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    Home » Recipes » Sauces for Beef

    Swedish Meatballs Sauce

    Published: Jan 7, 2023 Modified: Jan 6, 2023 by Isabel Laessig

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    Creamy and decadent, this easy Swedish Meatballs 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!

    a bowl of meatballs and noodles with swedish meatballs sauce
    Jump to:
    • Swedish Meatball Gravy
    • Swedish Meatball Sauce Ingredients
    • How to Make Swedish Meatball Sauce
    • Swedish Meatball Sauce Recipe Tips
    • How to Thicken Swedish Meatball Sauce
    • How to Thin Sauce for Swedish Meatballs
    • Swedish Meatball Sauce Recipe FAQs
    • Creamy Sauce Recipes
    • 📌 Pin it for later!
    • 📖 Recipe

    Swedish Meatball Gravy

    Recently, I overhauled my entire kitchen to make it into a space I'd love cooking 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 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.

    Give this sauce for Swedish meatballs a try, and I guarantee you will love the results. If you do, leave a comment and let me know!

    swedish meatballs topped with parmesan and parsley over noodles

    Swedish Meatball 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.
      swedish meatballs cooking in a pan up close
    2. Slowly add beef broth, milk or heavy cream, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.
      stirring swedish meatball sauce around meatballs
    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.
      adding egg noodles to swedish meatballs in pan
    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!
      mixing parmesan into the swedish meatballs sauce and pasta

    Swedish Meatball Sauce Recipe 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 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.
    swedish meatballs in a dish with egg noodles and parsley

    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

    What is Swedish meatball sauce made of?

    Swedish meatball sauce is a mixture of cream or milk, beef stock or broth, seasonings such as salt and pepper, and additional add-ins if desired for flavor, such as Worcestershire sauce.

    Can Swedish meatball sauce be frozen?

    Because it uses milk/heavy cream, Swedish meatball sauce should not be frozen, as it will separate and become watery when thawed. However, the sauce will last for up to 4 days or so in the refrigerator, so it can be made ahead of time.

    Creamy Sauce Recipes

    • Creamy Garlic Sauce
    • Creamy Alfredo Sauce
    • Creamy Mushroom Sauce
    • Creamy Leek Sauce
    • Bearnaise Sauce

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    📖 Recipe

    swedish meatballs over noodles with parsley and parmesan

    Swedish Meatballs 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 mins
    Cook Time 20 mins
    Total Time 32 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
      

    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
      rolling meatballs by hand
    • 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
      swedish meatballs cooking in a pan up close
    • 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
      stirring swedish meatball sauce around meatballs
    • 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
      adding egg noodles to swedish meatballs in pan
    • 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.
      mixing parmesan into the swedish meatballs sauce and pasta
    • Serve, and enjoy!
      1 cup shredded parmesan cheese, ½ cup fresh parsley
      mixing parsley into the swedish meatballs sauce

    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
    Keyword how to make swedish meatball sauce, sauce for swedish meatballs, swedish meatball sauce, swedish meatballs sauce
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
    « Creamy Alfredo Sauce
    Country Gravy Recipe »

    About Isabel Laessig

    Isabel Laessig, better known as Family Foodie and the founder of the Sunday Supper Movement, is passionate about food and family! She is the author of the Boujee Steak Cookbook, and hosts Family Foodie Friday on WTSP's Great Day Tampa Bay along with other television appearances to spread her mission of bringing Sunday Supper back around the family table in every home.

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