Swedish Meatballs in Gravy
Homemade Swedish meatballs are rich, comforting, and smothered in a creamy, flavorful gravy-like sauce. Served over buttered egg noodles with a side of lingonberry jam, this dish is a cozy classic that’s easy to make at home.
When you're in the mood for a deeply comforting cozy dinner, it would be hard to come up with a better suggestion than Swedish meatballs in a creamy gravy-like sauce served over buttered noodles with a pinch of dill.
This rich and savory skillet dinner is actually so much easier to make from scratch than you'd guess. You can prep the meatballs well in advance which makes this an easy 20-minute dinner when it is time to cook.
In a rush and don't like to roll meatballs by hand? Go ahead and use a bag of frozen meatballs from the grocery store, that pan gravy is totally worth your time and will make the whole dish taste homemade.
Why This is the Best Recipe
- Rich & Flavorful: The hand-rolled meatballs have a perfect blend of warm spices served with creamy gravy over tender buttered noodles.
- Easy to Make Ahead: Homemade meatballs can be prepped in advance or even frozen for a quick meal on a busy night.
- Forgiving Shortcuts: While I believe homemade meatballs and sauce make a huge difference, you can use store-bought meatballs in a pinch!
Meatball Ingredients
This easy meatball recipe starts with just a handful of pantry ingredients:
- Ground Beef: I used 93% lean ground beef to keep the meatballs light. You could substitute ground pork or even ground turkey if you wanted to.
- Panko Breadcrumbs: I love the lighter texture panko gives meatballs. Regular breadcrumbs can make your meatballs dense.
- Egg
- Onion
- Dried Parsley
- Garlic Salt
- Ground Allspice
- Ground Nutmeg
Prep the Meatballs
In a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, panko, minced onion, seasonings. Gently mix / fluff with a fork until evenly combined.
Crack the egg into a separate dish and whisk it before adding to the meatball mix. This helps reduce how much you need to mix things in.
Roll the mixture into 36 small meatballs, just smaller than a ping pong ball. Set aside or refrigerate them for up to 24 hours.
Want to Save This for Later?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Gravy Ingredients
When you're ready to actually cook your dinner, you will also need these ingredients on hand to make the gravy:
- Heavy Cream: A touch of cream adds so much richness to the sauce. You could substitute half-and-half if you want to make it lighter.
- Beef Broth: You can use prepared beef broth or stock or you could use water and bouillon.
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Butter
- Flour
- Dijon Mustard
Cooking Instructions
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and brown them on all sides, about 8-10 minutes.
Transfer to a plate and cover with foil.
In the same skillet, melt the butter and whisk in the flour.
Cook for 1 minute, then slowly whisk in beef broth, heavy cream, Worcestershire sauce, and Dijon mustard. Simmer until thickened, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and cook for 2-3 minutes to warm through.
What to Serve with Swedish Meatballs
There are several delicious ways you could serve Swedish meatballs for a cozy family dinner or as a party appetizer:
- Over Buttered Noodles: This is our family's favorite way. You'll find all the instructions in the recipe card below.
- Over Mashed Potatoes: Need a gluten-free side dish? Try spooning the meatballs and gravy over a bowl of my Crockpot mashed potatoes or a store bought tub of prepared mashed potatoes.
- Over Rice: I love how white rice absorbs all that yummy sauce. I usually make my Instant Pot jasmine rice but this Instant Pot herb butter rice or Instant Pot rice pilaf would both work great, too.
- With Dinner Rolls: If you prefer to dunk bread into gravy, try serving the meatballs with these bread machine crescent rolls, my favorite brown and serve dinner rolls, or these rosemary pull-apart rolls.
- Crockpot Swedish Meatballs: Want to serve these for a party appetizer instead? Once you've prepared the dish, spoon the meatballs into a small slowcooker and then pour the gravy over the top. Cover and set to the KEEP WARM setting and serve with toothpicks on the side of the pot.
Traditionally, Swedish meatballs are also served with a spoonful of lingonberry sauce. The tart fruit spread tastes amazing with that savory, creamy gravy.
I buy jars of lingonberry sauce every time I go to our local IKEA but when I need it now and can't find it at our grocery store, I pick up a jar of red currant jelly instead. It has a similar flavor profile and is a little easier to find.
If you want to add a green vegetable to this recipe, I recommend a bag of frozen peas.
If you make the buttered noodles, you can pour the peas into the same colander you plan to use to drain the pasta from the cooking water. The heat of the boiling water will thaw the peas and the noodles will keep them warm.
Make Ahead Tips
Storage: Keep the meatballs and gravy in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheating: Warm the meatballs on the stovetop over low heat, adding extra broth if needed to thin out the gravy.
Freezing: You can freeze raw meatballs for up to 3 months. Line them up on a parchment lined baking sheet and flash freeze them for 1 hour. Then transfer them to a storage bag for longer storage. Brown them directly from frozen and then proceed to making the gravy.
I do not recommend freezing the gravy as it will separate when it thaws.
Swedish Meatballs Meal Kit
Swedish meatballs make a perfect DIY meal kit for your fridge or as a meal train dinner to bring to a friend.
Prepare the meatballs and gravy and store them in a dish together.
Then add a tub of prepared mashed potatoes or keep a bag of noodles on hand for a quick fix.
More Meatball Recipes
Looking for more easy meatball recipes? Here are a few of my personal favorites:
📖 Recipe
Swedish Meatballs with Pan Gravy
Ingredients
For the Swedish Meatballs
- 2 lbs lean ground beef
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tsp dried parsley
- 2 tsp garlic salt
- 1/2 tsp ground allspice
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 onion minced
- 1 egg
For the Pan Gravy
- 3 tbsp olive oil divided, for browning the meatballs
- 2 cups beef broth or prepared beef bouillon
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 6 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp flour
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp dried dill
- Sprinkle of salt and pepper
For the Buttered Noodles
- 1 pound wavy egg noodles
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
For Serving (Optional)
- Lingonberry jam or Red currant jam
- Frozen peas
Instructions
Prep the Meatballs
- Add the ground beef, panko bread crumbs, minced onion, all the seasonings, and the egg to a medium sized mixing bowl. Gently mix everything together until evenly combined.
- Roll about 36 meatballs, just smaller than a ping pong ball. Place them on a clean plate and set aside.
- This step can be done up to 24 hours in advance and the meatballs can be stored covered in the fridge or frozen for 3 months.
Prep the Buttered Egg Noodles
- Bring a large pasta pot filled with water to boil. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.
- Melt the butter in the pasta pot and gently toss the noodles until coated. Add the dried dill and stir.
- If using the frozen peas, you can pour them into the same colander you'll use to drain the pasta. The heat of the boiling water will thaw them and the noodles will keep them warm. They can be tossed in the melted butter right along with the pasta.
Brown the Meatballs and Build the Sauce
- Add the olive oil to a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the reserved meatballs to the pan to brown them. Let them cook for 1 - 2 minutes before trying to turn them or they will fall apart. Brown them on all sides, about 8 - 10 minutes. If you froze the meatballs, you can brown them directly from frozen. No need to thaw them.
- Transfer the browned meatballs to a clean plate and cover them with foil to keep them warm.
- Add the butter to the skillet and let it melt. Whisk in the beef broth, heavy cream, Worchestershire sauce, and mustard. Simmer the sauce until it begins to thicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Return the meatballs to the sauce, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cover the skillet. Let the meatballs cook for another 2 - 3 minutes.
To Serve
- Serve the meatballs over a scoop of buttered noodles with lingonberry jam on the side as desired.
Recipe Notes
How to Use Frozen Meatballs
The homemade meatballs are absolutely delicious but if you don't have time to prepare them, you can always substitute store bought frozen meatballs. Simply brown the frozen meatballs in the skillet in olive oil and then proceed as directed.Alternative Side Dish Options:
If you don't want to make the buttered noodles, you could substitute:- Mashed Potatoes
- Rice
- Dinner Rolls
- Serve them as an appetizer with toothpicks
Save This Recipe to Your Recipe Box
Find this delicious recipe next time you visit by saving it to your very own recipe box on my site. All your favorites stored in one easy place!
Comments
No Comments