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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 ¼ 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
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
Serves: 6
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
So ridiculously good. And they’re super easy to make! Did everything as written and turned out perfect!
So I’ll admit it. I’ve never had “real” Swedish meatballs. I read some comments that said this recipe wasn’t authentic. It doesn’t matter if it isn’t authentic, the recipe is amazing. And I’m not understanding the reviews about the dish being bland. There’s a lot of flavor, it’s just subtle. It’s beef and cream for heaven’s sake, it’s not going to be spicy. Anyway, it’s so good, give it a try
My first attempt at Swedish Meatballs. This is an excellent recipe. I really love the taste and even a non cook like me can make it. Thank you for sharing!
Could these be baked with the same outcome?
These are absolutely delicious 😋! Highly recommended!
Sounds delicious! Going to make it and take it for our winter camping, along with a green salad and apple-cider vinaigrette. Thank you for sharing.
I made this tonight and it was delicious. I followed the recipe except for using half and half instead of heavy cream because that’s what I had. Such great comfort food and easy to make!
I made tonight great added a little sour cream to the sauce and sauté mushrooms and onions great over mashed potato served with green beans
are the panko bread crumbs seasoned or plain?
Just plain panko bread crumbs in this recipe!
I used Italian seasoned panko and I really couldn’t taste the different. It’s an really good recipe!
Your photos are amazing!! Going to try your recipe this weekend!!! Love that you used all beef 🙂
I haven’t made this yet but wonder if I used a beef gravy mix instead of making this particular recipe, if it would still be a tasty dish. I work for a non-profit agency that prepares 70 meals a day. If I follow the recipe exactly, that would require 11 cups of cream! Not in our budget. I can manage all the other ingredients, but it would be so much cheaper for us to prepare a beef gravy. Has anyone attempted to do this? Thanks for any input.
It wouldn’t be quite the same, but if you could, in lieu of the cream, afford to add a quart of half & half along with a “slurry” of corn starch and water to help thicken it, I believe that would help quite a bit.
I use a can of cream of mushroom soup and the beef broth instead of cream. Delicious
I haven’t tried gravy mix, but you could maybe try evaporated milk instead of half and half or heavy cream. It’s thick already and creamy and unsweetened. Maybe try a small batch at home to taste test first?
Good idea about the evaporated milk. My mother used it in so many recipes growing it up. In fact, if I’m not mistaken, I think she even said she fed it to us as babies, instead of formula. That was back in the late 50’s (I’m 69 not) Thanks!
Judy, the meatballs were good, but I found the sauce to be quite tasteless and thin. I had to doctor it up soooo much by adding beef bullion, some spices and even a can of cream of mushroom soup.and it still was not thick even after an hour of simmering..(I may have poured an extra cup of beef broth in, but still! I won’t used the recipe again. Next time I make the meatballs, I’m just going to use, like you said – I’m going to make a couple of packaged beef gravy mix packets, probably a can of cream of mushroom soup, and maybe some half and half (whipping cream is way to fattening and seemed like a waste). I was very disappointed considering all the work and expense. Follow your instincts and budget. Improvise, and it will still be just as good.
Made tonight and really enjoyed! I used turkey instead and added a little kitchen bouquet to darken the sauce and add a little extra flavor. Thanks for a good recipe!
Absolutely amazing sauce! I would definitely plan on doubling the sauce when you make this.
Very delicious! The gravy is outstanding.
Don’t bother trying any other recipes. This one id the best!
Agree totally!
Turned out perfect! I tweaked my Swedish grandmother’s recipe a bit and she called it Lumberjack stew, using potatoes as an accompaniment rather than noodles.
We put it over mashed potatoes. Not a big fan of noodles.
Definitely the best Swedish meatball recipe I have tried. Rich, creamy and super easy to make! I added some paprika for a little extra flavor and coloring. Only had whole all spice so I used my molcajete to grind it up, lol. Thanks for a great recipe Alyssa. I used to buy the packaged seasoning at Walmart, but they don’t sell it anymore. This is way better and just as easy to make! 30 minutes and that was taking my time! ❤️❤️❤️
Delicious!!! I was looking for something new and I took a chance. I’m so glad I did. The meatballs are tasty and the sauce cooked up so easily and quickly. Served it on rice with a salad. Yummy! Thank you for this great recipe!!!
We love this recipe definitely delicious
Was supposed to make chili, but didn’t really want chili. I found this recipe and decided to give it a go. I have half pork and half beef thawed for aforementioned chili, but the seasonings did the trick!!! Super delicious!
Awesome recipe!!! This is my second time making this recipe and each time has been a hit! Thank you!!