These heavenly Swedish Meatballs are a homemade version of the iconic Ikea meatballs. They’re a whole lot easier than assembling flat-pack furniture, that’s for sure! Extra-soft and juicy, with a dash of classic spices like allspice, they’re smothered with the bread-mop-worthy sauce.
Swedish Meatballs
I’m that person who goes into Ikea just to pick up tea lights, only to emerge 2 hours later with all sorts of useful organisation solutions, looking for a problem to solve.
I’m also that person who confidently puts together Ikea furniture (I’m a chartered accountant! I can do this!), only to worryingly end up with one leftover screw or bracket. Thankfully, none of my Ikea furniture has come tumbling down (yet), so now I have a theory that Ikea throws an extra piece into every flatpack just to mess with us.😂
As for their meatballs? Flatpack shopping is hard work. I can’t blame anyone who needs a pick-me-up after making it out the other end of the Ikea maze.
But once you’ve tried homemade Swedish Meatballs, you’ll never order these at the Ikea cafe ever again!
What’s so special about Swedish Meatballs?
If you’re wondering what’s so special about Swedish Meatballs, or what they taste like, close your eyes and imagine this: incredibly soft meatballs, made extra juicy by using a combination of both pork and beef and soaked bread instead of breadcrumbs, lightly spiced with just a touch of nutmeg and all spice that gives it the signature Swedish flavour, smothered in a creamy gravy that is absolutely to-die-for.
These are meatballs unlike any other – and regular readers know I have a very big soft spot for my favourite Italian Meatballs.
But I’d go as far to say that if you aren’t a regular maker of meatballs for whatever reason (pain to roll them, don’t like mixing meat with your hands etc etc), but you have the inclination to make ONE meatball recipe, make it these Swedish Meatballs.
You won’t regret it. I promise.
What goes in Swedish Meatballs
Here’s what you need to make the Swedish Meatballs.
Beef AND pork – the beef gives it flavour, the pork gives it juiciness and tenderness;
Bread – the secret to extra soft meatballs! Far more effective than breadcrumbs;
Nutmeg and All Spice – the signature spicing, just a small, subtle amount. All Spice is a particular type of spice made from a plant called Pimenta dioica. It smells like cloves. It’s a common spice found in normal supermarkets, and costs no more than usual spices. Best substitute is Mixed Spice.
Beef stock/broth and cream – for the creamy gravy;
Flour – to thicken the gravy;
Egg – for binding the meatballs together.
How to make Swedish Meatballs
Here’s how to make them:
FIRST, chop up sandwich bread, the soak in grated onion. This is a secret tip for ultra soft, extra tasty meatballs. Grating onion = no need to pan fry chopped onion AND extracts onion juices which soaks the bread, which later puffs up inside the meatballs as they cook, creating ultra soft meatballs!
How I roll meatballs
And here’s how I roll meatballs. It’s the fastest method I’ve been able to come up with!
Use an ice cream scooper with a lever to scoop up the mixture. Standard size is 3 tablespoons – I use slightly less than the scoop (3 tablespoons is quite large);
Scoop and dollop all the mixture;
THEN roll them all;
Voila! Even size meatballs, rolled relatively quickly!
Sauce for Swedish Meatballs
The sauce for Swedish Meatballs is a creamy gravy that is made with butter, beef broth/stock, thickened with flour and made creamy with cream.
But the most important flavour for the a really good creamy gravy is the pan drippings after searing the meatballs. All the brown stuff left in the pan after browning the meatballs adds incredible flavour into the gravy, which is why baking these meatballs is not an option!!!
What to serve with Swedish Meatballs
The Swedish Meatball eating experience is incomplete without creamy Mashed Potato. You need the mash so you can savour every last drop of that wickedly delicious creamy gravy.
Having said that though, rice, noodles or pasta are adequate fall backs, or some bread for mopping up the sauce (try this easy Artisan bread, or emergency No Yeast Sandwich Bread). And if you’re really trying to cut down on carbs, Creamy Mashed Cauliflower is your answer!
If you start now, you’ll have these on the table in less than hour. Are you ready for the most sinfully delectable meatballs you’ve ever had in your life?? – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Swedish Meatballs (homemade Ikea Meatballs)
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 2 slices white sandwich bread , crusts removed, chopped into small cubes (Note 1)
- 1 onion , small (brown, white or yellow)
- 300g / 10 oz ground beef (mince)
- 300g / 10 oz ground pork (mince) , or sub with more beef (Note 2)
- 1 egg
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg , preferably freshly grated
- 1/4 tsp All Spice powder (Note 3)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp oil
Gravy
- 40g / 3 tbsp butter , unsalted
- 3 tbsp flour
- 2 cups beef broth/stock (salt reduced), or sub with chicken
- 1/2 cup heavy / thickened cream (Note 4)
Instructions
- Grate onion using a standard box grater (see video).
- Scrape onion and juices into bowl. Add bread and mix well – onion juice should make bread soggy (if not, add a tiny splash of milk). Set aside to soak for 1 minute.
- Add remaining Meatball ingredients EXCEPT oil. Mix well.
- Using a tablespoon measure and measure out a heaped tablespoon (or use ice cream scooper which is what I do), dollop on work surface. Repeat with remaining mixture: 25 – 30 meatballs. Then roll into shape.
Cooking
- Heat 1 tbsp oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add half the meatballs and brown all over (but raw inside still) – about 3 minutes. Remove onto plate, then brown the remaining batch.
- If there is lots of oil, pour off excess and discard. Lower heat to medium.
Gravy
- Add butter into skillet and melt. Add flour and stir in. Cook for 1 minute.
- While mixing, add about 1/4 of the beef broth – it will thicken quickly. Then gradually add remaining beef broth, stirring as you go. Switch to whisk if required to make it lump free.
- When the liquid is simmering, add meatball and juices pooled on plate.
- Turn up heat slightly to keep it at a rapid simmer. Cook for 8 – 10 minutes or until the liquid thickens into a thin gravy, stirring occasionally.
- Add cream, simmer for a further 2 minutes then remove from stove.
- Serve over mashed potato (or Cauliflower Mash for low carb). For a truly authentic experience, add a dollop of ligonberry jam on the side!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published January 2017. Post updated 13 May 2020 with improved videos, plus ingredients and step photos added. No change to recipe, it’s perfect as is!!!
Life of Dozer
Dozer – I love you, but if you bump that tripod while I’m filming, you will be in a LOT of trouble!!
And from the original publication date:
Trying to negotiate with Dozer using a Swedish Meatball…..
I made this with ground turkey, gluten free bread & flour, whole milk instead of cream. I also added garlic. Now that I’ve made it once, I know it’s a little extra work but straightforward if you have your ingredients ready to go. The meatballs were savory and tender, and I might try to make more gravy next time because it was so good. Served on mashed potatoes with Christmas jam and everyone was happy. Perfect comfort food. Thank you!!
I just love your site. These Swedish meatballs with this delicious gravy are great. My wife told one of our friends about it and now they want me to fix it for them. Thanks
Nagi I usually LOVE all your recipes, but this one needs a little pizzazz.
The meatballs are fab, but the gravy is pretty bland.
I always start with your recipe but add Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and cracked pepper to the gravy.
This was a hit!! My husband said dinner was a 10 out of 10. I followed your recipe, except I used panko as I only had seedy bread on hand. And I added sour cream instead of heavy cream. No lingenberry on hand, but I have a sour cherry jam and it worked great. Thank you for a wonderful recipe.
I only made the gravy, to go with shop-bought Swedish meatballs. Unfortunately I have to agree with other posters who found the gravy rather bland. I wouldn’t make it again as just the gravy on its own.
Maybe the meatball juices are critically important (my shop-bought ones didn’t have any juices to add to the gravy). I might try again one day if I ever decide to make my own meatballs too.
If anyone is wondering, this recipe also works with gluten free bread and flour! Yay! Another winner, thanks Nagi!
This is the 2nd time I have made these meatballs. This time I added 1/2 tea garlic powder to the meatballs and I added 1 crushed clove garlic at the last minute to the meatballs after they wre browned and fried off 10 sec then added the made gravy to the meatballs in the same pan. I much prefer this recipe with the garlic in it, lovely recipe thanks Nagi x
Absolutely loved this as usual! I jumped the gun and taste tested before the cream and it was still delicious lol
I bet that some of the commenters that had problems with meatballs falling apart, weren’t seasoned enough, and wanted more gravy are in the US and bought Walmart ground pork/beef blend and used the recipe without adapting it from 20 oz of meat to 32 oz. Ask me how I know… It was good in the end in spite of my negligence, although next time I’d use sour cream.
Can you use a combination of sour cream and normal cream in this dish?
I’d been put off swedish meatballs by a batch I’d made from a recipe I got from lkea, from its opening here in Adelaide around 20 years ago, attempt was God awful. Then you posted this a Nagi take so I thought it’s gotta be a gooden, and sure was, I’ve made them severally times since …
Thanks Nagi.Xx
THANK YOU for the recipe. I used almost the exact ingredients. The differences are:
1. Salted butter instead of unsalted (I bought it wrong)
2. 200ml of heavy cream instead of 125ml
3. 40gr of flour instead of 30gr
4. 0.25tsp of salt instead of 0.75tsp
as for beef broth I used 2 tsp of powder + 500ml of water
Turned great! My husband liked it. I will be making it again some time soon.
Anyway, I made 31 meatballs (I used 1 scoop/meatball so it’s quite big), with 5 meatballs/serving so I made 6 servings. I also separated the gravy into 6 servings so I can reheat it after. I stir-fry my meatballs half-cooked put all of the meatballs and gravies at the freezer.
Thank you Nagi for your recipe!
Delicious! I only had pork mince and they were great. My 1 year old loved them, much less on the floor than usual so that’s a win! I’ll be making this again, with the half and half mince for full effect. Thanks Nagi 💕
Hey can you do meatballs in oven?
I just made this tonight. It was soooo yummy! I followed almost exactly, even the bread with the shredded onions. I just added a dash of worstishire and a handful of fresh shredded parm and fresh cut parsley. This will definitely be an addition in our house! Thank you so much for sharing!
I mean … come on. HEAVENLY. I stuffed up with too high heat, resulting in what I thought was burnt sauce and broken up meatballs, but … it still tasted perfect. One of the best things I’ve ever made OR eaten! I think I’m going to stuff it up on purpose next time 🤣
I am a very amateur chef and tried this recipe. My husband and I loved it! I used all ground beef instead of pork and it was still delicious. Definitely will use again! The next day the sauce separated so I wouldn’t necessarily suggest this recipe for leftovers, but was great fresh.
Great recipe, I did tweak it a little.
I dont like to add raw onions to the meat mix. I always pan fry and caramelise the onions first, it adds amazing flavour.
And I added garlic to the gravy. Delicious.
Delivered this to family as a support meal. They loved it, even the little guy who is pretty fussy. I made the meatballs a bit too small and they sort of fell apart (it was an opportunity to go fishing through the gravy for meat bits). It was my first Nagi recipe but won’t be my last. I’ve lost a half day browsing through recipes on your site! The videos are enormously helpful and the US conversions are very appreciated. If I had one request it would be how to reduce sodium for some of the recipes that are over 30 pct RDA. Thanks Nagi and snuggles to Dozer.
I made this last night. Was absolutely delicious. Only additions I made was some lemon zest, about ¼tsp in the sauce and two tbs Worcestershire sauce. That was taught me by a chef. Oh, and some chopped dill. Thanks Nagi