Mini Moroccan Meatball Couscous Soup Recipe

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Mini Moroccan meatball couscous soup starts with a flavorful broth spiced with Moroccan flavors with meatballs and pearl couscous. This soup is so warm and comforting. It can be made with ground lamb or beef that is seasoned and baked. The pearl couscous pairs beautifully and makes this soup so rich and satisfying!

Mini Moroccan meatball couscous soup.

Coziness simmered in broth.

It’s that time of the year when I want mini baby meatballs that are spiced to perfection and floating around in the spice-simmered broth. The flavors in the meatballs kind of mellow out in the chicken broth, and together they make the most warm-your-soul kind of soup.

It’s I’m-feeling-under-the-weather soup but want something that’s both nourishing and flavorful. I, for one, refuse to sip soup that tastes like melted cardboard. If I had to describe it briefly, I’d say it’s really just sunshine in a bowl. The curry powder, turmeric, and thyme make the broth so warm and comforting. It feels like a little ball of sunshine just touched your heart and warmed it up. Topped with fresh chopped mint to brighten it up further and served with homemade crusty bread to soak up all that lovely broth. This is giving Italian wedding soup meets beef and barley meets chicken noodle.

And I’m totally here for it.

Mini Moroccan Meatball Couscous Soup Recipe | Little Spice Jar (2)

Ingredients for Moroccan meatball soup

Ground lamb:I love using lean ground lamb for this meatball couscous soup recipe. The spices pair beautifully with it and the delicate mint flavor elevates all the other ingredients in the soup. Feel free to swap for ground beef if you can’t find ground lamb in your area.
Seasonings:This soup is heavy on seasonings, and it works! You’ll need ground coriander, ground cumin, dried thyme, curry powder, turmeric, chili powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, kosher salt, and black pepper. We’ll load all of these into the meatballs and then make them up. When they simmer in that chicken broth, they’ll release all that aroma and goodness into the broth as it simmers. One on the curry powder – be sure to salt-free seasoning so that the Moroccan meatball soup doesn’t become overly salty!
Tomato Paste:the tomato paste helps brighten all the seasonings and gives the meatballs a lovely color.
Pearl Couscous:Pearl couscous is so readily available in most grocery stores these days. My grocery store keeps it in the same aisle as the rice. Sometimes pearl couscous is labeled as ‘Israeli couscous’. If you can’t find it, feel free to use acini de pepe or orzo. though, if you swap it for orzo or acini de pepe, you might want to boil it directly in the soup with an additional cup of water instead of boiling it separately.
Olive Oil: You’ll need a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to start the soup. We’ll saute the shallots in the oil before adding the garlic and simmering the stock.
Shallots:I use shallots in the recipe for their delicate flavor. You can also use onions if that’s what you have on hand.
Garlic:Lots of minced garlicflavor in this soup! Mince it up finely, or use a garlic press to make things easier!
Chicken Stock:Feel free to swap the chicken stock with beef stock, veil stock, or even vegetable broth. Whatever you prefer!
Mint or parsley:You’ll need just a tablespoon or so to top the soup with! Don’t skip this, it adds tons of freshness and color!

Mini Moroccan Meatball Couscous Soup Recipe | Little Spice Jar (3)

Mini Moroccan Meatball Couscous Soup Recipe | Little Spice Jar (4)

How to make Moroccan couscous soup

Start with the meatballs.Get the oven preheating. While that’s happening, stir together the spices in a bowl, when they’re combined, add the ground lamb and tomato paste and combine. You don’t want to overwork the meat but you do want to ensure that the mixture is thoroughly combined. Scoop out a teaspoon of the meatball mixture and form a ball in the palm of your hands. I use a melon baller or a mini cookie scoop to measure them out; it’s the perfect size! Then place the meatballs on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake them until they cook through and brown.
Make couscous.While the meatballs are baking, saute the couscous in a glug of oil, season with a pinch of salt and add water and bring to a boil. When the couscous is boiling, cover, lower the heat and allow the couscous to soak up all the water.
Make Moroccan meatball soup.In a large soup pot or dutch oven, heat the olive oil and saute the shallots in the oil until they start to soften. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds or until it’s nice and fragrant. Add the chicken broth with a couple of cups of water and bring it to a boil. When the soup is boiling, reduce the heat to low, add the cooked meatballs and the couscous and allow them to simmer in the soup for a few minutes so that the flavor meld together. Taste and adjust the soup with more seasonings. I usually like to add an extra 1/4 teaspoon of curry powder, but this is purely optional. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with chopped mint or parsley and serve warm with lots of crusty bread to soak up that broth!

Mini Moroccan Meatball Couscous Soup Recipe | Little Spice Jar (5)

If you like this recipe, you might also like:

Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup
Winter Detox Sweet Potato Soup
Comforting One-Pot Lasagna Soup
Secret Ingredient Tomato Basil Soup
Cajun Butternut Squash Soup

Mini Moroccan Meatball Couscous Soup Recipe | Little Spice Jar (6)

Original recipe shared March 2015, updated with new images and post Jan 2023.

Yield: 6-8 servings