Tortellini en Brodo Soup is a classic Italian dish that is both delicious and comforting. This recipe combines homemade tortellini filled with cheese or meat, simmered in a flavorful broth. I’ll walk you through creating Tortellini en Brodo Soup step-by-step, with all the necessary ingredients and techniques to make a delicious restaurant-quality meal in the comfort of your home.
Ingredients
For the broth
1 4-lb. chicken, cut into six pieces
2 lb. veal bones or veal shank
2 lb. beef stew meat or scraps
1 medium yellow onion, quartered
2 medium carrots, cut into large pieces
2 ribs celery, cut into large pieces
1 3-inch-square Parmigiano Reggiano rind (optional)
Kosher salt
For the filling
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup boneless pork loin, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup dry white wine
2/3 cup sliced prosciutto, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup sliced mortadella, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup Freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Kosher salt
For the pasta dough
2 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour; more as needed
4 large eggs
Directions
To Make the broth
Wash the chicken, veal bones, beef, and vegetables under cold running water. Put all broth ingredients, except the salt, in a 10-quart pot and add 61/2 quarts (26 cups) of cold water. Partially cover the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. As soon as the water begins to bubble, reduce the heat to low and, with a fine-mesh skimmer or a large spoon, skim off and discard any foam that has risen to the surface. Partially cover the pot and simmer gently until the broth is flavorful about 21/2 hours. Add 1 Tbs. Salt during the last few minutes of cooking.
Remove the chicken and discard or save the meat for another use. Discard the remaining solids from the broth using a slotted spoon. Strain the broth through a fine strainer into a large bowl. Line the strainer with a clean, thin kitchen towel or cheesecloth and strain the broth into another large bowl. You should have about 6 quarts of broth. Transfer the broth to storage containers and refrigerate overnight. Remove the fat and reserve the broth.
Make the Filling
Melt the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the pork and cook, stirring, until lightly golden and cooked through, about 4 minutes. Increase the heat to high, pour in the wine, and stir until it is almost evaporated, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.
Transfer the pork and its juices to a food processor. Add the prosciutto and mortadella and pulse until the mixture is very finely chopped (but not puréed).
Transfer the filling to a medium bowl and add the Parmigiano, nutmeg, egg, and 3/4 tsp. Salt. Mix well. (The filling should be moist and just a little sticky.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
Make the Pasta Dough.
Shape the flour into a mound on a large wooden board or other work surface. Using your fingers, make a round well in the centre of the flour. Carefully crack the eggs into the well, ensuring they don’t escape the walls of the well.
Lightly beat the eggs with a fork. Begin to incorporate flour into the eggs with the fork, starting from the inner rim of the well, until about half of the flour is incorporated and a soft dough begins to form.
Push all the remaining flour to one side of the board with a dough scraper. Scrape off and discard the bits and pieces of dough attached to the board. Wash and dry your hands. Add some of the flour you have pushed aside into the soft dough, kneading it gently with your hands as you incorporate the additional flour, and the dough becomes firmer. Keep the board clean and dust it with flour as you knead to prevent the dough from sticking. After kneading for 8 to 10 minutes, the dough should be smooth, elastic, and sticky.
Press one finger into the centre of the dough; if it comes out barely moist, the dough is ready to be rolled out. If the dough is still quite sticky, add more flour and knead it for 2 to 3 minutes until soft and pliable.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes.
Roll and Shape the Pasta
Unwrap the dough and knead it for a minute or two. Set the rollers of a pasta machine at their widest. Cut off a piece of dough about the size of a small lemon and flatten it with the palm of your hand to about 1/2 inch thick. As you work, keep the rest of the dough wrapped in plastic.
Dust the piece of dough lightly with flour and run it through the machine. Fold the rolled dough in half and run it through the machine again, pressing it with your fingertips into the rollers. Repeat this step 4 or 5 times, dusting the dough with flour if it becomes sticky until smooth and elastic.
Change the rollers to the next setting down and roll the dough without folding. Repeat rolling the dough sheet (without folding) through the pasta machine, decreasing the settings until the pasta is 1/8 inch thick. On a floured wooden board, cut the dough into 11/2-inch squares. Keep the squares covered with plastic as you shape the tortellini.
Put about 1/8 tsp. of the filling in the centre of a pasta square. Bring one corner over the filling toward the corner diagonally opposite and fold into a triangle. Press around the filling to seal. Bend the tortellini around your finger, with one corner slightly overlapping the other, and press to seal. The tortellini will look like a crown. Transfer to a large-rimmed baking sheet lined with a clean kitchen towel. Arrange the tortellini in a single layer without letting them touch (you’ll need 2 or 3 baking sheets) and cover with another clean towel.
Please proceed to repeat the process of filling and shaping with the remaining pasta and the filling.
Cook and serve the tortellini en brodo
You can make as many or as few servings as you like. You’ll need 11/2 cups of broth and 14 tortellini for each serving. Bring the broth to a boil in a large pot over medium heat. Gently drop the tortellini into the pot. Cook until they rise to the surface and are tender but firm to the bite, 2 to 3 minutes for fresh, 4 to 5 minutes for frozen. Remove the pot from the heat.
Ladle the tortellini and broth into serving bowls, sprinkle with grated Parmigiano, and serve immediately.
Related
Tortellini en Brodo Soup
Ingredients
- 1 4-lb. chicken, cut into six pieces.
- 2 lb veal bones or veal shank
- 2 lb beef stew meat or scraps
- 1 medium yellow onion, quartered
- 2 medium carrots, cut into large pieces
- 2 ribs celery, cut into large pieces
- 13 inch-square Parmigiano Reggiano rind
- Kosher salt
For the filling
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 5 oz boneless pork loin, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- ½ cup dry white wine
- ⅔ cup sliced prosciutto, coarsely chopped
- ¾ cup sliced mortadella, coarsely chopped
- ½ cup Freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- ½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- Kosher salt
For the pasta dough
- 2⅓ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs
Instructions
To Make the broth
- Wash the chicken, veal bones, beef, and vegetables under cold running water. Put all broth ingredients, except the salt, in a 10-quart pot and add 61/2 quarts (26 cups) of cold water. Partially cover the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
- As soon as the water begins to bubble, reduce the heat to low and, with a fine-mesh skimmer or a large spoon, skim off and discard any foam that has risen to the surface. Partially cover the pot and simmer gently until the broth is flavorful about 21/2 hours. Add 1 Tbs. Salt during the last few minutes of cooking.
- Remove the chicken and discard or save the meat for another use. Discard the remaining solids from the broth using a slotted spoon. Strain the broth through a fine strainer into a large bowl. Line the strainer with a clean, thin kitchen towel or cheesecloth and strain the broth into another large bowl. You should have about 6 quarts of broth. Transfer the broth to storage containers and refrigerate overnight. Remove the fat and reserve the broth.
Make the Filling
- Melt the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the pork and cook, stirring, until lightly golden and cooked through, about 4 minutes. Increase the heat to high, pour in the wine, and stir until it is almost evaporated, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.
- Transfer the pork and its juices to a food processor. Add the prosciutto and mortadella and pulse until the mixture is very finely chopped (but not puréed).
- Transfer the filling to a medium bowl and add the Parmigiano, nutmeg, egg, and 3/4 tsp. Salt. Mix well. (The filling should be moist and just a little sticky.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
Make the Pasta Dough
- Shape the flour into a mound on a large wooden board or other work surface. Using your fingers, make a round well in the centre of the flour. Carefully crack the eggs into the well, ensuring they don’t escape the walls of the well.
- Lightly beat the eggs with a fork. Begin to incorporate flour into the eggs with the fork, starting from the inner rim of the well, until about half of the flour is incorporated and a soft dough begins to form.
- Push all the remaining flour to one side of the board with a dough scraper. Scrape off and discard the bits and pieces of dough attached to the board. Wash and dry your hands. Add some of the flour you have pushed aside into the soft dough, kneading it gently with your hands as you incorporate the additional flour, and the dough becomes firmer. Keep the board clean and dust it with flour as you knead to prevent the dough from sticking. After kneading for 8 to 10 minutes, the dough should be smooth, elastic, and sticky.
- Press one finger into the centre of the dough; if it comes out barely moist, the dough is ready to be rolled out. If the dough is still quite sticky, add more flour and knead it for 2 to 3 minutes until soft and pliable.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes.
Roll and Shape the Pasta
- Unwrap the dough and knead it for a minute or two. Set the rollers of a pasta machine at their widest. Cut off a piece of dough about the size of a small lemon and flatten it with the palm of your hand to about 1/2 inch thick. As you work, keep the rest of the dough wrapped in plastic.
- Dust the piece of dough lightly with flour and run it through the machine. Fold the rolled dough in half and run it through the machine again, pressing it with your fingertips into the rollers. Repeat this step 4 or 5 times, dusting the dough with flour if it becomes sticky until smooth and elastic.
- Change the rollers to the next setting down and roll the dough without folding. Repeat rolling the dough sheet (without folding) through the pasta machine, decreasing the settings until the pasta is 1/8 inch thick. On a floured wooden board, cut the dough into 11/2-inch squares. Keep the squares covered with plastic as you shape the tortellini.
- Put about 1/8 tsp. of the filling in the centre of a pasta square. Bring one corner over the filling toward the corner diagonally opposite and fold into a triangle. Press around the filling to seal. Bend the tortellini around your finger, with one corner slightly overlapping the other, and press to seal. The tortellini will look like a crown. Transfer to a large-rimmed baking sheet lined with a clean kitchen towel. Arrange the tortellini in a single layer without letting them touch (you’ll need 2 or 3 baking sheets) and cover with another clean towel.
- Please proceed to repeat the process of filling and shaping with the remaining pasta and the filling.
Cook and serve the tortellini en brodo
- You can make as many or as few servings as you like. You’ll need 11/2 cups of broth and 14 tortellini for each serving. Bring the broth to a boil in a large pot over medium heat. Gently drop the tortellini into the pot. Cook until they rise to the surface and are tender but firm to the bite, 2 to 3 minutes for fresh, 4 to 5 minutes for frozen. Remove the pot from the heat.
- Ladle the tortellini and broth into serving bowls, sprinkle with grated Parmigiano, and serve immediately.