Baked Swedish Meatballs
Author: Heather Scholten · Posted: Mar 14, 2024 · Updated: Feb 07, 2025
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I don’t know about you, but I always struggle to keep my meatballs round when I pan fry them. They always seem to turn into triangles, or odd shaped blobs that just don’t give me that “meatball” vibe. One of the ways I’ve found to fix that is baking them with a little beef broth or chicken broth which makes tender swedish meatballs and the broth is perfumed with the meatball mixture and adds even more deliciousness to the cream sauce.
Try these other one-skillet classics Cheesy Skillet Chicken Chilaquiles, easy Cheesy Skillet Lasagna, the family fave Homemade Hamburger Helper, or simple Beef Stroganoff Hamburger Helper.
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
This recipe for easy Baked Swedish Meatballs is a great recipe that comes together in 30 minutes. Perfect for an easy weeknight dinner that’s cozy and full of flavor.
Now you won’t have drive to IKEA and you can get your Swedish meatball fix at home. Make extra meatballs and freeze them for an even easier weeknight dinner.
Ingredients in Swedish Meatballs
- Ground beef and Ground pork (or ground turkey). Using a ground meat mixture will create flavorful meatballs.
- Yellow onion – mince onion small or use a food processor to get the onions small. This method works best so you get flavor without the chunky texture. Conversely, if you like larger bits of onion in your meatballs, then go for it. They will still taste amazing.
- Egg – large eggs are always used on Farmgirl Gourmet, unless otherwise noted.
- Panko breadcrumbs – or white bread that’s torn into small pieces.
- Spices – garlic powder, onion powder, ground allspice, ground nutmeg, salt, and black pepper.
- Beef broth – or beef stock.
- Butter - 1/2 stick of unsalted butter.
- All Purpose Flour – for thickening the sauce.
- Dijon mustard and Worcestershire – add loads of flavor to the gravy.
- Sour cream – adds the classic Swedish meatball creaminess.
- Fresh Parsley – optional.
How do you make Baked Swedish Meatballs?
The meatball mixture only requires a few ingredients like: finely chopped onion, egg, panko bread crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, ground allspice, and ground nutmeg. The creamy sauce is buttery with hints of dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and sour cream.
Step 1: Mix the Meatball Ingredients
Mix Swedish meatball ingredients in a large bowl and use a hinged scoop to make uniform shaped balls. Placing them in a single layer on a lightly oiled rimmed baking sheet and pour in 3/4 cup beef stock.
Step 2: Bake the Swedish Meatballs
Bake the meatballs for 20-25 minutes in a preheated oven until golden brown. Remove and reserve the pan juices.
Step 3: Make the Gravy & Serve
Make the creamy gravy a large skillet over medium heat.
Add the reserved juices from the meatballs and whisk well to combine. Add the cooked meatballs to the creamy gravy sauce and serve with mashed potatoes and a side of lingonberry jam (if you have some).
Find the printable recipe card with exact detailed step-by-step instructions below.
Tools You’ll Need
You only need a few tools to make this baked version of Swedish meatballs:
- Large skillet or large frying pan
- Rimmed baking sheet or large baking dish
- Large mixing bowl
- Small hinged scoop
Most authentic Swedish meatball recipes use a combination of ground pork and ground beef. You can make them with one or the other solely, but the flavor will vary.
Yes and No, swedish meatballs contain breadcrumbs, but you can easily substitute a gluten free breadcrumb and achieve the same results.
Yes! You can freeze the meatballs before baking or after. If freezing before, place the meatballs on a rimmed baking sheet making sure not to crowd and freeze until solid. Add the frozen meatballs to an airtight container and freeze up to 4 months. Remove and bring to room temperature before baking.
If freezing after baking, allow the meatballs to cool completely and follow the instructions above to freeze. Allow to thaw for 20 minutes before adding to the sauce to warm through.
What to Serve with Baked Swedish Meatballs
- Super Creamy Mashed Potatoes
- Garlic Parmesan Roasted Broccoli
- Brown Butter Herbed Mashed Potatoes
- No Knead Bread
Tips for Storing or Making Ahead
- Storing – store swedish meatballs in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- For reheating – reheat in a microwave safe dish using 1 minute increments and stirring in between
- How to freeze or make ahead – Freeze uncooked meatballs on a parchment lined baking sheet until frozen solid. Transfer to an airtight container or zip top bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Bake frozen meatballs for about 10 minutes longer than the recipe requires, or until golden brown and cooked through. Alternatively, you can freeze cooked meatballs in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Baked Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- ½ onion, minced
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Pepper to taste
- ¾ cup beef broth
Sauce
- ¼ cup butter, 1/2 stick
- ⅓ cup flour
- 3 cups beef broth
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ºF. Lightly grease a large rimmed baking sheet with olive oil or cooking spray oil.
- Add all the meatball ingredients to a large bowl and mix together well with your hands. Form 1 ¼ – 1 ½-inch meatballs using a small hinged scoop (or eyeball it just make them all similar size so they cook evenly). Place the meatballs on the prepared baking sheet. Add 1/2 cup beef broth and bake 20 min. Remove and set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium heat add the butter. Once melted, stir in the flour and cook for a few minutes, stirring often, until the roux starts to turn golden.
- Slowly whisk in the beef broth, Dijon mustard, and Worcestershire sauce, and the reserved juices from the meatballs and simmer until the gravy begins to thicken.
- Stir in the sour cream until incorporated.
- Add in the meatballs and simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Season with salt & pepper as needed. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve immediately over mashed potatoes or cooked noodles.
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Recipe Nutrition
* Nutritional information is not guaranteed to be accurate.
Recipe By:
Co-Founder at Spiceology | More About Heather…
Heather is a recipe developer and content creator living in Vancouver, Washington. She started Farmgirl Gourmet in 2006, almost 20 years ago, as a way to share recipes with friends and family. Heather is also the co-founder of Spiceology , a unique spice company, which she started in 2013. She shares family friendly recipes for easy everyday meals with a gourmet twist.
Baking the meatballs makes this recipe so easy to whip up on a weeknight. So simple and so delish!