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Swedish Meatballs are tender meatballs made with ground beef and ground pork smothered in a sour cream gravy.
Serve these Swedish Meatballs over your favorite mashed potatoes or buttered noodles – it’s the best kind of comfort food.
Table of Contents
Why We Love Swedish Meatballs
Raise your hand if you’re a huge fan of Ikea! Me, me, me!! But do you go for the incredible deals on cute Swedish merchandise or the food? I’d have to say the latter. Where else can you get a delicious plate full of meatballs and gravy for just a few bucks?
At home. In your kitchen. Because now you have this tasty Ikea copycat Swedish Meatball Recipe in your corner.
I grew up eating Swedish Meatballs that my grandma would make with this creamy, sour cream based gravy. The Ikea meatballs are different than what I remember my grandma making, but they are a bit of a cultural phenomenon here in the US.
Ingredients
I use two different kinds of meat (pork and beef), and add some allspice. That’s what gives these meatballs a completely different flavor than traditional the Italian style. They have a warmth to them that is incredibly homey.
The ingredients are very straightforward, which I love, and can most kitchens have on hand already.
Meatballs – Onion, ground beef, ground pork, eggs, Panko breadcrumbs, allspice, salt and pepper. Plus butter for browning them.
Gravy – Butter, flour, beef broth, half & half (or heavy cream), Worcestershire sauce, sour cream, salt and pepper.
How To Make Swedish Meatballs
See recipe card below for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Saute Onions – Chop up some onion very finely and saute until translucent.
Combine Meatball Mixture – In a large bowl, combine ground beef, ground pork, eggs, breadcrumbs, cooked onion, allspice, salt and pepper.
Shape Meatballs – Using your hands, shape equal portions of the meat mixture into meatballs. Use a cookie scoop or a kitchen scale to divide into equal portions.
Cook Meatballs – Melt butter in a skillet and cook meatballs, turning a few times to brown each side, until cooked through to 165℉.
Make a Roux – Melt butter in a skillet, then add flour and cook for several minutes.
Make Gravy – Pour in beef broth, Worcestershire sauce and half & half or cream. Whisk the mixture constantly over medium heat until it thickens, then stir in sour cream.
Add Meatballs – Transfer the cooked meatballs into the skillet and nestle them in the gravy.
Finish and Serve – Using tongs, turn the meatballs in the gravy to fully coat them, then sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.
FAQs
Instead of Italian flavors like garlic and Parmesan, the Swedish variety are made with allspice. Allspice is a warm spice, similar to cinnamon or nutmeg.
They are also served with a cream based gravy, rather than in a tomato sauce.
There are typically three different sides served with a traditional Swedish Meatball recipe: Mashed Potatoes, Egg Noodles, Rice. Traditionally, they will always come with a side of with Lingonberry Jam!
More Meatball Recipes
- Teriyaki Turkey Meatballs
- Easy Homemade Meatballs
- Spicy Cranberry Barbecue Meatballs
- One Pan Parmesan Meatballs
- Easy Homemade Meatballs
- Crockpot Meatballs with Peach BBQ Sauce
- Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
Swedish Meatballs
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup Panko breadcrumbs
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- 2 tablespoons butter
Gravy
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 1/2 cups beef broth
- ½ cup half and half
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup sour cream
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
- To a large skillet over medium heat, add a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the chopped onion and cook until soft and translucent; about 3 minutes.
- In a large mixing bowl and with a wooden spoon or clean hands, combine ground beef, ground pork, eggs, breadcrumbs, cooked onion, salt, pepper and allspice. Mix just until combined.
- Shape into meatballs with your hands, using a regular cookie scoop for small meatballs, or an ice cream scoop for large meatballs.
- Melt butter in the skillet over medium heat. Add meatballs in batches, turning often to brown on all sides. When cooked through (about 3 minutes per side), transfer to a paper towel lined plate.
- To make the gravy, add ¼ cup butter to the skillet to melt. Whisk in flour and cook until golden; about 2 minutes. Gradually add beef broth, Worcestershire, and half and half, whisking constantly, until thickened.
- Stir in sour cream and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add meatballs back to the skillet to ensure they are heated through. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately with mashed potatoes or egg noodles on the side.
Great recipe, but, I now live in Serbia and cant find Allspice in the stores, I used nutmeg instead. Also added fresh chopped mushrooms to the sauce, family loved it. Thanks for killer recipe
That’s a perfect swap – glad you could make it work!
Last night was the first time I ever made Swedish Meatballs. I followed your recipe exactly except I did not saute the onions first. It was incredible!! It was a rainy cold day yesterday in St. Paul, Minnesota so this really hit the spot! It was very easy to make and fairly quick for a week night meal. Do not leave out the parsley, it is a must! I still had fresh parsley in my garden I was able to use. The only thing I’d do differently is use a little more flour or maybe even some cornstarch to thicken it a little more. I look forward to trying more of your recipes.
That’s Awesome Jeanine! So glad you enjoyed it, thanks for stopping by.