Swedish Meatballs
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Nothing beats homemade meatballs smothered in a creamy gravy sauce, and yes, they taste so much better than the IKEA version!
Remember those trips to Ikea where the budget-friendly furniture finds are the last things on your mind but all you can think about are those amazing swedish meatballs? Well, that was always me. But since we’ve moved to the Bay Area, our nearest Ikea is in the middle of the most trafficked area in the entire city so it’s really hard to get my swedish meatball fix when needed. Thankfully, I’ve found a homemade version that tastes even better than the original.
These Swedish meatballs have been on my bucket list for nearly 3 years, and I’m so glad to finally cross this off my list. I don’t know why it took me so long to make it – it’s so easy to make, and it really tastes a million times better than the Ikea version. Plus, you can always make a huge batch of meatballs (by either doubling or tripling the recipe) and storing the uncooked meatballs in the freezer. When you have that Swedish meatball craving, you can just defrost these babies overnight. So simple and easy, right?
And the sauce – you can’t forget about that creamy, heavenly gravy sauce that these meatballs are smothered in with the browned up meatball bits. Those meatball bits stuck to the bottom of the pan really make the gravy what it is. I could practically drink it! Just be sure to make a little bit extra if you serve these over a bed of egg noodles – you’ll really want a portion to slurp down!
Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- ½ cup Panko*
- 2 large egg yolks
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the gravy
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups beef broth
- ¾ cup sour cream
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until onions have become translucent, about 2-3 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine ground beef, ground pork, Panko, egg yolks, allspice, nutmeg and cooked onion; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Using a wooden spoon or clean hands, stir until well combined. Roll the mixture into 1 1/4-to-1 1/2-inch meatballs, forming about 24 meatballs.
- Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the skillet. Add meatballs, in batches, and cook until all sides are browned, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
- To make the gravy, melt butter in the skillet. Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in beef broth and cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in sour cream; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Stir in meatballs and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through and thickened, about 8-10 minutes.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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This recipe looks great! I would also substitute the pork with another meat, and have found that dairy ( a touch of cream or mayo) provides an answer for this. I admire and respect those who are faithful to their religious convictions, especially when there is so much persecution out there. Can’t wait to try this recipe! Thanks for sharing.
I just made these, gluten free, for my son. They are fabulous! I used pork and beef, and the meatballs were delicious. Instead of panko break crumbs and wheat flour, I used gluten free bread crumbs and rice flour. The seasonings were perfect too. Thank you so much! PS we served them over gluten free noodles. Great recipe!
Looking forward to trying tonight.. have some homemade meatballs I cooked 2 days ago for spaghetti and meatballs and figured I would use half for spaghetti and meatballs and half for Swedish meatballs will use those and add the allspice and nutmeg to the sauce this time next time to the meatballs and per comments add paprika and bay leaves to the sauce… but seriously on the meat guys calm down… but also don’t tell people it is pork free when it is not. I am seriously allergic and will be very sick if I eat pork I take the responsibility for the taste difference but mine will be all beef. I appreciate the author sharing a recipe for guidance and will use it as that.. it looks great.
The recipee sounds amazing and I plan on doing it tonight but I don’t know what to serve with it?
We loved this when served on a bed of egg noodles.
Made these tonight with a meatloaf mix (beef, pork, veal)—–DELICIOUS!!!! Thanks for a great recipe.
You people are a bunch idiots! The author posted a recipe she enjoys. Make it her way or don’t. This is what is wrong with the world today—the world does not need to conform to you. You need to conform to the world. It’s one thing to come back to review it or to add suggestions. That’s how recipes evolve into something new and different. Berating the author does nothing but piss people off!
Greetings from Australia! I just made these for dinner and they are amazing. It’s the first time I’ve ever made meatballs and had them not fall apart while cooking. Thanks for the recipe!
Made this tonight for my boyfriend and I. Used ground turkey instead and it was still awesome! The sauce is everything. Thanks for the recipe!
Just made these and turned out great, I baked the meatballs instead of pan frying then
I made these meatballs last night and they were fabulous! But I’m quite a bone-head. I cooked my onion and put it in a bowl and put it in the freezer to cool quickly, as I made the meat mixture the day before, and I completely forgot about them and found them after we had already finished eating, ugh!! But, they were still amazing!!!! I made a batch of garlic-y potatoes to go with and you couldn’t really tell I had left out the onion. Also, with the gravy, I used the pan drippings with flour, beef broth and sour cream, instead of the butter and, oh my word, it was amazing! My mom would have killed me if I wasted the drippings!
Some of the other reviews crack me up!! But I won’t comment on them 🙂
Thanks for an amazing recipe! I intend on making many of your recipes!
Happy Holidays!
Made these last night for the first time. Delicious! Surprisingly easy and fast. Recipe very accurate and well documented and was just as delicious as described, will be the only Swedish Meatball recipe I go to in future. Thanks a lot for sharing your great recipes!
This took me sooooo long to cook! About an hour and 45 mins. I was getting pretty over it in the end but lucky it tasted pretty good 🙂
Justine, I’m so glad you tried this recipe! Although I’m not entirely sure why this would take almost two hours – it should really only take 40 minutes!
Made this tonight. It was very good but too time consuming for a week night. I fried the meat in the pan & then finished in the oven while making the sauce & noodles. My sauce was a little runny at first but thickened after a bit. Very good!
I have been using this recipe when serving my family Swedish meatballs. My husband is swedish and so the children likes both western and asian cuisine, (I’m from Philippines). I never had done homemade meatballs before, this was the 2nd recipe I have tried and I sticked with it from that moment on.
I made these last night and they were so good, the sauce was excellent. I didn’t read the instructions all the way through before I began, so I didn’t cook the onions, just threw them in raw with the meat mixture. Oops. It didn’t seem to hurt it though. For some reason they were under seasoned, I had to add salt as I was eating which is highly unusual for me, I never add salt to my cooked food so I’ll keep that in mind for next time. I served this with mashed potatoes.
I’m so glad these still turned out well for you! It is also super helpful to read over a recipe at least twice prior to cooking. It makes a huge difference!
Thanks for sharing. I had a great recipe years ago & lost it but this is very similar to it. Can’t wait to make this. 🙂
I made these tonight, they were great. I did do a little substituting, however they still truned out great. To the ladies who said asked about what to use instead of pork, i never follow any recipe exactly, but i don’t eat pork either, so i use veal, chicken or turkey. GREAT RECIPE!!!!!!!!
i have made a few substitutions to the recipe with great results.
Ground lamb or ground veal instead of pork.
Two Chiffonade (rolled and sliced) sage leaves added to meat mixture, and the same amount used as garnish before serving.
Bread crumbs instead of panko crumbs.
2 tablespoons of milk.
Really the sky is the limit on what you could substitute or add.
Great recipe, thank you so much for sharing.
May God be with you,
Just made this tonight, didn’t have pork on hand but everything else was in my cupboard/fridge. Served over egg noodles, it was sooo delicious! Thanks for this great recipe!
I am making this recipe from my family tomorrow and I cannot wait it looks delicious. Thank you so much for posting I find some wonderful recipes on here.