This Easy Swedish Meatballs Recipe delivers cozy, crowd‑pleasing comfort in every bite. The meatballs are savory with a subtle touch of sweetness, all simmered in a rich, creamy gravy that’s perfect spooned over egg noodles or a pile of fluffy mashed potatoes.
I love making creative meatball recipes. They are so versatile. Two favorites are my Buffalo Chicken Meatballs and my Taco Stuffed Meatballs.
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Why this Easy Swedish Meatballs Recipe is a Keeper
This easy and delicious creamy gravy and meatballs is super simple to make. They have the best texture and are packed full of flavor.
- The Perfect Texture: The use of a “panade” (milk-soaked breadcrumbs) ensures the meatballs stay light and springy rather than dense and rubbery.
- Unique Flavor Profile: Unlike Italian meatballs, these rich and creamy homemade meatballs use a warm blend of allspice and nutmeg, providing that signature “scandi” warmth.
- Freezer Friendly: The meatballs hold up beautifully in the freezer, making them the king of meal prep.
Why Do My Meatballs Fall Apart in the Pan?
If your meatballs fall apart in the pan they either didn’t have enough binder, or they may have not cooked all the way.
What Reader’s Are Saying…
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“These meatballs are a crowd favorite! Thanks Christina for posting this wonderful recipe! I am definitely making this again!”
~ Journa
Ingredient Notes for Recipe for Swedish Meatballs
This recipe uses easy, fresh ingredients that pack a punch of flavor.
Get the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions in the recipe card below.
- Ground Meat: Use a mixture of pork and beef to make these meatballs. You can even use frozen meatballs in a pinch.
- Breadcrumbs: The addition of seasoned breadcrumbs and egg will act as the “glue” keeping your meatballs together.
- Beef Broth: I like to match broth to meat, so I use beef broth for this recipe. If you were to use ground chicken instead, then I would suggest using chicken broth to make the gravy.
Variations for Flavorful Swedish Meatballs
Easily customize this easy recipe by experimenting. Take it to the next level by using different ingredients and trying different flavors.
- Meat Blend: The gold standard is a 50/50 mix of beef and pork. The beef provides the structure and flavor, while the pork provides the fat and tenderness. You can use ground turkey, but you’ll need to add a Tablespoon of olive oil to compensate for the lack of fat.
- Cream: Authentic gravy uses heavy cream. For a lighter version of this great recipe, you can use half-and-half or whole milk thickened with a bit more flour, though you’ll lose some of that iconic silkiness.
- Gluten-Free: Swap the breadcrumbs for mashed potatoes or gluten-free panko.
- The “Secret” Ingredient: Some traditional recipes add a tablespoon of grated onion (rather than chopped) so the onion flavor permeates the meat without adding chunky texture.
- Noodles: Feel free to add some cooked egg noodles or mashed potatoes.
Special Equipment Needed
You don’t need anything fancy, but these tools make the job easier.
- Cookie Scoop: Use a cookie scoop to shape the meatballs for uniform sizing.
- Large Skillet: Use a large cast-iron skillet to get that nice, deep brown crust.
How to Make Traditional Swedish Meatballs
In just 3 steps, you can have your very own homemade meatballs and gravy. This recipe takes just a little effort but the results are well worth it.
Get the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions in the recipe card below.
- Make Meatballs: Mix the ground pork, ground beef, dry minced onion, egg, All Purpose Seasoning, breadcrumbs, nutmeg and allspice in a large bowl. Roll the meatball mixture into balls and place on a foil lined baking sheet.
- Make Gravy: Bake the meatballs until cooked through. While cooking, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Then, whisk in flour and allow to cook. Add the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, then add the cream.
- Add Meatballs to Sauce: Reduce the heat to a simmer and allow the gravy to thicken. When it reaches desired consistency, add the meatballs to the pan. Smother with gravy and garnish with parsley.
Prep Ahead Use Frozen Meatballs
To streamline your baking process, there are some ways you can prep these cookies in advance.
- Mix the Meatballs: You can prepare the meat mixture (the panade, meat, and spices) up to 24 hours in advance. In fact, letting it sit overnight in the fridge helps the flavors meld significantly.
- Roll: Roll the meatballs and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate. This saves about 20 minutes of “messy work” on the day you want to cook.
- Gravy Base: You can whisk your flour and butter together to make a dry roux and store it, but since the gravy relies on the pan drippings from the meatballs, it’s usually best made fresh.
Alternate Methods – Crock Pot Swedish Meatballs Recipe
Alternatively, you can make flavorful Swedish meatballs with frozen meatballs using your slow cooker, oven or air fryer.
- Oven (Mass Production): If you’re cooking for a crowd, skip the stovetop. Bake the meatballs at 400°F (200°C) for 15-20 minutes. You won’t get the same deep sear, but it’s much faster. You can make the gravy separately in a saucepan using beef bouillon.
- Air Fryer: Cook at 375°F for 10-12 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through. This creates a fantastic crust with very little oil.
- Crock Pot: Brown the meatballs in a pan first (essential for flavor!), then toss them into the crockpot with the gravy ingredients. Cook on Low for 3-4 hours.
Store, Reheat and Use Leftovers for This Dinner Recipe
- Storing Easy Homemade Meatballs: Keep meatballs submerged in their gravy in an airtight container. They will last 3-4 days in the fridge.
- Freeze: Freeze cooked meatballs without gravy for up to 3 months. If freezing with gravy, the sauce may break (separate) slightly upon thawing, but a vigorous whisking during reheating fixes it
- Reheating: Stovetop is king. Heat on low with a tablespoon of water or milk to thin the sauce. Let sauce simmer until meatballs are cooked through. Serve over egg noodles.
- Using Leftovers: Slice them in half, tuck into a hoagie roll with the gravy and some melted provolone.
- Breakfast Hash: Crumble leftovers into a pan with fried potatoes and onions.
Questions About This Traditional Swedish Meatballs
Italian meatballs are seasoned with onion and garlic, making them better served with tomato sauce and parmesan cheese, versus Swedish meatballs that can be sweeter and are better with brown gravy.
If you end up with lumpy gravy, you can hit it with an immersion blender or strain it through a fine mesh sieve.
Simmer to reduce and let the sauce thicken. Let the gravy bubble gently, uncovered, let it cook for 5–10 minutes. Add a Bit More Cream or Stir in Sour Cream. Stir in a spoonful or two and let it warm through. If sauce is too thick add in some low sodium broth.
Expert Tips for Making Easy Swedish Meatballs Recipe
- Cold Ingredients: Keep your meat and milk cold while mixing. If the fat in the meat starts to melt from the heat of your hands, the meatballs will become greasy.
- Wet Your Hands: When rolling the meatballs, lightly dampen your hands with water. This prevents the meat from sticking to your palms and results in a perfectly smooth exterior.
- Don’t Forget the Lingonberry: It’s not just a garnish! The tartness of lingonberry jam (or cranberry sauce in a pinch) is chemically necessary to cut through the richness of the cream sauce.
- The Brown Bits: After searing the meatballs until they’re brown on all sides, do not clean the pan. Those brown bits (fond) are concentrated flavor and should be whisked directly into your roux for the gravy.
- Serve With: Serve with Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes {No Drain} or Air Fryer Biscuits.
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Easy Swedish Meatballs
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Ingredients
Meatballs
- ½ pound Ground beef
- ½ pound Ground pork
- 1 Tablespoon Dry onion, minced
- 1 Egg
- 1 teaspoon All purpose seasoning
- ¼ cup Breadcrumbs
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon Allspice
- 2 Tablespoons Parsley
Sauce
- 3 Tablespoons Butter
- ¼ cup Flour
- 3 cups Beef broth
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup Heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon All purpose seasoning
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉ and line a baking sheet with foil.
- Mix all meatball ingredients in a large bowl until well combined.
- Roll mixture into balls and place on baking sheet.
- Bake 25-30 minutes or until cooked through. Cooking time will depend on the thickness of your meatballs.
- Prepare the sauce by melting butter in a skillet over medium high heat.
- Whisk in flour and allow to brown.
- Add in broth and worcestershire sauce then cream.
- Reduce heat slightly and allow sauce to thicken.
- Add meatballs to skillet and coat with sauce.
- Garnish with parsley before serving.
Christina’s Notes
- This Recipe Can be Doubled: This authentic Swedish meatballs recipe is crowd pleaser and great to bring to a pot luck. You can double the ingredients proportionally and cook in two batches.
- Swedish Meatballs Traditional: Serve Swedish meatballs traditionally with mashed or boiled potatoes and lingonberry jam or cranberry sauce.
- Swedish Meatballs with Pasta: Serve Swedish meatballs with egg noodles, using the meatball gravy as the pasta sauce. You can also add sautéed mushrooms for a beef stroganoff like pasta with Swedish meatballs.
- Scale the recipe: Simply adjust the serving size in the recipe card and the ingredients will update automatically.
- Make your own All Purpose Seasoning: When a recipe calls for All Purpose Seasoning, you can use my homemade All Purpose Seasoning recipe or substitute salt and pepper to taste.
- Meat doneness: I always use a meat thermometer to test for doneness when cooking meat.
- Use unsalted butter: I use unsalted butter so I can control the salt level in the recipe.
- Preheat the oven: Unless otherwise noted, always preheat your oven before baking.
For more helpful information about this recipe, such as variations, substitutions and other pro-tips, check out the blog post.
This is a great recipe! I added a tablespoon of dijon mustard to the sauce and it added a little more flavor. Thank you!
Great idea thanks!
Hi, I was wondering in the recipe how many meatballs should this usually make ?
Hope this doesn’t sound like a dumb question. Thanks for your time on my question.
Large Meatballs (2-inch diameter): Expect around 11 to 13 meatballs
Medium Meatballs (1-inch diameter): You can get roughly 24 to 30 meatballs
Mini Meatballs (½ inch diameter): approximately 48 to 60 meatballs.
I really appreciated how I was able to change the servings and the measurements were changed.
The gravy seemed a tad bland after everything was in, but after I sautéed the mushrooms in butter and added them it really picked up the flavor.
I think that next time, I may add the gravy and meatballs to a crock pot and let them simmer for awhile.
I will make it again!
Thank you for this recipe, as well as the seasoning recipe.
The family enjoyed it, especially the two granddaughters that helped to make it (6 years old and 4 yrs old)
So glad that you enjoyed it.
The combination of beef and pork was a delicious combination of meat. The sauce was perfect too!
These meatballs are a crowd favorite! Thanks Christina for posting this wonderful recipe! I am definitely making this again!