Embark on a culinary journey to the heart of Sweden and discover the secrets of crafting authentic Swedish meatballs, a dish deeply rooted in Swedish culinary traditions. These tender and flavorful meatballs, swimming in a rich and creamy gravy, are a beloved comfort food that has captured the hearts of both locals and food enthusiasts worldwide. Whether you're a seasoned chef or a home cooking enthusiast seeking an authentic taste of Sweden, this guide will lead you through the essential steps and provide valuable tips to elevate your meatballs to perfection. Get ready to tantalize your taste buds and create a dish that will transport you to the charming streets of Stockholm, where the aroma of freshly made Swedish meatballs fills the air.
Check out the recipes below so you can choose the best recipe for yourself!
AUTHENTIC SWEDISH MEATBALLS
This recipe is one of my earliest food memories. Every Christmas Eve, my family enjoys an authentic Swedish Smorgasbord, of which this is an essential part. My mother still tells tales (and I'm 40) of me as a toddler, standing by the dish of meatballs and eating as many as I could hold. These are not spicy, like most Scandinavian food, but have a great flavor and texture. In fact, they are so soft, that I usually chill the meat mixture before rolling and frying to avoid meatballs with flat sides. I've included the directions for the gravy, which I usually don't make, as it's traditional, but the balls are wonderful without it on any buffet table, or as an addition to a potluck. They are also good cold, straight from the fridge. If you like to do OAMC cooking, these freeze beautifully, in fact, I never make less than 100 meatballs at a time, lightly brown them, then flash freeze to finish later. The traditional recipe calls for a mix of beef, pork, and veal- if you object to veal, they work equally well with an even mix of beef and pork. Don't try to use these as an option for spaghetti, the seasonings just don't match. Prep time does not include chilling the meat mixture or the prepared meatballs.
Provided by IngridH
Categories Meat
Time 50m
Yield 6 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 17
Steps:
- Melt butter in a skillet.
- Saute onions in the butter until golden.
- Soak the bread crumbs in the milk.
- To the bread mixture, add the meats, egg, onion, allspice, salt, and pepper. Mix until a smooth texture is achieved.
- Chill mix for an hour or so, to firm it up.
- Form mix into meatballs, using 1-2 tablespoons of meat per ball. (these should be smaller than a golf ball). If you are making these on a warm day, you might want to chill the formed balls again, so that you don't get flat sides when you fry them.
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Melt a small amount of butter (traditional) or oil in the pan.
- Add enough meatballs to fill the pan very loosely.
- Shake the pan as you fry the balls, to keep the round shape as they cook. Continue to cook until they are evenly brown on all sides.
- Remove each batch to a warm platter in the oven, as you fry the rest.
- If you wish to make the gravy, deglaze the pan with a little water after each batch, and reserve the resulting drippings in a bowl.
- For the gravy:.
- When all of the meatballs have been fried, mix the flour and cream (or milk), and add to the reserved pan drippings in the skillet.
- Simmer for 10 minutes.
- If the mixture is too thick, add a bit of cream (or milk) to thin, then taste and season with salt and/or pepper as needed.
- Pour gravy over warm meatballs and serve with boiled potatoes and lingonberry sauce.
GRANDMA'S AUTHENTIC SWEDISH MEATBALLS
Family recipe straight from Sweden. This is a favorite dish any time that I make it and is often requested by my foodie friends. Serve with mashed potatoes. Enjoy!
Provided by KamiBelyeu
Categories World Cuisine Recipes European Scandinavian
Time 1h
Yield 6
Number Of Ingredients 16
Steps:
- Mix beef, sausage, bread crumbs, onion, milk, egg, parsley, salt, Worcestershire sauce, and pepper in a large bowl. Form into meatballs.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Pan-fry meatballs in batches, turning as needed, until browned and heated through, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Mix boiling water, sour cream, flour, paprika, and pepper together in a deep saucepan over low heat. Add the meatballs and let simmer until thickened and heated through, 15 to 20 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 437 calories, Carbohydrate 22.4 g, Cholesterol 112.2 mg, Fat 27.9 g, Fiber 1.4 g, Protein 22.9 g, SaturatedFat 11.7 g, Sodium 1096.3 mg, Sugar 2.9 g
AUTHENTIC SWEDISH MEATBALLS
There are as many meatball recipes as there are meatball lovers. This authentic Swedish recipe results in delicious, juicy meatballs with a good and creamy taste. Serve with mashed potatoes, lingonberries, and a cream sauce!
Provided by SwedishChef
Categories World Cuisine Recipes European Scandinavian
Time 1h
Yield 8
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
- Mix cream, oats, potato flour, salt, and pepper together in a bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes at room temperature to allow oats to absorb the liquid; paste should have the consistency of mashed potatoes.
- Melt butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Cook and stir onion until softened but still pale, 3 to 4 minutes. Add onions to the oat paste and mix well. And ground beef and allspice; mix just until combined, 30 to 45 seconds.
- Oil your hands and roll mixture into meatballs of desired size, ideally smaller than a golf ball. Place meatballs on a sheet pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven until meatballs are hot, about 10 minutes. Let cool briefly.
- Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add oil. Cook and stir meatballs, about 10 at a time, until browned, 3 to 5 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 418.9 calories, Carbohydrate 11.4 g, Cholesterol 110.2 mg, Fat 36.6 g, Fiber 1.3 g, Protein 11.7 g, SaturatedFat 17.7 g, Sodium 368.7 mg, Sugar 0.5 g
AUTHENTIC SWEDISH MEATBALLS
Categories Beef Pork Fry Kid-Friendly
Number Of Ingredients 15
Steps:
- Mix the breadcrumbs and the milk and let soak for 10 minutes.
- Chop the onion and sautee with butter until soft and translucent. Remove from heat before the onion gets any real color. Set aside to cool.
- Mix the the ground meats, and then add the eggs and salt. Add the onion, milk soaked breadcrumbs and white pepper. Make sure to blend thoroughly.
- Form balls with your hands (I have seen some people using two teaspoons to shape the meatballs) into balls no bigger than an inch in diameter. If they are too big, you won't be able to roll them in the pan to make them perfectly round as you fry them. Melt butter in a skillet on medium heat and fry the meatballs for about 4 - 6 minutes, shaking the pan to roll the balls and make sure they fry evenly all around.
- The last 7 ingredients are for the cream sauce.
- You can either use the fat in the pan left after frying the meatballs (that's what my mother used to do), or start from scratch with bouillon.
- If you're using the left over fat in the pan, render the fat and scrape all the bits off the bottom of the pan. If there's not enough fat in the pan you can add the butter and some of he bouillon, if needed. Whisk while sifting in the flour (to prevent clumping). When it starts to thicken, add the cream and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Season with Soy sauce, or Tamari, and salt and pepper.
- If you prefer to make the sauce separately, start by melting the butter in a sauce pan. Turn off the heat and stir in the flour. Add the bouillon and let simmer for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the cream a let simmer until it becomes more viscous like a nice brown sauce.
- Season with soy sauce, or Tamari, and salt and white pepper
- Swedish meatballs are traditionally served with potatoes (preferably mashed) and lingonberry jam.
- Note: In order to make authentic Swedish meatballs authentic, it's imperative that you: 1. Always fry the meatballs in butter. Never, ever, ever ever fry in any kind of oil. 2. Use white pepper (as opposed to black pepper). That's what makes the flavor truly Swedish.
Tips:
- To ensure the meatballs are cooked thoroughly, use a meat thermometer to check that the internal temperature has reached 165°F (74°C).
- For a more flavorful meatball, use a combination of ground beef and ground pork.
- If you don't have heavy cream, you can substitute it with milk or sour cream.
- To make the sauce ahead of time, simply refrigerate it for up to 3 days. When ready to serve, reheat over medium heat until warmed through.
- Serve the meatballs with mashed potatoes, egg noodles, or rice.
Conclusion:
These authentic Swedish meatballs are a delicious and hearty dish that is perfect for a special occasion or a weeknight meal. With their tender texture, flavorful sauce, and classic lingonberry jam accompaniment, these meatballs are sure to be a hit with everyone at the table. So next time you're looking for a new and exciting dish to try, give these Swedish meatballs a try – you won't be disappointed!
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