This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.
Swedish Meatballs are made with the warm taste of winter spices like nutmeg, allspice, cardamom, and ginger. Then they are bathed in a creamy white sauce. It doesn’t get any better.
My Mom used to make Swedish Meatballs several times a month because they were one of my Dad’s favorite meals. It’s been a long time since I’ve made them but now that I have a fool-proof recipe they’ve become a regular on our table too. One of the things that makes these meatballs different from other meatballs I make is the use of soaked white bread instead of panko or plain breadcrumb.
How do you serve Swedish Meatballs?
Traditionally Swedish Meatballs are served with boiled potatoes and lingonberries. My Mom always served them over egg noodles so I do the same thing. The only place I have seen that sells Lingonberries is IKEA (where they also serve Swedish Meatballs). Unfortunately, I didn’t have any the last time I made this recipe. If you find them, stock up – they go so well with many dishes.
Swedish Meatballs are a perfect meal for a cold or rainy night but they also make a great appetizer served by themselves. If you are making them as an appetizer, you can keep them warm in the slow cooker or crockpot.
If you like this recipe, you’ll also like:
- Grilled Peach Chicken Salad
- Bourbon Glazed Salamon Cesar Salad
- One-Pan Kielbasa and Veggies
- Cheeseburger Flatbread Pizza
Swedish Meatballs
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 35 meatballs 1x
Description
Swedish Meatballs are made with the warm aroma and taste of nutmeg, allspice, cardamom, and ginger. Then they are bathed in a creamy white sauce. It doesn’t get any better.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. Meatball mix – ground beef, veal and pork (our grocery store sells this as a package all together.)
- 1/2 cup half n half or heavy cream (substitution: milk)*
- 2 slices of white bread – broken into very small pieces*
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion – diced small
- 1 egg
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper,
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 2 TBS fresh parsley
- 1–2/3 cups beef broth
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup flour
Instructions
Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Brown diced onion in olive oil – set aside
- Soak bread pieces in half and half – set aside
- Mix meat, spices, cooked onions, egg, fresh parsley, and bread/half and half mixture together.
- Roll into balls – about the size of golf balls.
- Brown meat balls until they are cooked on all sides.
- Place browned meatballs onto a large cookie sheet or baking dish and bake for 25 minutes, tuning each meatball halfway through the cooking time.
- Remove from oven when cooked and set aside.
- Save the pan drippings for the sauce.
Sauce
- In a stove top pan, whisk together flour and butter to make a roux.
- Add the pan drippings from meat balls and beef stock and continue to stir until the mixture thickens; add salt and pepper to taste.
- Place the meatballs into a baking dish; cover with sauce and bake for 5-7 minutes.
Notes
*If you’d rather use Panko or bread crumb, just eliminate the half n half and the bread and use 1/4 cup + 2 TBS of Panko or bread crumbs.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Comfort Food
- Method: Stove-top and Baked
- Cuisine: Swedish American
