People worry too much about making matzoh balls to the point that they *shudder* use a mix for what is probably the easiest thing in the world to make other than toast, or perhaps boiled water. With the holidays coming up, it’s time for a review. It’s less about amounts and more about using your eyes.

Beat four eggs. Add three heaping tablespoons of schmaltz, a teaspoon of salt, and about ¼ teaspoon of pepper. Gradually add matzoh meal, stopping BEFORE the batter gets thick (and don’t overmix—just beat long enough to get the matzoh meal into the egg mixture). You want the matzoh meal to drop from the beaters in a lovely undulating ribbon. Half a cup to ¾ cup of matzoh meal is about right.

Now cover the bowl with plastic wrap and wait 15 minutes. Refrigerate several hours. Gently scoop a bit into your wet hands and slip the ball back and forth between your palms about 3 times to get them semi-round (don’t aim for perfect shapes or you’ll overwork the batter and get rubbery hard matzoh balls—yuck!) and let slip into boiling chicken soup.

Once you’ve got all the batter in, turn heat down to low, leave the cover slightly ajar. Cook 12 minutes. Turn the kneidlach (Yiddish for matzoh balls!) with a spoon, cook another 12 minutes. Voilà.