This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Here’s the real IKEA Swedish Meatballs recipe – straight from IKEA stores.
Like a lot of companies these days, IKEA just shared their iconic Swedish Meatballs recipe with the world – so we had to give it a try!
Sure – we already have our own Swedish Meatballs recipe here (and it’s delicious) – but I have to admit that I really enjoy the version sold at IKEA restaurants inside their stores.
IKEA Swedish Meatballs are tender and delicious with a wonderful, savory cream sauce on top.
They serve the meatballs with mashed potatoes and green beans, plus a spoonful of IKEA’s sweet lingonberry jam on the side. The sweet-tart jam is a wonderful complement to the savory meatballs, and it also helps cut through the richness of the sauce.
Finally, after a day of wandering the stores aisles – all of the meals at IKEA are surprisingly affordable and delicious, and a great way to feed a hungry family.
What did we think of the recipe?
Jack and I both thought that the taste of this homemade version of IKEA’s Swedish Meatballs was pretty spot on – and we’d totally make this recipe again! Like most great meatball recipes, it’s a mix of both beef and pork which gives them a wonderful flavor and soft texture.
Note that the recipe, as written, makes a lot of sauce (you could probably cut the sauce recipe in half and still have enough) and this homemade recipe seemed thicker, creamier and lighter in color than the sauce served over the meatballs at the stores.
But the flavor is very much the same (delicious!) and the meatballs are soft and tender – just like you’d order at IKEA restaurants.
You can see the actual IKEA recipe here. We adapted our recipe slightly to reflect US Customary Measurements – only because that’s how we (and most of our US-based readers) cook.
Give this IKEA Swedish Meatballs recipe a try – then let us know what you think!
You may enjoy these other meatball recipes:
Swedish Meatballs (our own recipe) over Noodles
Porcupine Meatballs
Italian-Style Meatballs
Easy Freezer Meatballs
Keto Chicken Meatballs
We love seeing what you made! Tag us on Instagram at @afamilyfeast or hashtag #afamilyfeast so we can see your creations!
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star4.2 from 15 reviews
In a large bowl, mix ground beef, ground pork, onion, garlic, bread crumbs, eggs, milk, salt, pepper and one tablespoon of oil. Mix just enough to combine and try not to overmix.
Use a one-once scoop and scoop out 55 one-ounce meatballs. Line them up on your cutting board and run a knife through each one which will yield 110 half-ounce pieces.
Roll each into a ball and line up on a sheet tray covered in parchment. Keep your hands wet while rolling.
Refrigerate on the sheet tray for one hour to set.
After one hour, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Line a second sheet tray with parchment paper.
Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat with one tablespoon of olive oil and once hot, gently place one third of the meatballs in the pan and cook on all sides for about 4-5 minutes. Use a small spatula or tongs to continually turn the meatballs to brown evenly. Remove these browned meatballs to the prepared sheet pan.
Repeat for the next two batches of oil and meatballs.
Once all the meatballs have browned and are now lined up on the sheet tray, place the sheet tray in the oven and cook for 15 minutes.
While the meatballs are cooking, heat the vegetable stock, beef stock, heavy cream, soy sauce and mustard in a small sauce pan. Mixture needs to be hot to prevent lumping in the sauce but does not need to boil. Set aside.
In a 4-5-quart pot, over medium heat melt butter in oil and add flour to make a roux. Cook and stir continually for 3-4 minutes until the raw flour smell is gone.
Gradually add the liquid to the roux while whisking. Heat this mixture to hot and bubbly. If the mixture gets too thick, thin down a little with milk or cream.
When the meatballs come out of the oven, add to the sauce and serve with mashed potatoes, green beans, and lingonberry jam.
Last Step! Please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
The Ikea website lists the ingredients of their meatballs (which Ikea calls ALLEMANSRÄTTEN), and the rundown is surprisingly simple: Meat (a combination of pork and beef, for texture, flavor, and juiciness), onion, breadcrumbs, egg, water, salt, and pepper.
The sauce for Swedish Meatballs is a creamy gravy that is made with butter, beef broth/stock, thickened with flour and made creamy with cream. But the most important flavour for the a really good creamy gravy is the pan drippings after searing the meatballs.
Like many other things in business, selling inexpensive meatballs is a strategy for the company to turn more profit. To sell their products, they need to get people in the door. To do that, they entice people with cheap meatballs.
“Based on the results of our mapping, we can confirm that the contents of the meatballs follow the Ikea recipe and contain only beef and pork from animals raised in the U.S. and Canada,” Ikea North America spokeswoman Mona Astra Liss said in a statement.
STOCKHOLM - Swedish furniture giant Ikea became entangled in Europe's widening meat scandal Monday, forced to withdraw meatballs from stores across Europe amid suspicions that they contained horse meat. Stores in the U.S. and Canada were not affected, Ikea said.
While both varieties include ingredients such as grated onion and panade (milk-soaked bread) or bread crumbs, plus the usual salt and pepper, Swedish meatballs traditionally use spices like allspice, nutmeg, white pepper, and sometimes ground ginger as flavoring.
In terms of the robust savoriness, juiciness, and addictive texture, these meatballs are simply the best. Interestingly enough, they are gluten-free and made with chicken, potato, onion, and seasoning — that's it! The Ikea rep even admitted they were her top choice too (over the original!).
The Danish meatball is a little rugged in texture and can be served in multiple ways – with a lightly spiced curry sauce, for example, or a rich gravy. A Swedish meatball, in comparison to the crispy, pan-fried Danish version, is often a little smaller, with a very smooth, even texture and a rounder shape.
Use all your newfound free time to come up with your own recipe for Swedish meatballs, because while you can buy Ikea's meatball sauce on Amazon, the meatballs themselves still require a trip to the giant blue box. It's the only way to ensure that people still have to come to an actual Ikea on occasion.
Meatballs are as quintessentially Swedish as it gets. In their most traditional form Swedish meatballs ('köttbullar') are made of ground pork and beef, cream, egg and onion, and are served with creamy mashed potatoes, a thick, brown gravy, lingonberry jam and pickled cucumber.
Are Ikea meatballs healthy? The meatballs are low in carbs but high in fat content, so while they're not healthy food, Ikea Swedish meatballs can be part of a healthy eating plan when enjoyed in moderation and as an occasional treat.
Gently seasoned to enhance the meat flavour and are great to enjoy with traditional condiments or in new combinations. Meatballs should taste like meat. That's why we've seasoned the beef and pork gently with only a few ingredients, every one of them enhancing the meat flavour even more.
The furniture giant sells two million meatballs every day. But some of the romantic Swedishness of the meatballs, which are served with mash, light gravy and lingonberry jam, has been forever lost. Ikea's iconic meatballs originated in what is now modern day Turkey, according to the Mirror.
Developed with meat lovers in mind, the plant ball is made from pea protein, oats, potato and apple. The meaty taste is achieved by adding umami flavors, such as mushroom, tomato and roasted vegetables.
The major difference between Swedish and Italian meatballs is what they're accompanied with. Swedish meatballs are traditionally topped with a creamy gravy and served with mashed potatoes and lingonberry sauce to cut through the richness, similar to how they're cooked at the two-Michelin-starred restaurant, Aquavit.
Introduction: My name is Kimberely Baumbach CPA, I am a gorgeous, bright, charming, encouraging, zealous, lively, good person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
