Swedish Meatball Sauce

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Creamy and decadent, this easy Swedish Meatball Sauce comes together in under 30 minutes. It's simple to make in the same pan as your meatballs and pairs beautifully with egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or even spaghetti squash for a lower-carb meal. This is the best sauce for Swedish meatballs you can make easily from scratch!

Swedish Meatball Sauce Recipe

Recently, I overhauled my entire kitchen to make it into a space I'd love to cook in. This meant figuring out new ways to decorate and of course a trip to the furniture store... I bet you know where I'm going with this! It's no question that Ikea meatballs are delicious, but I don't plan on making the trip just for them.

Especially when homemade Swedish meatballs sauce is this fantastic! It's easy to make, too, and the best part is you can make it in the same pot as the meatballs. The added flavor from the browned meat is incredible.

What makes this Swedish meatball gravy truly special is how customizable it is. You can make it a little spicy, add a zing with sour cream, and thicken or thin the sauce out to your liking. That way, you can make it just how your family likes it.

Swedish Meatballs Sauce Ingredients

• Beef broth
• Milk
• Salt
• Pepper
• Worcestershire sauce
• Optional: Parmesan
• Optional: Parsley

How to Make Swedish Meatball Sauce

1. Heat a pan over medium-high heat. If you're preparing the sauce with the meatballs, add canola oil and the meatballs to the pan and cook them now for 1 minute on each side until browned all over. If they're larger meatballs, cook them for a bit longer. I usually make mine golfball sized for this recipe.
   
2. Slowly add beef broth, milk or heavy cream, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.
   
3. Bring the liquid to a boil. If you're making the dish with egg noodles, you can add them to the pot and cook them in the sauce.
   
4. Stir until the sauce thickens (enough to cook the noodles, if cooked together); about 7 to 8 minutes.
5. If using, mix through parmesan and parsley until the cheese melts. Serve, and enjoy!
   

Sauce for Swedish Meatballs Tips

• If you don't already have a Swedish meatball recipe you love, try making your meatballs with a mixture of ground beef or turkey, Italian breadcrumbs mixed with a light amount of grated nutmeg, minced onion, salt, pepper, and an egg. Roll them into golf ball size or smaller, and cook in the same pan as the sauce.
• Avoid using ground turkey breast meat exclusively, or the meatballs will turn out dry.
• Use half the amount of milk or heavy cream and substitute the other half for sour cream to add a zing to the sauce.
• If you like, you can add mushrooms. Saute them in the pan and let them brown and soften before adding the sauce ingredients.
• Add a slightly spicy flavor by mixing in a Tablespoon of spicy brown mustard.
• Use less salt and a low-sodium beef broth if you need a lower-sodium meal.
• Reduce the pepper to a teaspoon if you're sensitive to pepper.

How to Thicken Swedish Meatball Sauce

If you want to thicken Swedish meatball sauce, add a bit of flour or cornstarch and mix through. If you're cooking pasta with the sauce, the starch from the pasta should help thicken it.

How to Thin Sauce for Swedish Meatballs

For a less thick sauce, be sure to cook the pasta separately from the sauce. To thin it out even further, add slightly more broth.

Swedish Meatball Sauce Recipe FAQs

Creamy Sauce Recipes

• Creamy Garlic Sauce
• Creamy Alfredo Sauce
• Creamy Mushroom Sauce
• Creamy Leek Sauce
• Bearnaise Sauce
• Try more Sauces for Meatballs

Did you try this recipe? Let us know what you think below with a comment and rating! We love to hear from you.

📖 Recipe

Swedish Meatball Sauce

Isabel Laessig

Creamy and decadent, this easy Swedish Meatballs Sauce comes together in under 30 minutes. This is the best sauce for Swedish meatballs you can make easily from scratch!

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 12 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 32 minutes mins

Course Sauce

Cuisine American, Swedish

Servings 4 servings

Calories 193 kcal

Equipment

• 1 large pan
• 1 large bowl if preparing meatballs with the sauce

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

If making meatballs with sauce:

• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 lb. ground beef or ground turkey; don't use ground turkey breast exclusively or the meatballs will be dry
• 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
• ½ teaspoon grated nutmeg mix together with breadcrumbs
• ½ onion finely minced
• 1 egg
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper

Swedish meatballs sauce:

• 2 cups beef broth
• 2 cups whole milk or heavy cream; 1 cup sour cream may also be used in place of half of the milk or cream
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 4 cups egg noodles if making with sauce
• 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese optional
• ½ cup fresh parsley chopped (optional)
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper

Instructions

 

• If making meatballs with the sauce, combine ground beef, Italian breadcrumbs mixed with nutmeg, onion, egg, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl and mix until just combined. Be careful not to over-mix.
  1 lb. ground beef, 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs, ½ teaspoon grated nutmeg, ½ onion, 1 egg, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon pepper
  
• Heat a pan over medium-high heat. If you're preparing the sauce with the meatballs, add canola oil. Roll meatballs into golfball-sized balls and cook them until browned, about 1 minute on both sides.
  2 tablespoons canola oil
  
• Slowly add beef broth, milk or heavy cream, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.
  2 cups beef broth, 2 cups whole milk, 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon pepper
  
• Bring the liquid to a boil. If you're making the dish with egg noodles, you can add them to the pot now to cook them in the sauce, or start them in a separate pot if preferred.
  4 cups egg noodles
  
• Stir until the sauce thickens (enough to cook the noodles, if cooked together); about 7 to 8 minutes. If using, mix through parmesan and parsley until the cheese melts.
  
• Serve, and enjoy!
  1 cup shredded parmesan cheese, ½ cup fresh parsley
  

Video

Notes

• Note: Nutrition does not include meatballs or pasta, only the sauce.
• If you don't already have a Swedish meatball recipe you love, try making your meatballs with a mixture of ground beef or turkey, Italian breadcrumbs mixed with a light amount of grated nutmeg, minced onion, salt, pepper, and an egg. Roll them into golfball size or smaller, and cook in the same pan as the sauce.
• Avoid using ground turkey breast meat exclusively, or the meatballs will turn out dry.
• Use half the amount of milk or heavy cream and substitute the other half for sour cream to add a zing to the sauce.
• If you like, you can add mushrooms. Saute them in the pan and let them brown and soften before adding the sauce ingredients.
• Add a slightly spicy flavor by mixing in a Tablespoon of spicy brown mustard.
• Use less salt and a low sodium beef broth if you need a lower sodium meal.
• Reduce the pepper to a teaspoon if you're sensitive to pepper.

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingCalories: 193kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 13gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.5gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 36mgSodium: 1280mgPotassium: 373mgFiber: 0.3gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 1050IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 394mgIron: 1mg

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