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The Best Swedish Meatballs are smothered in the most amazing rich and creamy gravy. The meatballs are packed with such delicious flavor. Savory, comforting and smothered with a sauce that melts in your mouth. You will quickly agree these are the BEST you have ever had!
Serve these scrumptious vittles over buttered noodles or rice with a Caesar Salad, Fruit Salad and Rolls for a dinner to satisfy!
The Best Swedish Meatballs
Swedish meatballs have always been super delectable, and Ikea has made them popular. With this recipe you can make them in the comfort of your own home without the making an adventure to the store. And I dare say they are even better! Super easy to make you’ll be surprised you haven’t made them sooner. So what are you waiting for?!
The secret to these heavenly swedish delights is the unique spices of allspice and nutmeg. And then in the sauce you add worcestershire sauce and dijon mustard for tantalizing flavor. The combination is irresistibly the best meatballs ever!
Swedish Meatball Ingredients
There’s a list of ingredients here, but don’t stress, it’s super simple and totally worth it.
- Ground Beef: Regular ground beef
- Bread Crumbs: I used Panko
- Parsley: Freshly chopped
- Allspice and Nutmeg: Trust me, these spices are what make it uniquely delicious.
- Onion: Finely chopped
- Garlic Powder: Gives flavor without the bulk.
- Salt and Pepper To taste.
- Egg: The binder for the meatballs
- Olive Oil: To brown the meatballs in.
- Butter: Creates the perfect flavor while helping the beef brown, you’ll add more for the sauce.
- Flour: The thickener.
- Beef Broth: Creates the base for the sauce
- Heavy Cream: This creates the creamy velvety sauce.
- Worcestershire Sauce: Secret ingredient that creates a rich flavor.
- Dijon Mustard: Spice
Constructing these Swedish Vittles
These will come together quick and cook in about 30 min total, so dinner is quick.
- Mix: In medium sized bowl combine ground beef, panko, parsley, all spicee, nutmeg, onion, garlic powder, salt and pepper and egg. Mix till combined.
- Roll: Roll into 12 large meatballs or 20 small meatballs. In a large skillet heat olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter.
- Brown: Add the meatballs and cook turning continuously until brown on each side and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil.
- Sauce: In the same skillet add 4 Tablespoons butter and flour and whisk till it turns brown. Slowly stir in beef broth and heavy cream. Add the worcestershire sauce and mustard and bring to a simmer till it starts to thicken.
- Simmer: Add the meatballs back to the skillet and simmer for another 1-2 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Tips and Variations
A few ideas to keep in mind for a dinner that’ll tickle the taste buds.
- Meat: You can use a combination of beef and pork for this recipe. Using pork add extra fat which will give a moist tender meatball. You can also use ground turkey, chicken or combination of meats.
- Spices: The nutmeg and allspice are unique to this swedish dish. Don’t leave them out if you want truly divine fare.
- Overmixing: Be Careful to not overmix the meat mixture or it can become tough.
- No Bread crumbs: You can get the same result by making a panade (bread and milk mixture) Use two pieces of bread and process till crumbs, add in 1/4 cup milk to create a paste. Add the egg and mix. Add to your meat mixture.
- Saute: For softer sweeter flavor to your onions saute them first.
- Bake: Brown the meatballs in the skillet in oil and butter. Then remove to a baking tray and finish cooking in the oven at 350 degrees F. till done. There shouldn’t be any pink.
- Cream: Do not substitute out the heavy cream for half and half, it could separate. You can also cut some of the cream for sour cream for a nice tang to the sauce.
Freezing and Storing
One of the best things about this recipe is I can double it and freeze some for another meal.
- Freeze: After cooking the meatballs transfer to a cookie sheet. Make sure they are not touching or they will freeze together. Freeze for 2-4 hours on the cookie sheet, then transfer to an airtight container or freezer bag. These will keep for up to 3 months. To thaw you can cook in the microwave,or oven. I like to partially cook them in the microwave and then finish heating them in the sauce.
- Don’t freeze the Sauce: Dairy, especially a sauce with heavy cream can sometimes separate when thawing and turn grainy. I don’t recommend it. Make the rich gravy fresh when ready to serve.
- Freezer to Pan: As long as you cook them through you can also freeze these raw and cook them in the pan the same way. They will take longer to cook through however. This is a great way for your meatballs to keep their shape. Frozen will hold up better than fresh. Just be sure to cook till no longer pink.
More Meatball Loving Recipes
Meatballs are just fun to eat and the flavors in these recipes are spot on!
- Saucy Asian Meatballs
- Easy, Delicious Porcupine Meatballs
- Chipotle Honey Meatballs
- Creamy Cajun Chicken Meatballs
- Slow Cooker Cranberry Balsamic Meatballs
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The Best Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon parsley chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ cup onion finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ⅛ teaspoon Pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 5 tbsp. butter
- 3 tbsp. flour
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl combine ground beef, panko, parsley, allspice, nutmeg, onion, garlic powder, pepper, salt and egg. Mix until combined.
- Roll into 12 large meatballs or 20 small meatballs. In a large skillet heat olive oil and 1 Tablespoon butter. Add the meatballs and cook turning continuously until brown on each side and cooked throughout. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil.
- Add 4 Tablespoons butter and flour to skillet and whisk until it turns brown. Slowly stir in beef broth and heavy cream. Add worchestershire sauce and dijon mustard and bring to a simmer until sauce starts to thicken. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the meatballs back to the skillet and simmer for another 1-2 minutes. Serve over egg noodles or rice.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I love this recipe. Tonight will be the 3rd time that I make these within a month. Everything is wonderful, and tastes so authentic. I add an extra T of Worcestershire sauce to the gravy, as well as a pinch of the nutmeg. Since there was a lot of gravy, I also threw the egg noodles right into the pan as the gravy and meatballs cooked together. The egg noodles cook rather quickly. Great intense flavor, all in one pan. Thank you.
Did you know that Swedish Meatballs are not Swedish at all? One Swedish king for some reason lived in Turkey for a while (a few centuries ago) fell in love with their meat balls and brought the recipe back to Sweden. And Swedes have been using that recipe ever since and still do. If you want and authentic Swedish recipe, try new potatoes steamed with a lot of dill and served with pickled herring including the juices. That was a standard lunch dish when I was growing up. I was born and raised in Sweden
Great tip! Thanks for sharing! XOXO
These are delish! I baked the balls at 200c for 20 minutes then added them to the pan for a few minutes. I’ve done them twice now, once over fresh egg fettuccine and once with rice. I’m thinking of making some, vacuum sealing and giving to my eldest children to boil in the bag sometime over Christmas.
I’ve made these a dozen times now for potluck parties and every time they are gobbled up! The only change I make is swapping the beef broth for chicken and adding shallots.
Can the Swedish meatballs be made in advance, frozen and then thawed and reheated?
Yes, that sounds great! Enjoy! XOXO
Could these be made using ground turkey instead of beef. Would you also use turkey broth instead of beef broth?
Yes, that is a great idea! Let me know how it turns out! XOXO
I made these tonight, the only change I made was added sautéed mushrooms to the sauce and allowed the meatballs to simmer in the sauce for about an hour on very low heat, then served it over rice noodles- It was AWESOME
This dish turned out so well! It reminded me of the Swedish meatballs my grandmother used to make. My boyfriend really enjoyed it. I’ll keep this recipe in my weekly rotation.
Thanks for this recipe
I followed it exactly and they came out great. Initially it tasted like a bit too much flour but once I put them in the oven after they came out great! Whata wonderful addition to thanksgiving this year.
That is great to hear! Thank you for sharing! XOXO
Oh man. Just finished making this and it really hit the spot. I was also able to put it together pretty quick.
Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Just made this and it’s delicious! Only had whole grain dijon and it changed the texture a little, but loved the flavor it added and will use grey poupon next time. Also added a little sour cream at the end but it didn’t need it at all (I just love sour cream). Will committ this to memory, Thanks!
This meatball recipe is excellent and family-worthy! Delish. My kids were scared at first but after one polite bite they dug in and we had to fight over the last bite! Thanks for sharing.
One modification was using ground down pretzel sticks for the panko and soy milk instead of cream (to protect against our dairy allergies). Nonetheless I will be repeating this savory dish!
I love this recipe! It’s easy to pull together and delicious! I have it over gnocchi pasta instead. It’s perfect!
I have never tried this recipe but I can just taste it reading the ingredients! I was wondering if there was a way to try this without the egg. My youngest son is highly allergic to eggs and I would love to make this for my entire family.
You are welcome to try it without egg. Let me know how it turns out and what you loved about it! XOXO
A fantastic recipe. So delicious. I added some Parmesan at the end as it simmered and then added the meatballs. The sauce is excellent. Thank you for sharing!!
Hi, I’m wondering if I can freeze
What’s left of my meatball sauce as I have made too much
Thanks Michelle xx
Yes, that is a great idea! Thanks for making one of my recipes!! XOXO