Recipes
winterThe Best Swedish Meatballs
| Published on November 13, 2024
Swedish Meatballs that are perfectly tender and spiced, served with creamy, savory, gravy. Comfort food at its best!
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Prep Time:
30 mins
Cook Time:
1 hour
Total Time:
1 hour 30 mins
Servings:
6
Yield:
5–6 servings
Jump to Nutrition Facts
Soak The Bread.
You’re going to soak some basic white bread in heavy cream. Yeah, I know. But trust that this is where the tenderness and flavor start coming into the picture!
Make Your Meatballs.
Mix everything together – pork, beef, BREAD, butter, onions, garlic, all that’s good. Then roll them into meatballs on a sheet pan and bake until cooked through.
Make The Gravy.
Whisk the gravy: butter, flour, beef broth, Worcestershire, little bit of nutmeg (and/or allspice if you want), and some heavy cream for that delicious creaminess. (Some recipes will use sour cream, but traditionally the creaminess comes from cream!)
All Together Now.
When the gravy is finished, add your baked meatballs to the pan and stir it all up. HELLO Swedish Meatballs!
What Are Swedish Meatballs?
Whether it’s from frequent IKEA trips, Christmas dinners at grandma’s, or the generally strong Scandinavian pride of the midwest, Swedish meatballs feel synonymous with Sweden.
Traditionally, Swedish meatballs are made with pork and beef, cream, egg, and onion, and are served alongside mashed potatoes, lingonberries, and tangy pickly cucumbers. It’s the perfect balance of savory, sweet, and tangy.
If you want to REALLY dig deep, back to be beginning of the history of these beautiful little bites, Swedish meatballs are actually based on a dish brought back from Turkey in the early 18th century by King Charles XII of Sweden. Which means… they might actually be Turkish meatballs? Excuse me? Intrigue!
Ingredients
swedish meatballs
- a few shakes of black pepper
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 egg
- 4 slices white bread, no crusts
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 pound ground pork (you can also sub with another pound of ground beef instead)
- 1 pound ground beef (I use 85/15)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
gravy
- Very slight dash of nutmeg (optional)
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (more to taste)
- 2 tablespoons butter (you can also use some drippings from the baked meatballs)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 12 teaspoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (to taste I recommend adding it last so you can taste and adjust for how much you want)
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth (more as needed)
Directions
Step 1
Meatball Mixture: In a small bowl, soak the white bread in the heavy cream for 5-10 minutes. Mash with a spoon or you hands. Mix the bread paste in a large bowl with the garlic and onion powder, beef and pork, egg, brown sugar, salt, and pepper. When it’s all well-mixed, roll into smallish meatballs. (If you find the mixture is too wet to handle, you can add a bit of panko or a tablespoon of cornstarch to help them hold a bit more. But don’t panic – wet is normal for this mixture. It makes for very tender meatballs!)
Step 2
Bake the Meatballs: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place meatballs on a sheet pan or baking dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes until cooked through.
Step 3
Gravy Time: In a large pan, melt the butter over medium heat. (You’re going to add the meatballs back into this pan so make sure it’s a nice big skillet, saute pan, or braiser casserole dish.) Whisk in the flour; let it bubble for 2-3 minutes. Add the beef broth, slowly, stirring after each addition. Gradually a smooth gravy should start to form. Stir in the heavy cream and season with Worcestershire sauce, sugar, salt, and a bit of nutmeg if you want. Taste and adjust to get it just right! That’s where the magic happens.
Step 4
Add meatballs in with the gravy. Cover to keep warm until you want to serve them, or transfer the pan to the oven where they can hang out on low / warm heat and continue to get tender and delicious. (The meatballs are already great on their own, but the longer they soak in sauce, the more tender and delicious they get.) Serve over mashed potatoes, with a cucumber salad and lingonberries.
Editor's Note:
If you prefer, you can use all ground beef in this recipe instead of half beef, half pork. The gravy thickens and the meatballs get more tender as you let them rest in the sauce. I like to make this in the afternoon so it has a few hours to settle in before I serve it in the evening – I just keeping it warm if it’s for 2-3 hours, or put in the fridge if it’ll be longer. If it will be in the fridge, the gravy will probably need an extra 1/2 to 1 cup of broth to help it get back to a saucy consistency! For a real easy version of this, use your favorite store-bought meatballs! I’ve had many readers tell me they do it that way and love it!
Nutrition Facts(per serving)
452
Calories
24g
Fat
18g
Carbs
38g
Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label
Nutrition Facts
Servings per Recipe: 6
Calories: 452
% Daily Value *
Total Fat: 24g
30.8%
Saturated Fat: 8g
40.0%
Cholesterol: 175mg
58.3%
Sodium: 1143mg
49.7%
Total Carbohydrate: 18g
6.5%
Dietary Fiber: 1g
3.6%
Total Sugars: 6g
12.0%
Protein: 38g
76.0%
Vitamin C: 2mg
2.2%
Calcium: 0mg
0.0%
Iron: 5mg
27.8%
Potassium : 672mg
14.3%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.
Keywords:
Winter recipes, best recipe, swedish recipe, meatballs recipe, The Best Swedish Meatballs recipe
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