Easy Swedish Meatballs
This easy Swedish Meatballs are a weeknight favorite. Tender beef meatballs cooked to perfection in a cast iron skillet, surrounded by a delicious and easy cream sauce. Topped with lingonberry preserves, this weeknight meal is like no other comfort food!
These homemade Swedish Meatballs can be done in one skillet and in 30 minutes, making them perfect for a weeknight meal. Serve them with mashed potatoes or egg noodles, and lingonberry preserves!
This meal is easy to make in 30 minutes, and its a one skillet meal the kiddos can help with. They can also help make the meatballs, depending on their age/maturity level – my oldest daughter helped me shape this Swedish meatballs recipe and thought it was so fun!
The meatballs themselves aren’t really that different from the typical Italian style everyone knows. What makes them fun is the unique gravy and the lingonberry preserves you eat them with.
This recipe is part of my “Eat Like A Princess” series, where I create weeknight meals inspired by the classic princesses in the hopes to help kids explore new foods, flavors, and cultures. This meal was inspired by princesses Anna and Elsa from Frozen.
If you are interested in adding more Nordic cuisine flavors into your meal plan, check out my Kids Guide to Nordic Cuisine for all the tips, tricks and recipe you need.
How to make this easy Swedish meatballs recipe
This recipe is simple to make! For the full set of directions, please scroll down to the recipe card below. This is just a general overview on how to make it to help you plan.
Cook the homemade meatballs.
- In a medium bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the meatballs. Do not over mix or you will have tough meatballs. Just barely combine.
- Form roughly 16-20 meatballs with the mixture. You can use your hands or a cookie scoop.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium heat with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil.
- Cook the meatballs, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes.
- Remove the meatballs to a plate lined with paper towels.
- Cover with foil and set aside.
Make Swedish meatball sauce.
- Place the butter in the skillet and allow to melt.
- Whisk in the flour, and whisk, whisk, whisk, until it is all incorporated.
- Slowly (like 2 TBSP at a time) whisk in the beef broth. Fully incorporate each addition before you add more. This helps to ensure you don’t get lumps in your gravy, so its ok to move slow.
- When all the broth has been incorporated, allow it to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Mix in the sour cream and simmer the sauce for 5 more minutes.
- Stir in the lingonberry preserves and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Return the meatballs to the gravy and allow to simmer for 2 minutes to heat through.
- Sprinkle with either chopped parsley or chives.
Preparing ahead of time
Swedish Meatballs can easily be prepared ahead of time. Simple bake the meatballs and store in the fridge until ready to eat. Make the simple gravy to add to the meatballs right before you eat.
What to serve with Swedish meatballs
I suggest serving this with either mashed potatoes or egg noodles.
For a well rounded meal, add this crisp and refreshing Swedish Cucumber Salad, this easy and delightfully pink Swedish Red Beet and Apple Salad, and don’t forget dessert – these easy Swedish Chocolate Balls are fantastic and easy!
For extra credit, check out these awesome kids books about Nordic culture. And you totally have to make Swedish Pancakes as well!
Making this meal kid friendly
Swedish Meatballs are naturally very kid-friendly! Kids LOVE meatballs, and the mild flavors here will go over really well. Plus, everyone loves gravy, right?
Serving the lingonberries on the side to dip in will be a fun and new treat your kids will enjoy.
Family Dinner Conversations
Dinner time should be more than micromanaging each and every bite your kids take. Use this opportunity to
- Talk about the textures, flavors, colors, and smells of the Swedish meatballs, and other parts of the meal.
- Ask questions about what their favorite part of the Swedish Meatballs are, what they would like to change next time, or how you could make it better?
For more information on how to have awesome family dinner conversations that actually help your kids eat better, check out my Family Dinner Conversation Starters!
How to serve
Homemade Swedish meatballs are a great meal to serve family style! Place the skillet with the meatballs and the sauce on the table and allow everyone to serve themselves. The Lingonberry jam can also go in a bowl on the tale, with a small spoon to serve with.
When kids are allowed to choose how much of each food they get, they love that responsibility and independence, which means they are more likely to eat more of what they pick.
Kids in the kitchen: How your kids can help you cook Swedish meatballs:
One of the best ways to get kids interested in eating new foods is to get them involved! Here are some easy ways your kids can help you cook these Homemade Swedish Meatballs:
- Kids aged 1-3 can help you measure out ingredients and wash the chives.
- Kids aged 4-6 can help you do everything above, chop the chives, plus dish out the lingonberry jam for the table,
- Kids aged 7-10+ can help you do everything above, plus help make the meatballs, and whisk the gravy.
*Please note that these recommendations are generalized, and to please use your personal discretion with your child’s skill level. And always, always supervise! Read more about how to have your children help you in the kitchen.
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Easy Swedish Meatball Recipe
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 TBSP dried chopped onion
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp mustard
- 1 lb ground beef
Gravy:
- 1 TBSP butter
- 3 TBSP flour
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 cup sour cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 TBSP lingonberry preserves
Serving:
- lingonberry preserves
- chives or parsley chopped
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the meatballs.
- Form roughly 16-20 meatballs with the mixture.
- Place the meatballs in a large cast iron skillet, heated with 1 TBSP olive oil.
- Cook the meatballs, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes.
- Remove the meatballs to a plate lined with paper towels.
- Cover with foil and set aside.
- Place the butter in the skillet
- Whisk in the flour, and whisk, whisk, whisk, until it is all incorporated.
- Slowly (like 2 TBSP at a time) whisk in the beef broth. Fully incorporate each addition before you add more.
- Allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add in the sour cream and simmer for 5 more minutes.
- Stir in the lingonberry preserves and season with salt and pepper.
- Return the meatballs to the gravy and allow to simmer for 2 minutes.
- Sprinkle with either chopped parsley or chives.
- Serve with egg noodles or mashed potatoes and Enjoy!
We love swedish meatballs!! I have never added the preserves on top & what a difference!! It adds so much flavor! Great recipe!
I love how comforting and satisfying this is!! A huge hit at my house!
My mom has been wanting to try Swedish meatballs so this is perfect! Thanks for the recipe!
My kids love Swedish meatballs. I will have to give your recipe a try. Love the addition of Worcestershire sauce. And you used fresh onion. Sounds very delicious. Thanks for the recipe!
I have had a lot of good things about this recipe. I have had the vegan version once in Ikea. Will forward this to my meat loving sister.
I think they are most kids’ favourite princesses (or princess and queen) right now!!
This looks good enough for a princess, that’s for sure!!
I love Swedish meatballs but I’ve never made them at home. Your instructions are so simple and make it look easy. And I love that you included instructions and ways to get kids to help. Great idea!
I love, love, love this whole eat like a princess idea! We have 8 nieces, all under the age of 9. I am totally going to use this recipe the next time they are all over. Brilliant. Thanks for sharing!
Mmmm I’ve never made my own but I’ve been wanting to make Swedish meatballs for the longest time. Such total comfort food and now that the weather is cooling down a bit, I’m definitely craving heartier dishes 😀
These were so awesome! The sauce was fantastic!! Love that they were inspired by Frozen, haha!!
That sauce looks SOOO creamy and delicious! Love the creativity in the princess theme as well! haha!
Oh these sweedish meatballs look and sound amazing! And that sauce! Yum yum yum!
I love everything about these Swedish meatballs. Delicious! The lingonberry preserves on the side would be a big hit in my household. My little girl LOVED Frozen for years. Yummy!
This is brilliant! My kids are much more adventurous with what they will eat when they make it themselves. I love the Frozen idea, one I can’t wait to share with my Almost-5 year old!
I love Swedish meatballs and it’s always a favorite each time I go to…IKEA 🙂 This meatballs recipe looks so delicious and I’ll add this to my dinner rotation.
I love Swedish meatballs, and your recipe is wonderful. It’s so quick to make and there’s no canned soup. Delicious!
These meatballs sound so easy peasy to make and in 30 minutes?!? I’m sold! Plus the sauce looks fannnnntastic!
I love the messages in Frozen and I think this is such a great way to get kids involved in the kitchen to try new foods. That sauce looks heavenly, and I love the addition of lingonberry preserves. Plus, 30 minutes? You can’t beat that!
I have never made Swedish meatballs myself, but now I must! These look and sound fantastic, and I love how easy they are! Thanks for this great recipe!
Oh these look so so good, and I just happen to have some lingonberry jam in the cupboard which would go perfectly!! My kids are frozen obsessed too so I am sure these would go down a treat if I tell them the princesses and Olaf eat them 🙂
You mean Queen Elsa? The evil despot who ruins our lives with back breaking shoveling every year? NO I WILL NOT LET THAT GO! Tributes to tyrants aside, these Swedish meatballs look amazing. Love the addition of lingonberries.
hahaha I totally understand! But you can’t turn down a yummy recipe that is ready in 30 minutes!
Such a flavorful recipe!
This is so adorable! I love this ‘Eat Like a Princess’ idea! What a great way to introduce your kiddos to different cultures!!!
This is seriously such a cute series! These look amazing and in only 30-minutes?! Genius all around!
I love the pics where you are cooking with your little one! What great memories she’ll have. Im a big lover of any kind of meatballs and your recipe is quite a bit different than mine. Cant wait to give it a whirl… the sour cream in the gravy sounds so good!
I’m afraid my child is well past Elsa at this stage — she’s a college Junior, but I’ve heard all about this movie — and they play that song incessantly. “Let it go- already”! These Swedish meatballs look absolutely phenomenal. My only experience previously was at Ikea — which were ok, but I have a feeling yours would be amazing! The sauce and that lingonberry jam – Wow!
Haha Thanks! 🙂
We love Swedish meatballs! The girls are going to love this meal, especially since Elsa & Anna would love it too!
You got me at meat balls. My family loves a meat ball dinner. I will try this recipe.
Love love swedish meatballs and these look so delicious! Love the addition of the lingonberry sauce. Yum!
Love Ikea’s Swedish meatballs but these blow them out of the water! Ligonberry sauce goes so well with it
Mmmm, I love Swedish Meatballs, and your Eat Like A Princess series – so much fun!
I love your 30-minute meal corner. It is definitely helpful, especially due to the hectic lifestyle. Keep the good work, Jenni!
That’s so cool that you developed a whole “Eat Like a Princess” recipe series! You’re obviously the coolest mom ever. I’ve never had Swedish meatballs but the creamy gravy always looks delicious to me but I assumed it was hard to make. I love how easy your recipe is!
My mom’s family serves Swedish meatballs every holiday season and they are one of my favorite traditions. This recipe looks delicious, I’m going to branch out and make these! Thank you!
I love this and that beautiful sauce! So fun too, my girls are big Frozen fans, in fact my youngest just watched it yesterday.
I love Swedish meatballs. Was thinking about making them this weekend. Your recipe is a sign! lol
These meatballs look so good! I haven’t tried them with lingonberry sauce yet as I can’t buy it around here. Hopefully one day! 🙂