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Slow-Cooker Swedish Meatballs

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on October 15, 2019

Time

4 to 5 hours on low

Yield

Serves 10 to 12

Slow cooker size

4 to 7 quarts

Slow-Cooker Swedish Meatballs

Ingredients

6 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 onions, chopped fine4 slices caraway-rye bread, crusts removed, torn into 1-inch pieces3 ½ cups beef broth 1 cup sour cream 2 large egg yolks ½ teaspoon ground allspice ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg Salt and pepper 1 pound 90-percent lean ground beef 1 pound ground pork ½ cup all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons soy sauce 2 teaspoons minced fresh dill, plus extra for serving

Before You Begin

Lingonberry preserves are a traditional accompaniment for Swedish meatballs. If you can't find lingonberry preserves, cranberry preserves can be used. It's unnecessary to temp the meatballs because they will reach a food-safe temperature if cooked according to the recipe instructions. (For more information on food safety, check out this guide.)

Instructions

  1. 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Set wire rack in aluminum foil-lined rimmed baking sheet and coat with vegetable oil spray. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook until softened, about 8 minutes; transfer to large bowl. Add bread, ¼ cup broth, ¼ cup sour cream, egg yolks, allspice, nutmeg, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and mash with fork until smooth. Add ground beef and ground pork and knead with hands until well combined.
  2. Pinch off and roll meat mixture into tablespoon-size meatballs (about 60 meatballs) and arrange on prepared rack. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Transfer meatballs to slow cooker.
  3. Melt remaining 5 tablespoons butter in now-empty skillet over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking often, until beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in remaining 3¼ cups broth, smoothing out any lumps, and bring to simmer; transfer to slow cooker. Cover and cook until meatballs are tender and sauce is slightly thickened, 4 to 5 hours on low.
  4. Using large spoon, skim excess fat from surface of sauce. Whisk ½ cup sauce, soy sauce, dill, and remaining ¾ cup sour cream together in bowl (to temper), then gently stir mixture back into slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with extra dill and serve. (Meatballs can be held on warm or low setting for up to 2 hours. Adjust sauce consistency with hot water as needed, adding 2 tablespoons at a time.)
Slow-Cooker Swedish Meatballs
Photography by Daniel J. van Ackere. Styling by Marie Piraino.

Slow-Cooker Swedish Meatballs

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

4 to 5 hours on low

Yield

Serves 10 to 12

Slow cooker size

4 to 7 quarts

Ingredients

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 onions, chopped fine
4 slices caraway-rye bread, crusts removed, torn into 1-inch pieces
3 ½ cups beef broth
1 cup sour cream
2 large egg yolks
½ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper
1 pound 90-percent lean ground beef
1 pound ground pork
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons minced fresh dill, plus extra for serving

Ingredients

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 onions, chopped fine
4 slices caraway-rye bread, crusts removed, torn into 1-inch pieces
3 ½ cups beef broth
1 cup sour cream
2 large egg yolks
½ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper
1 pound 90-percent lean ground beef
1 pound ground pork
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons minced fresh dill, plus extra for serving

Ingredients

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 onions, chopped fine
4 slices caraway-rye bread, crusts removed, torn into 1-inch pieces
3 ½ cups beef broth
1 cup sour cream
2 large egg yolks
½ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper
1 pound 90-percent lean ground beef
1 pound ground pork
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons minced fresh dill, plus extra for serving

Why This Recipe Works

Swedish meatballs have long been standard cocktail party fare, but rolling and browning dozens of little meatballs and then building a sauce leave little time to get everything (including the host) ready before company arrives. Enter our recipe for Swedish Meatballs—prepared in the slow cooker. To keep our sauce from becoming greasy, we put our meatballs in the oven for 15 minutes, allowing much of their fat to render and collect on the bottom of the pan. Cooking our meatballs in the oven also allowed us to brown them before adding them to the slow cooker. For a quick sauce, we started with a base of flour-and-butter roux and beef broth, which cooked down to the perfect consistency to coat the meatballs. A couple tablespoons of soy sauce gave our sauce a rich, meaty backbone without overpowering the other ingredients. 

Before You Begin

Lingonberry preserves are a traditional accompaniment for Swedish meatballs. If you can't find lingonberry preserves, cranberry preserves can be used. It's unnecessary to temp the meatballs because they will reach a food-safe temperature if cooked according to the recipe instructions. (For more information on food safety, check out this guide.)

Instructions

  1. 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Set wire rack in aluminum foil-lined rimmed baking sheet and coat with vegetable oil spray. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook until softened, about 8 minutes; transfer to large bowl. Add bread, ¼ cup broth, ¼ cup sour cream, egg yolks, allspice, nutmeg, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and mash with fork until smooth. Add ground beef and ground pork and knead with hands until well combined.
  2. Pinch off and roll meat mixture into tablespoon-size meatballs (about 60 meatballs) and arrange on prepared rack. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Transfer meatballs to slow cooker.
  3. Melt remaining 5 tablespoons butter in now-empty skillet over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking often, until beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in remaining 3¼ cups broth, smoothing out any lumps, and bring to simmer; transfer to slow cooker. Cover and cook until meatballs are tender and sauce is slightly thickened, 4 to 5 hours on low.
  4. Using large spoon, skim excess fat from surface of sauce. Whisk ½ cup sauce, soy sauce, dill, and remaining ¾ cup sour cream together in bowl (to temper), then gently stir mixture back into slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with extra dill and serve. (Meatballs can be held on warm or low setting for up to 2 hours. Adjust sauce consistency with hot water as needed, adding 2 tablespoons at a time.)

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