Baked Swedish Meatballs
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These tender baked Swedish meatballs are made with ground beef or pork, seasoned with fresh dill and parsley and covered in a delicious sherry cream sauce. Talk about super moist, these are quite delicious.
Baked Swedish meatballs
Sure everyone has heard of IKEA’s Swedish meatballs, but truth be told I had not tried one until recently when we were at IKEA getting myself a new office desk as my glass one broke in the move.
I figured what better time to try the infamous meatballs than there and they were good. They even had the lingonberry jelly, keeping things legit.
My original Swedish meatballs with gravy, are pan fried in a skillet, but I wanted to make a baked version to see if they could get even more tender and luscious. These are just that. 🙂
How to make baked Swedish meatballs
So let’s get started by preheating your oven to 350°F.
For the meatballs, add the ground beef to a large bowl. Add the egg, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper, and half of the chopped parsley and dill. Mix together by hand until incorporated completely. Add more breadcrumbs if the mixture is too wet.
I often times make these with ground pork, a combination of ground beef and pork, or even ground lamb sometimes makes an appearance.
Pour 1/4 cup of heavy cream on the bottom of greased 9×9″ baking dish. Use a 2-inch scoop or roll into small balls, about the size of a golf ball. Place the meatballs in baking dish. Set aside
In a large frying pan add the olive oil and over medium heat sauté the onion. Stir in the sherry and deglaze pan, stirring being careful as alcohol should burn off.
Add the flour and cook for a minute more stirring. Gradually add the water a little at a time, stirring often. Pour in the heavy cream and remaining parsley and dill. Stir to incorporate completely. Season to taste with kosher salt and black pepper. Pour sauce over the top of the meatballs.
Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in a meatball reaches 160°F. Serve with sauce spooned over the top with french fries, mashed potatoes or steamed rice.
These meatballs are fantastic, super tender exactly what I was hoping for. I made sure not to over mix the meatball mixture and didn’t pack them too densely when making the meatballs. Baking in the sauce was another good thing to keep everyone moist and tender.
The best part about these though is the sherry cream sauce! Honestly, out of this world good.
Another comfort food dish I love to make is beef bourguignon, and if you like I’d love to show you how to make Salisbury steak, too. Enjoy!
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Baked Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp cream (or milk)
- 1 lb ground beef (90/10) (or pork or lamb if preferred, See Note 1)
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/8 cup parsley chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh dill chopped
- 1/4 cup heavy cream (or milk) for bottom of pan
Gravy
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 onion diced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup dry sherry
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/8 cup parsley chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh dill chopped
Instructions
For the Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 350°F. In a small bowl add the breadcrumbs and 2 tablespoons of the cream. Toss to absorb and set aside.
- For the meatballs, add the ground beef (ground pork, lamb or a combination, See Note 1) to a large bowl. Add the egg, breadcrumbs, spices and herbs. Mix together by hand until incorporated completely. Add more breadcrumbs if the mixture is too wet.
- Pour 1/4 cup of heavy cream on the bottom of greased 9×9" baking dish. Use a 2-inch scoop or roll into small balls, about the size of a golf ball. Place the meatballs in baking dish. Set aside.
For the Sauce
- In a large frying pan over medium heat add the olive oil and sauté the onion. Season with kosher salt and stir in the sherry and deglaze pan, stirring being careful as alcohol should burn off.
- Add the flour and cook for a minute more stirring. Gradually add the water a little at a time, stirring often. Pour in the Worcestershire sauce, heavy cream, parsley and dill. Stir to incorporate completely. Season to taste with kosher salt and black pepper.
- Pour sauce over the top of the meatballs. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in a meatball reaches 160°F. Serve with sauce spooned over the top with french fries, mashed potatoes or steamed rice.
Notes
- I often times will make these with a pound of each ground beef, pork or lamb (any 2 combo) to double the recipe and freeze half of the meatballs for another time.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Hey Kevin! I commented on these before, but I’m so glad you reminded me about them. Back on the menu pronto!
This weather has me going to all the comfort food ideas! 🙂
So I bought lingonberries specifically to serve with this, then I forgot all about them! Gaah!
Regardless, this dish was so good that we did not miss them! Hubby was apprehensive as he has not been a fan of lamb, but he really enjoyed these. As did I.
I don’t usually make meatballs because of all the steps, but after trying your baked Turkey meatballs (YUM), I figured I could give these a go.
Will definitely make these again. And hopefully I’ll remember the lingonberries this time. 😉
Oh so happy you enjoyed these Eva! Meatballs are an absolute favorite of mine. Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know!
This recipe for ‘Swedish Meatballs’ really intrigues me!! I’ve never had them, but the ingredients appeal to my taste buds!! I was wondering what type of sherry you use, as I usually substitute it in recipes, but would really like to stick to your recipe.
I use a dry sherry Linda. These are baked, but I also have another recipe, Swedish Meatballs with Gravy that might interest you as well. Thanks!
I made these last week and let me say they are super easy and sooo delicious! I didn’t have ground lamb onhand so I used ground beef. The combination of parsley and fresh dill makes this dish! Kevin, your photos are so amazing that the first time I saw this, I was craving them all day. I shared it on Facebook and two of my friends even called me about them. One friend started the conversations by saying “those meatballs!!”;) Another great recipe. Thanks for sharing.
You honor me, thanks Sally! So happy you guys enjoyed them, hopefully your friends, too 🙂
Hello Kevin, and thanks for a wonderful blog!
I’m Swedish and not terribly into traditional Scandinavian food; I think most of us these days have more international tastes but sometimes it does feel going back to ‘husmanskost’ (the word we use to describe the hearty, traditional dishes we have, literally ‘Yeoman’s food’) for comfort. Any Swede will tell you that IKEA’s meatballs are similar to the cheap, mass-produced ones we used to buy frozen in bulk for lazy days. That too can have a certain nostalgic appeal as well, but given how ridiculously easy meatballs are to make there’s really no excuse to go for IKEA’s if you have a kitchen and a pair of hands!
Now, lingonberry jam or just mashed fresh lingonberries is definitively a must when it comes to meatballs, but I’ve never heard of anyone eating it with sour cream. Sour cream is definitely a staple in the Scandinavian diet but it’s more for fish dishes, especially pickled herring! Brown sauce is the classic accompaniment to meatballs but I personally enjoy more interesting alternatives. Stewed pork with dill is another classic southern Swedish dish, it seems like you’ve somehow managed to fuse these two dishes in an interesting way.
I always soak the breadcrumbs in a bit of the cream before mixing it in with the meat, and sometimes I actually swap the breadcrumbs for rice! Rice holds them together really well and makes them a little lighter, works great too if you want to spice them up with a bit of chili, garlic or even exotic stuff like lemongrass/ginger. Just my two euro-cents.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks so much for stopping by and giving your “two euro-cents” I love it. Great to hear from the international community and perspective. I too, have used rice quite often in meatballs and meatloaves. It gives a great texture and does keep them light. As the exercise was to follow another in the group’s recipe, I did what I could to put my little twist on it. Talk to you soon I hope!
I came by today, because shamefully, although I love your site, I am picking a recipe from your site to make for our fun little exercise from Food Blogger Central, and I haven’t done it yet. Partly because I am intimidated by your beautiful photography skills and partly because I am a big procrastinator at times. Harriet’s recipe looks amazing as well, and I think I will have to try this one too, although obviously I can’t pick it. Looking forward to looking through your recipes yet again, and this time making a decision! Pinning and sharing!
Hello Michelle, I appreciate your kind words. Hopefully the photography will help you choose a recipe! This is a labor of love and I keep learning all the time, especially from our Food Blogger Central group. Have fun and let me know what you choose, have a great Sunday. 😉
You know I love meatballs and these look incredible!
Thanks Marissa – Go FBC!
Hey Kevin! The Swedish meatballs I have had in the past all seemed very bland, but these look delicious! Plus I love the fact they are baked – less mess!. I bake my beef meatballs on a rimmed sheet pan with beef broth which keeps them very moist. I will definitely be making these soon.
Thanks Dorothy, let me know how they turn out.
Hi, Kevin! You are absolutely right – they are served with Lingonberry jam. It’s a must:) Plus, they are really good with mashed potatoes since they perfectly absorb all the sauce. I’ve tried IKEA meatballs. Ironically, having been to Sweeden a few times I never tried the authentic recipe so I can’t compare. However, we had in Toronto one gruesome story related to the quality of IKEA meatballs a few years ago so I won’t recommend you to give them a try!:)
Hello there Ben and thanks for stopping by and commenting. It’s funny, whenever we go to IKEA I never drop in for the meatball either. Seems a little too cafeteria for me. Have a great weekend you two. 🙂
What a fun recipe, Kevin! As a male food blogger myself, I often struggle with the perceptions and expectations of others. But at some point I came to peace with it, and it works! I grew up in a traditional Southern household, so the thought of a guy working from home (and in the kitchen at that) wasn’t in the cards. But I made it work. Enough of that, though…let’s talk about these meatballs. I’ve never had the IKEA meatballs, but I hear they are delicious. I would love to be close to an IKEA again, but the closest one is way down in Jersey somewhere. No thanks. I’ll just make your version of meatballs instead! Hopping over to check out Harriet’s site now. 🙂
I must say you and the rest of the #Wolfpackers have really helped in the journey here as well as some other fantastic people. It’s much appreciated. Having a passion and being driven makes this work and I love it. I’m with you, try my recipe, I wouldn’t want to drive all the way down to Jersey for a meatball either! Have a great weekend. 🙂