover Seder doesn't seem complete without matzo ball soup. Here's a Sephardic-inspired matzo ball soup that's completely vegan. Photos by Evan Atlas.

Sephardic-Style Vegan Matzo Ball Soup

No matter how you celebrate, the Passover Seder doesn't seem complete without matzo ball soup. Here's a Sephardic-inspired matzo ball soup that's completely vegan.

4.25 from 4 votes

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Course: Passover

Cuisine: Jewish / Vegan

Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Servings: 8

Author: Veg Kitchen

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion minced
• 2 large or 3 medium leeks white and palest green parts only, halved lengthwise and cut into ¼-inch thick slices
• 2 medium potatoes peeled and diced
• 3 medium carrots sliced
• 3 medium stalks celery diced
• 8 ounces white or brown mushrooms cleaned, stemmed, and sliced
• 8 cups vegetable stock or water or a combination (see note)
• 2 medium white turnips peeled and diced
• 1 to 1 ½ cups diced ripe tomatoes about 2 medium
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• Vegan Matzo Balls

Instructions

• Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onion and leeks; sauté over medium-low heat until the leeks are limp, about 8 minutes.
• Add the potatoes, carrots, celery, mushrooms, stock, paprika, and cumin; stir together. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer gently, cover, until vegetables are tender, about 25 minutes.
• Add the turnips and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer 10 minutes longer.
• Let stand off the heat for several hours or overnight in refrigerator to develop flavor. Reheat before serving. Serve with 3 to 4 matzo balls each bowl.

Vegan-ize any recipe!Grab our free vegan cheat sheet, packed with my favorite easy substitutions to make any recipe vegan.

Note: You can use 8 cups homemade vegetable broth, two 32-ounce containers low-sodium vegetable broth, or one 32-ounce container low-sodium vegetable broth plus 4 cups water plus 1 or 2 vegetable bouillon cubes.

• Get more holiday recipes on VegKitchen’s Passover: Sephardic-Style Seder page.
• Find more ways to make Special Occasions and Entertaining easier and healthier.