Swedish meatballs: simple classic recipe

 Meatballs are definitely the signature Swedish food (thanks to the IKEA restaurants all over the world). You know the rules: five pieces for kids and eight to twelve for adults. It is an emergency frozen food all Swedish moms have in their freezers (like Ukrainian moms have pelmeni or varenyky). 

There are rumors that the idea of this dish came to Sweden at the beginning of the XIIX century when the King Karl XII returned to his homeland from visiting the Ottoman Empire. 

My son fell in love with this food after I read him Astrid's Lindgren "Karlsson-on-the-Roof" - the story about one guy who loves traditional Swedish homemade meals like meatballs or cinnamon buns. So after arriving in Sweden, I had no other option than to learn how to cook the proper Swedish meatballs (Swedish: köttbullar). I've found the most traditional cookbook and polished my skills during this one-and-a-half year. 

Swedish meatballs served with pasta, cheese, and vegetables.

Old classics: Swedish cookbook "Rudiga Kokboken", 1988.

Rutiga Kokboken (English: The Checkered Cookbook) is a Swedish cookbook and detailed guide with more than 1.4 million copies sold over the years. The first edition was published in 1980 and is still being published today. It is known as an essential cookbook with recipes from traditional to modern.

I've got my copy from a second-hand store, and it is a 1988 edition with a lot of theory, essential recipes, diet dishes, picnic ideas, etc. Love it❤️ Also, the later editions can be found in the Malmö City Library, and they also have editions with gluten-free or vegetarian recipes - these book series cover all the culinary preferences.

If you have any questions about Swedish cuisine, you can refer to this book. Whether you're a student or a mother - you can find inspiration and detailed instructions there. 

So I took the meatballs recipe from the Rutiga Kokboken as my basic, go-to one and the starting point for experiments, which I will tell you about a little bit later.

Meatballs recipe in Rudiga Kokboken.

Swedish Meatballs*

• 4 tablespoon breadcrumbs 
• 200 ml water
• 1/2 or 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 400 g minced meat
• 1 egg

* the recipe is for 4 servings

1. Mix breadcrumbs with water, add salt, pepper, and let it stay for 10 minutes.
2. Add egg to the minced meat and knead it with a hand for a couple of minutes until it becomes soft and smooth. Add breadcrumbs and mix again.
3. Preheat the pan to medium-low heat. Add some oil.
4. Form the meatballs with wet hands. The size is up to you, but usually, it is about one tablespoon of minced meat per meatball.
5. Put them into the pan, turn them by shaking a pan until they become nice brown and round. It couldn't be easier and more fun! 🙂

So here come the variations:

• You can replace the water in the recipe with milk or cream (like I usually do). 
• Some recipes recommend you add onion (3 tablespoons finely chopped onion for 400 g of minced meat) or greens (dill or parsley). My family loves meatballs with onion.
• There also can be semolina flour instead of breadcrumbs. 
• For more aromatic meatballs, mix black pepper, nutmeg, and allspice (a traditional mix of spices). 

Below are photos of the process:

Prepare the ingredients: water (or milk), egg, minced meat, bread crumbs (or semolina flour), salt, and pepper.

Form the meatballs in your hands.

Fry the meatballs until they brown and crispy.

Home-made meatballs are never expected to be as round as ones from Ikea😉

Traditional Swedish meatballs are served with mashed potato, green peas, brown sauce, and lingon jam. That may seem strange to eat meat with a sweet jam. But in Ukrainian cuisine, we also combine sweet with salty flavors, like fried liver with caramelized apples or a roasted duck stuffed with apples. So meatballs with lingon are ok 😋 Swedes serve it for Christmas, for example. But for everyday kids' lunch, there is a combination of pasta ("makaroner"), meatballs, and ketchup - simple enough for young foodies. 

Bon Appetit!

And don't forget the green peas!

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