A good Swedish Meatball recipe always starts with a good meatball recipe. My meatball recipe has lots of flavor without using tons of ingredients. My Swedish Meatballs have no salt added and no butter in the recipe.
After recently acquiring a few ‘new to me’ cookbooks from an old book sale, I came across a recipe for Swedish Meatballs which I knew I could adapt to use less ingredients without compromising the flavor. This recipe is adapted from the same cookbook as my Easy Chicken Marsala.
Admittedly, Swedish Meatballs are an acquired taste . Everyone doesn’t like them. I think that is more as a result of the gravy than the meatball itself.
Mix all of the dry ingredients in a bowl with the meats and blend well. I do this by hand.
The flavor is packed into my meatball recipe with the combination of two meats, seasoned bread crumbs and the dry onion soup mix. It’s only 4 ingredients with lots of flavor.
Printable recipe below.
Shape the meatballs into your desired size. An ice cream scoop works well for being sure they are all similar in size. Just get a scoop full and roll around between your hands until they are rounded and compacted.
TIP: Meatballs freeze well. Double the recipe and make enough for several meals at one time.
Brown the Meatballs
Heat the oil in a large skillet.
Brown the outside of your meatballs in the hot oil and drain on paper toweling. You are not trying to cook them through at this point. Your meatballs will finish cooking through while simmering in the gravy, soaking up all that flavor.
Drain Meatballs
After removing all of your browned meatballs, you should have some yummy tidbits left in the oil in the skillet. Leave them there to add flavor to the gravy.
Those tidbits will make the roux for the gravy.
Add Flour to make the Roux
Add the flour to the remaining heated oil in the skillet. Stir with a whisk until the flour is completely dissolved, leaving no lumps. Do this quickly so that you don’t burn the oil. You have just made a roux.
My all time favorite skillet to prepare meals like this is my Emeril Stainless Steel, dishwasher safe, saucepan. Mine is 3 qt. but it’s available on Amazon in 4 qt. size now. (affiliate)
Add the Beef Broth
To your roux, add the broth. Steam will rise as seen in the photo so be careful.
The broth is going to also cool down the skillet so you will want to adjust the heat accordingly. Bring the gravy to a boil while stirring using a medium high heat stirring constantly.
Add the Half and Half
Add the half-n-half and stir well. Bring to a good rolling boil again stirring constantly with the whisk.
Bring to a boil
Your gravy should look like the above photo. The bubbles indicate a rolling boil.
Add the Meatballs to the Gravy
Add your meatballs into the gravy and reduce heat to simmer. Stir the meatballs gently to completely cover them on all sides with the gravy.
Stir occasionally while simmering until done, about 15 to 20 minutes. I prepare mine uncovered but you can turn the burner down lower and use a lid on your skillet if you like. Keep in mind that using a lid produces steam which will weaken the flavor of your gravy.
Swedish Meatballs are delicious when served on a bed of cooked egg noodles and garnished with curled leaf parsley. Some folks enjoy Mashed Potatoes with their Swedish Meatballs.
~Share this recipe to Pinterest~
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 lb. ground mild sausage
- 1 pkg. beefy onion dry soup mix
- 1 cup garlic and herb bread crumbs
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 cup half-n-half
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil or vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp. flour
- In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients with the meats until well blended.
- Shape into meatballs.
- In a large skillet, heat the oil.
- Brown the meatballs and drain on paper toweling. (Don't cook them all the way through, just brown the outside)
- To the remaining oil in skillet, add the flour and blend with whisk, quickly, until all lumps are gone.
- While on medium high heat, add the beef broth stirring while adding.
- Add the half-n-half while continuing to stir.
- Bring the gravy to a rolling boil while stirring.
- Add the meatballs into the gravy and stir to completely cover the meatballs.
- Turn the heat down to simmer, uncovered, gently stirring occasionally.
- Cook about 15-20 minutes until meatballs are done.
- Serve on cooked noodles and enjoy!
Meatball Sandwiches
Prepare extra and make Meatball Sandwiches the next day!
All you need to do is save enough uncooked meatballs in the refrigerator for the next day.
Cook the meatballs in a skillet which has been sprayed. Drain the meatballs on paper toweling. Add your favorite BBQ sauce to the skillet and add the meatballs back in, stirring to cover. Heat through and make your sandwiches on hoagie buns!
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Mistie says
Such a great tutorial with pictures and a yummy looking recipe! I love that is has no butter or salt.
Melissa Ruddy says
These look nice and easy. I also like the short list of ingredients. Will have to give it a try.
Erlene A says
This looks like a wonderful family meal. I love that it uses minimal ingredients, which is a good thing when I need to make something quickly.
Dina Demarest says
Swedish meatballs is a dish that I used to enjoy as a child. This post brings back so many memories for me. I will be filing this one away to give it a shot with my own family.
Gwendolyn Mulholland says
I love Swedish meatballs and always remember being excited when my mom made them. I hate pre-cooked meatballs that you buy in the freezer section because they just have not taste. I will be bookmarking this recipe because it has made me realize it has been too long since I had them.
Louise says
I haven’t tried a Swedish Meatball as it’s not so common in our country but this recipe looks flavorful! You made it seem easy to create. This would be a great recipe to try and prepare for the upcoming family gatherings at home. Wish me luck! Hope to get the right taste. Hehe.
Kristy @ Mommy Hates Cooking says
I have fond memories of my mom cooking Swedish Meatballs as a child. It is one of my favorite dishes. I don’t think she used dry onion soup mix, though. I need to try that!
Crystal Lopez says
I love this recipe! Such a classic dish and you can literally eat it any time of the year! Yum!
Britni says
Okay I have to confess that I have never made meatballs before! I am so excited to give them a try, especially this recipe with only 4 ingredients! Now that is even something I can pull off! This dinner looks amazing. Thanks for sharing I can’t wait to give it a try.
Melissa says
Your easy Swedish Meatballs looks so yummy! I am thinking of trying your recipe and making these gluten free. I bet they would be just as good. I like how you can use them for subs too! YUM!
Lori Bosworth says
I love Swedish meatballs and often serve them as a buffet item at Christmas, but I have to confess that I buy the frozen ones. I have never made them from scratch before, but your recipe looks pretty easy so I might try it!
Heather says
Confession: I have never made Swedish Meatballs. You make it look less intimidating. I usually bake my meatballs, so I’d definitely see if I can do that to lessen the oil. They look delicious and I know my husband would love this entire meal. I’m pinning!
Shirley Wood says
I had never made them before now. You can use less oil in the skillet but you will need some to be able to make the gravy for this particular recipe.
Sage says
Wow! These look delicious, too bad I’m a vegetarian. Living in Scandinavia, I’m often at IKEA and they’ve finally started serving veg-friendly Swedish meatballs, which is really groundbreaking in this meat loving country. I must have them everytime I’m there, regardless of the time of day and whether or not I’ve already eaten. They’re like crack…lol!
Shirley Wood says
We don’t live near an Ikea but have visited the one in Atlanta. We both ate the Swedish Meatballs while we were there. It seems to be the most popular item on the menu at Ikea.
Diana Mathieson says
This recipe looks really yummy and I am going to try it. I am pretty sure it will be a hit with my boys.
Shirley Wood says
My hubby sure loves it. He has requested it several times recently. Homemade is always better and this recipe is very flavorful. I hope your boys like it too.
Kristen from The Road to Domestication says
You know what, I don’t have a good recipe for Swedish Meatballs, but this one looks amazing! I’m gonna try to make them gluten-free and see if my hubby notices 🙂
Shirley Wood says
I bet he won’t even notice Kristen! It’s such a flavorful recipe. So glad I finally figured out how to make these!
Alli Smith says
I haven’t had Swedish Meatballs in forever! I love your easy, no fuss recipe and especially the changes you made to the original recipe. This would be a great meal to serve when all the family is over for dinner or Sunday lunch. Looks so delicious!
Shirley Wood says
It is so much fun to take recipe and adapt it to be your own. My thing is always less ingredients without losing the flavor. Stacy has requested this several times recently. It’s a winner with him.