Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth), a rich delicious soup made with great ingredients and bones leftover from a prime rib dinner. This soup is absolutely soulful and comforting with tortellini. Reminds me of my childhood. Give it a try, it is spring and just staring to warm up, however there are still some chilly days or evenings, and this dish will warm you right up.
Song of the day: "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole
Memories of this Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth)
Today, tortellini is cooked with so many different sauces from creams to rich tomato, and filled with many different fillings like cheese, veggies, etc. Growing up Italian, I only had the meat filled ones. A mixture of veal and pork done in a broth that my parents always made homemade. It was only later, when my parents were Canadianized, that they did them in a tomato sauce. I like the old way. Usually, Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth) would be served for Sunday lunch, in place of lasagna or homemade spaghetti, or on special occations. As children we loved it and looked forward to it. I hope you will too. Let's get started!
Making beef broth
I know many people always tell me, broth takes too long, and is very laborious. On the contrary, I would say it is easy, and you can make it ahead of time or even in a slow cooker if need be. It can be stored in containers in the freezer for months, or in jars in the fridge for a few days. That's what I did. Let me show you how to make this lovely beef broth.
This is what you will need for ingredients:
- Carrots, onion, celery
- Garlic
- Bay leaf
- Evo oil
- Left over prime rib bones
- Sat and pepper
- Vegetable broth
- Water
Kitchen Tip
Whatever bones you have leftover, like beef ribs, roast bones, shanks, etc, will work beautifully. If you go to your local butcher or supermarket in the meat section, they usually have beef bones for soup.
Time to make some broth, here is how to do it:
- First, peel if needed, wash and cut your carrots, celery, and onion into chunks. We want them beefy, pardon the pun, lol.
- In a large cast pot, or whatever pot you have, pour in some extra virgin olive oil. Drop in a few halved garlic and bay leaves.
- Turn heat on to a medium setting and when that garlic starts to sizzle, throw in you mirepoix (carrots, celery, onion mix).
- Let that sauté for a bit until the onions become softer and transluscent. Season with salt and pepper and stir.
- Time to add in your beef bones, here I am using leftover prime rib. Let that cook up for a few minutes, stiring things up to get all the ingredients aquainted.
- Lower the heat and pour in the vegetable broth and also some water. For this size pot, I used 8 cups of water to 2-3 cups of vegetable broth. Partially cover and let that simmer for about 2-3 hours on very low heat.
- Check it from time to time with a stir, moreover, skim the fat that is on the surface.
How can it be done in a slow cooker?
Super easy and a good question. Basically, you can start with sauteeing the veggies and bones like I have said above. Once that is done, pour that into the slow cooker, add the vegetable broth, and water. Turn cooker on low, cover, and let that simmer away while you are at work or at home doing other things.
Straining the broth
The broth for tortellini is always clear. To do that, I pour it through a sieve and into a bowl. If you want, keep the veggies and bones, they are still edible, or if you not, discard them.
Pro Tip
I actually made a gravy with the veggies that I pureed and combined with some broth and a roux. That I used for another dish, and I ate whatever was left on the prime rib bones. So tender and juicy. I hate throwing out good food.
How to store the broth
There are a few ways to store the broth:
- I poured it into jars, let cool. Then placed the lids on and put the jars in the fridge. They will be good for up to 4 days.
- The best way to store it for longer periods is to either place it in a freezer safe storage container, or pour it into an ice cube tray and freeze it in cubes. Once frozen, place in a ziplock freezer bag or container. This would be good to use for up to 3 months.
If storing in jars, do not freeze, the jars will crack and split, only can be stored in the fridge. I used these beautiful Mason jars that I have from my parents.
Now that our broth is done we can make our Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth) any time we want.
Time to finish making our Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth)
This is the easiest part of the recipe. All we have to do is pour our broth into a soup pot, and heat it up to a slow boil or simmer. Drop in the frozen or fresh tortellini and cook them for the instructed time on the package. I used the traditional ones filled with the veal and pork.
The best part, time to plate and eat!
Our Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth) is done, and now all we have to do is plate it. I picked my parents dishes to serve the soup in. Lovely vintage shallow soup bowls, or, as we call them in Italian, scodelle.
It feels good to sit down, look around at all the people at the table. It feels extra special knowing you put so much love into what you are serving and watching as they try their first spoonful.
That broth is so rich and deep in that beef flavor, yet light to the palate.
The tortellini perfectly cooked, with that nice al dente texture on the pasta, and the meat filling just floats and melts in your mouth swirling with the lovely broth. Now, how comforting and tasty is that?
As always, it is a pleasure cooking with you. It always makes me feel warm inside knowing I am sharing these old family recipes like this Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth) that are steeped in love and wonderful memories. Keep cooking, and until next time, buon appetito!
PrintTortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth)
Tortellini in brodo (with homemade beef broth) , a rich delicious soup made with great ingredients and bones left from a prime rib. Absolutely soulful and comforting with tortellini. Reminds me of my childhood. Give it a try.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 2-3 hours
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: serves 4 people 1x
- Category: Soup, Meat
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Broth:
- 2 large carrots
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 small yellow onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 2 leftover prime rib bones
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 8 cups water
Pasta:
- 1 small package of meat filled frozen tortellini
Instructions
Broth:
- Peel your carrots and onions, wash, and cut into chunks.
- Wash the celery stalk, and also cut into chunks.
- Cut garlic cloves in half.
- In a large cast soup pot or crock pot, drizzle in evo oil. Throw in garlic and bay leaves and turn heat on to a medium setting.
- Once the garlic starts to sizzle, toss in all the chopped veggies and let that sauté stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Time to put the prime rib bones in. Give the whole thing a good stir and let sauté for another 5 minutes.
- Pour in your vegetable stock and water, stir, and cover. Turn heat to a low setting and let that simmer for 2-3 hours.
- Check the broth from time to time, stirring it and skimming any fat from the surface.
Storing the broth:
- Pour broth into mason jars, let cool, and place lids on. Put them in the fridge, they will last up to 4 days.
- Another waay to store the broth is to pour broth into a freezer safe container and place in the freezer. This will last for 3 months.
- The last and most efficient way is to pour broth into an ice cube tray. Freeze, and then when all frozen, put the cubes either into a zip lock freezer bag or container.
Finishing the soup with the tortellini:
- Pour broth into a large cast soup pot. Turn heat to a medium to high setting. Once the broth begins to boil, add your frozen or fresh tortellini. Cook for the recommended time on the package.
- Ladle into bowls, and serve.
Enjoy!
Notes
You can use any beef bones you have on hand, whether shanks, ribs or roast bones. All will work very well.
If you don't have any leftover beef bones, go to your local butcher or supermarket and they always have soup bones available. Yes, you can put them in the pot and cook them from raw.
You can also do this in a slow cooker. Once you have the bones in and they have cooked a bit together, pour it all into the slow cooker, add vegetable broth and water. Cover, and turn slow cooker to low. Go to work and when you come back your broth is done. Easy peasy, right? Just skim the fat from the top, then strain into a bowl.
When I am not cooking, I enjoy playing musical instruments, singing, writing. I have learned over the years to live in gratitude and enjoy the moment.
Amy Liu Dong says
This recipe is not for everybody because it requires patience, the dish looks good and i bet the flavors were on point too!