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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:Â 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:Â The nutmeg and allspice are unique to this swedish dish. Don’t leave them out if you want truly divine fare.
- Overmixing:Â Be Careful to not overmix the meat mixture or it can become tough.
- No Bread crumbs:Â 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:Â For softer sweeter flavor to your onions saute them first.
- Bake:Â 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:Â 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:Â 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:Â 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
- â…› 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.
Great recipe, suggest not using egg as a bonding agent, kneading the ground beef works better (a trick I learned form a chef at a meat seminar), the protein strings that form during the kneading tend to make for stronger bonds than the protein in the egg’s white.
Tried tonight. Was so so good. I would recommend.
Swedish Meatballs – I altered the recipe slightly. Prepared meatballs with eggs, cream, and bread crumbs (more Italian style).
Of course I threw in the kitchen sink of herbs, herb de provence, basil, tarragon, parsley and nutmeg, had no allspice, used fresh garlic and onion.
My daughter lived in Denmark for a year and loved the Danish frikadeller. Rather than saute, I roasted in 350 Fahrenheit oven 12 minutes and then turn for another 12 minutes, drained most of the residual beef fat add the butter to create a roux, used low sodium beef stock, worster, and dijon. Let this thicken and simmer about 7 minutes add heavy cream just prior to serving.
We are mashed potato family so served with creamy, garlic mashed potatoes and served elderberry preserves on the side. So we now have renamed “Sweden-Franc Meatballs”.
Was a great add to my meal planner which has been getting a little boring. Thanks Joanne
Delicious!! I’ve made this recipe three times this season and everyone loves it! Thank you.
I tried the recipe last week and I will be making it for the third time tomorrow. It’s excellent! I ended up putting a little less cream in the sauce (about half a cup) and I used salted butter since that’s all I had on hand. Excellent recipe though, highly recommend!
After searching for this recipe… I tried this one! Exactly as thr recipe said… didn’t add or omit anything. Flippin’ Fantastic!
Read all the reviews & will have to say that it drives me crazy when people post all these changes or give bad reviews because they don’t use the recipe as stated.
This one is surely a keeper! Thank you 😊
Thank you Gail! Great information 🤗
Thanks Gail! That’s exactly how I feel! At least try the original recipe before shredding it apart.
Great recipe! I made this tonight and thoroughly enjoyed our dinner! I think they are the best meatballs I have ever eaten!! They are very good with it without the cream sauce!!
Thank you for sharing!!
Sorry, we didn’t like these. The flavor in the meatballs was very mild, nothing like the Swedish Meatballs of my youth. Perhaps increasing the nutmeg and allspice might help. The gravy was heavy and flavorless, requiring too much salt.
This is an awesome, delicious recipe. Made this today and hubby and I said it was a keeper.
One tip for easy prep After mixing ground beef/ground pork, divide mixture into quarters. Make 5 meatballs from each quarter to make 20 meatballs.
I tried this recipe for my husband. He doesn’t like it with sour cream or cream cheese so I tried it. We both enjoyed it,he actually wants more flavor so next time I’ll add more allspice. Super easy to make and I actually enjoyed making it,not a chore or too many steps. Thanks for sharing this recipe!!
To anyone making with frozen meatballs, don’t. Make you’re own and follow the recipe. But, if you do use frozen meatballs, add the nutmeg and allspice to the butter of your gravy and sate fr a few moments on low before adding the cream, since frozen meatballs aren’t going to have those spices in them, and you’ll want the nutmeg flavor. Swedish meatballs aren’t Swedish meatballs without delicious nutmeg, so don’t forget it.
I really loved the cream, I feel like it needed a bit more salt to taste but other than that it was great! The meatballs were alright too. I’ve never tried Swedish meatballs before. It kind of reminds me of Kofta, it has a very similar taste (I used ground beef). The Meat balls weren’t my favourite but I’ll definitely be remaking this cream sauce again for pasta dishes!
Easy and delicious!!
Made just the sauce tonight to go with frozen Italian meatballs and it was sooo delicious. I didnt have Dijon mustard so I added a tsp of dry mustard and it added just enough tang. I made the sauce, added the frozen meatballs, and cooked on medium until they were hot, about 20 minutes. Will definitely make this again and ill try the meatball recipe as well.
While I am not a meat eater, I cook it for my hubby. He eats because his body requires it to live, not a foodie like me. He smashed this. A couple of adjustments based on what was in the fridge (IE:Coconut milk instead of heavy cream) . Served over homemade mashed potatoes. Ya’ll…he smashed it!
Absolutely fantastic! Followed the recipe exactly and had no complaints. 🙂 Husband LOVES it, picky kid likes it, and even my elderly mother-in-law who claimed to not like Swedish meatballs enjoyed the recipe!
These were very good! Great flavor and easy to make! Served with mashed potatoes and a salad.
When I removed the meatballs from the pan, there was so much grease but no instruction on whether or not to drain the grease, that I only added 1 TBSP butter and the flour. Similarly, when it was time to add the broth and cream I did 2 cups broth but only .5 cups cream. That was all I had, but I also felt a whole cup of cream would be too much. Even with those adjustments the sauce was so rich that next time I would probably drain the extra grease, and add another half cup of broth instead of more cream. But I will be making these again!
I made this last night for dinner and it was delicious. However for left overs not so good. The sauce takes on a different consistency and the butter oh my. When I make this again I will modify two things. The amount of butter and the amount of heavy cream.