So, I should probably give IKEA another chance (alone, next time.) If not for the ultra-cheap/cool knick-knacks, but for the food court. I keep hearing about these amazing Swedish Meatballs, so when I saw a “perfect knock-off” recipe in the latest Food Network Magazine, I had to try them. Although, I can’t attest to their authenticity (since I’ve never eaten at IKEA), I can tell you that my family loved them. Dan asked me to save this recipe in the keep-pile, because he wanted more…we all did. Luckily, I doubled my batch of meatballs, to freeze half of them. So, next time around, all I have to do is make the sauce!
‘Get on with it’, I hear ya. So, to make the meatballs, you will need: breadcrumbs, butter, minced onion (fresh or dry), minced garlic, ground allspice, salt, white pepper, milk, Worcestershire sauce, lean ground beef, lean ground pork, and an egg.
* Again, I doubled the meatball recipe, to have an extra batch of meatballs to freeze. Also, I tripled the sauce recipe…not to freeze, but because I wanted plenty of sauce to serve over noodles. I’m not sure, but I don’t think IKEA serves their meatballs with noodles, just plain. Don’t quote me.
Heat the butter, in a skillet, over medium heat. Saute the onion, garlic, allspice, salt, and white pepper, for about 5 minutes, or until garlic and onions are soft. I just used dry minced onion, so I just cooked it for about a minute. Add the milk and Worcestershire sauce to the mixture, and bring to a simmer.
Dump the breadcrumbs in a bowl. Pour the hot skillet mixture over the breadcrumbs and stir together.
Add the beef, pork, 1 egg and 1 egg white to the bowl, and mix until combined. It’s easiest to use your hands and squish everything together for about 5 minutes. I’m scared of raw meat, so this is where I pull out my plastic doctor gloves.
Spray a sheet pan to grease, and roll the meat into 1 inch balls, and place on a baking sheet. One recipe makes about 35-40 meatballs. Make sure you don’t roll them much bigger than 1 inch, or they take a lot longer to cook through…unless, you’re cool with that. Cover your sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate the meatballs for about an hour. I didn’t have an hour, so I stuck them in the freezer for about 25 minutes. Worked for me. Heat the oven to 400 degrees and bake the meatballs for about 20 minutes, or until cooked through.
Next up, the gravy. For the gravy, you will need: butter, flour, beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, heavy cream, salt, pepper, and parsley (optional, for garnish).
If you are going to serve this with noodles, this is about the time you get the water boiling.
To make the gravy, melt the butter in a skillet and add the flour. Cook for a few minutes while whisking. Pour in the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, bring to a simmer. Finally, add the heavy cream and the cooked meatballs. Let simmer, until the gravy thickens. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Serve plain, or over a bed of noodles, rice, or potatoes. (Remember, make extra sauce if you’re going to be serving on top of something…again, I tripled the sauce recipe.)
IKEA’s Swedish Meatball Recipe (Knock-Off)
Food Network Magazine
IKEA’s Swedish Meatball Recipe (Knock-Off)…..Delicious!!
Ingredients
- Meatballs
- Makes about 35-40 1" meatballs. Make double to freeze a batch for later!
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 TBS butter
- 1/3 cup white onion mince (or a couple TBS. of dry minced onion)
- 2 cloves garlic minced (or 2 tsp. pre-minced garlic)
- 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. white pepper
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 3/4 lb. lean ground beef
- 1/2 lb. lean ground pork
- 1 large egg plus 1 egg white, beaten
- Gravy
- Makes just enough to cover the meatballs, if you want extra to serve over noodles, double/triple gravy recipe.
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS flour
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- Parsley optional - garnish
Instructions
-
To make the meatballs, heat the butter, in a skillet, over medium heat.
-
Saute the onion, garlic, allspice, salt, and white pepper, for about 5 minutes, or until garlic and onions are soft. (I just used dry minced onion, so I just cooked it for about a minute.)
-
Add the milk and Worcestershire sauce to the mixture, and bring to a simmer.
-
Dump the breadcrumbs in a bowl.
-
Pour the hot skillet mixture over the breadcrumbs and stir together.
-
Add the beef, pork, 1 egg and 1 egg white to the bowl, and mix until combined. (It's easiest to use your hands and squish everything together for about 5 minutes.)
-
Spray a sheet pan to grease, and roll the meat into 1 inch balls, and place on a baking sheet. One recipe makes about 35-40 meatballs.
-
Cover your sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate the meatballs for about an hour. (I stuck them in the freezer for about 25 minutes.) Heat the oven to 400 degrees and bake the meatballs for about 20 minutes, or until cooked through.
-
To make the gravy, melt the butter in a skillet and add the flour.
-
Cook for a few minutes while whisking.
-
Pour in the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, bring to
-
a simmer.
-
Finally, add the he
-
avy cream and the cooked meatballs. Let simmer, until the gravy thickens, about 10 minutes Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
-
Serve as is, or on top of a bed of rice, noodles, or potatoes.
-
Garnish with parsley.
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- Meatballs
- (Makes about 35-40 1″ meatballs. Make double to freeze a batch for later!)
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 TBS butter
- 1/3 cup white onion, mince (or a couple TBS. of dry minced onion)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced (or 2 tsp. pre-minced garlic)
- 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. white pepper
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 3/4 lb. lean ground beef
- 1/2 lb. lean ground pork
- 1 large egg, plus 1 egg white, beaten
- Gravy
- (Makes just enough to cover the meatballs, if you want extra to serve over noodles, double/triple gravy recipe.)
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS flour
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- Salt & Pepper (to taste)
- Parsley (optional – garnish)
- To make the meatballs, heat the butter, in a skillet, over medium heat.
- Saute the onion, garlic, allspice, salt, and white pepper, for about 5 minutes, or until garlic and onions are soft. (I just used dry minced onion, so I just cooked it for about a minute.)
- Add the milk and Worcestershire sauce to the mixture, and bring to a simmer.
- Dump the breadcrumbs in a bowl.
- Pour the hot skillet mixture over the breadcrumbs and stir together.
- Add the beef, pork, 1 egg and 1 egg white to the bowl, and mix until combined. (It’s easiest to use your hands and squish everything together for about 5 minutes.)
- Spray a sheet pan to grease, and roll the meat into 1 inch balls, and place on a baking sheet. One recipe makes about 35-40 meatballs.
- Cover your sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate the meatballs for about an hour. (I stuck them in the freezer for about 25 minutes.) Heat the oven to 400 degrees and bake the meatballs for about 20 minutes, or until cooked through.
- To make the gravy, melt the butter in a skillet and add the flour.
- Cook for a few minutes while whisking.
- Pour in the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, bring to
- a simmer.
- Finally, add the he
- avy cream and the cooked meatballs. Let simmer, until the gravy thickens, about 10 minutes Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve as is, or on top of a bed of rice, noodles, or potatoes.
- Garnish with parsley.
Progresso Italian Style Bread Crumbs 15 Ounce (Pack of 2)LEA & PERRINS Original Worcestershire Sauce 5 oz Bottle
McCormick Minced Onions, 6.37 oz
Simply Organic Allspice, 3.07 Ounce
McCormick Ground White Pepper, 1 oz
OXO Good Grips 3-Piece Mixing Bowl Set, Blue/Green/Yellow
T-fal E91898 Ultimate Hard Anodized Scratch Resistant Titanium Nonstick Thermo-Spot Heat Indicator Anti-Warp Base Dishwasher Safe Oven Safe PFOA Free Glass Lid Cookware, 12-Inch, Gray
OXO Good Grips Wooden Spoon Set, 3-Piece
Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Commercial Baker’s Half Sheet (2 Pack), Silver
Cuisinart 766-24 Chef’s Classic 8-Quart Stockpot with Cover
Great! We love their meat balls! They do serve them plain. However, you used to be able to get them served over noodles with a marinara sauce instead of gravy. That’s how I liked them, but they discontinued that version.:-( Guess now I can make them myself that way! Yay!
By far, the best Sweedish Meatball recipe I’ve ever made. followed recipe exactly, and they came out awesome…everyone loved the flavor. Thanks for sharing…will be share to make these again and again .
This looks yummy. My only change would be, according to the Ikea cookbook, they use soy sauce in the gravy, not Worcestershire sauce.
Could this recipe be adapted to the crockpot?
I’ve never made it in the crockpot, so I’m not sure. Maybe if you found another crockpot meatball recipe, you could mimic their directions. Let me know if you ever try it, I would be interested to know.
I hear you! I thought I was the only speed-walker-shopper! I’ve been asked, “Why are you walking so fast?” I want to know, “Why are you walking so slow?” Anyway. I want to try this recipe. The real deal IKEA meatballs are to die for. Our family loves them! Thanks for sharing. We go to IKEA when we visit our daughter, but she is 4 hours away. In between or meatball stock-up times, I could make my own!
I REALLY need to try IKEA meatballs at the store and see what I think! It’s a little over an hour drive for me, so it’s hard to make a special trip. But, one of these days! Thanks for stopping by, Barbara!
We use to love IKEA meatballs but they seem to have changed. To us they don’t taste as good as they used too. So I’m looking forward to making your recipe.
I’ve still never had IKEA meatballs! So, I hope you like these better. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by, Pam!
My family loves their meatballs! When we’ve had them at IKEA they have always been served with mashed potatoes and lingonberry jam. I happen to have a jar of their jam in my cupboard from the last time we shopped there (we have to travel 4+ hours to get to an IKEA)… so thanks for the recipe, the family is getting a treat tonight!
I’ve never tried their jam, but I’ll have to. Hope you love the recipe, Molly!
I never return to comment on recipes, but this one was such a hit I felt I needed to! My husband loved it so much he asked several times to make it again before we were done eating! I doubled your recipe to make lots extra. My husband works nights, and I find it difficult to feed him sometimes. This was perfect since it re heats well.
Oh, good! I’m so glad. Thanks so much for stopping back and leaving a nice comment!
hi! Back again, 2nd time! The first time I made them I didn’t have pork. So I used ground turkey. They were great and tasted very similar to the IKEA meatballs! I am trying pork today. I know they’ll be great!
Oh, cool! You’ll have to let me know which one you like better. Thanks, Barbara!
I made these with ground turkey and my family loved them. More importantly my kids ate them without a fuss and my husband’s only complaint was that I didn’t have any cranberries to go with them like IKEA. I’m doubling the recipe so I can freeze half!
Thats awesome, Ashley! Cranberries sound like a fun addition!
these are AMAZING! Can you freeze them once they have been covered in gravy?
glad you like them, Nicole! I actually don’t know the answer to that, only that I’ve heard it’s best to freeze just the meatballs. But, if you try it, let me know how it turns out!
Hi Mariel.. Thanks so mush for such a great recipe!!!!.. Trust me- you do not need to try IKEA meatballs- they should try yours!! LOL…
Ha, you’re so nice!! Well, good to know, because it would take me a good hour and a half to get there. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by, Angie. Come back, ANY TIME.
My sauce looks white? How did you get yours to be brown? I followed the directions perfectly… Darn.
Hmmm… between the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, it should be brown.
When you say you double the meatballs and freeze a batch for later, do you cook them before you freeze them or freeze them raw?
Yes, sorry. I cook them first.
What is the point of refrigerating/freezing these for a short time before cooking them? And can this step be skipped?