Swedish Meatballs – Tender, Savory, and Totally Irresistible!

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 lb ground pork
• 2 cups cubed bread (from about 4 crustless slices)
• ½ cup milk
• 1 onion, finely minced
• 2 tsp kosher salt, heaping
• 2 eggs
• ¾ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• ⅓ cup oil
• ¼ tsp ground allspice
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• 3 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp flour
• 3 ¼ cups chicken or beef stock
• ½ cup heavy cream
• ½ tsp sugar
• ½ tsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• freshly ground salt and pepper to taste
• pinch of nutmeg

Instructions

1. 1

   Combine the bread and milk in the bowl of your stand mixer. If doing this by hand, simply combine them in a bowl. Let stand while you prepare the rest. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Sauté the onions over medium heat in 1 tbsp (15ml) oil until tender and just beginning to brown.

2. 2

   Gently mix the beef and pork together with a fork. For tender meatballs, you do not want to overwork the meat. Chunks of meat should still be visible.

3. 3

   Add the cooked onion (cooled first), eggs, salt and pepper to the bread mixture. Beat it with a stand mixer (or by hand with a fork) until thoroughly combined. Add about a quarter of your beef and pork mixture and mix on low speed until well combined.

4. 4

   Add the rest of the pork and beef mixture and gently mix it with a fork, remembering not to overwork the meat.

5. 5

   Shape the meatballs into the desired size. I shape mine to about 1.5–2 tbsp (22–30ml) by volume, but you can definitely make yours bigger.

6. 6

   Heat about 1/3 cup (80ml) of oil in a heavy-bottomed pot. Sear the meatballs in a single layer in batches for about 3 minutes per side until golden brown. They do not need to be cooked through at this point. Remove them to a paper towel-lined plate.

7. 7

   Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for 3–4 minutes until golden in colour. Slowly whisk in the stock and bring the mixture to a simmer while whisking. Add the Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, sugar and cream. Cook for 5–8 minutes until thickened. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stir in the meatballs, move the entire pot to the oven and bake for 15–20 minutes until cooked through to a minimum safe internal temperature of 165°F (74°C). Serve with mashed potatoes and lingonberry jam (I often serve these with a good quality blueberry jam). Enjoy!