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Swedish Köttbullar

Swedish Köttbullar

SpiceBreeze
IKEA popularized Köttbullar, Sweden's national dish, around the world. Surprisingly, in 2018, Sweden revealed that their beloved meatballs originated in Turkey. In the 18th century, King Charles XII fell in love with Turkish meatballs and brought the recipe back to Sweden. Today, Köttbullar are typically served with mashed potatoes, a creamy brown sauce, and sweet-sour sides like cucumber salad and lingonberry jam.
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hands-on time 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Swedish
Servings 3

Ingredients
  

Pickled Salad (Optional)

  • 1 English cucumber finely sliced
  • 1/8 cup vinegar apple cider or white vinegar
  • 1 tbsp sweetener [1]  or to taste
  • fresh parsley or dill (optional) finely chopped

Meatballs

  • 1.25 lb ground meat [2]
  • 1 egg
  • 3/8 cup milk dairy or nut milk
  • 1/4 cup breadcrumbs [3]
  • 2 tbsp butter

Sauce (Optional)

  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp flour any
  • 1 cup milk dairy or nut milk
  • 1 cup broth any

Suggested Sides

  • 1 jar berry jam [4]
  • mashed potatoes online recipe
  • boiled potatoes
  • any pickled vegetable that you prefer
  • steamed vegetables of your choice, e.g. carrots, green beans, peas and corn

Culinary Spice Kit

  • 1 pouch Onions, allspice, white pepper, black pepper, ginger, yellow mustard

Instructions
 

Pickled Salad (Optional)

  • In a BOWL, mix 1/3 cup of water with vinegar and salt to taste. Sweeten to taste and mix well.
  • Add cucumber slices to the bowl and mix well to coat them evenly.
  • Optionally, add fresh parsley or dill for extra flavor.
  • Let the mixture rest in the fridge for 2 to 24 hours before serving.

Meatballs

  • In a BOWL, whisk the egg.
  • Add Köttbullar spices, milk, and breadcrumbs to the bowl. Mix well and let it soak for 10 minutes.
  • Add the meat and salt (1 tsp recommended) to the mixture. Knead until everything is well combined, but do not overdo it.
  • Form the mixture into small meatballs.
  • In a PAN, melt 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat.
  • Fry the meatballs in the pan until they are cooked through, shaking the pan occasionally to ensure they brown evenly on all sides.

Sauce (Optional)

  • In a small POT, melt 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat.
  • Add the flour and gently whisk for about 3 minutes until the mixture changes color.
  • While whisking continuously, gradually add the milk and broth. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat.
  • Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
  • Season with salt and pepper to taste before serving.

Serve

  • Serve the meatballs with the salad or steamed vegetables, mashed or boiled potatoes, jam, and optional sauce.

Notes

[1] For instance, agave syrup, honey, or sugar.
[2] Use a mixture of half beef and half pork, or any meat combination to your liking.
[3] Alternative: Substitute breadcrumbs with flour or ground nuts.
[4] Lingonberry is the best choice, available, for instance, at IKEA stores. Other options:
  • Raspberry or blueberry jam works fine as well.
  • Cook cranberries with some water and sugar into a thick sauce.
  • Just serve with fresh raspberries or blueberries.

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Köttbullar

Swedish Köttbullar

IKEA made them famous around the world: Köttbullar, the national dish of Sweden. Surprisingly, in 2018, Sweden revealed Turkey as its origin. In the 18th century, King Charles XII fell in love with Turkish meatballs and introduced them to his home country. Today, Köttbullars are usually served with mashed potatoes, creamy brown sauce, and sour-sweet sides: cucumber salad and lingonberry jam.

 

Shopping list

  • 1 lb ground meat ( (half beef and pork or any to your liking))
  • 1 lb potatoes (boiled, peeled)
  • 1 English cucumber (finely sliced)
  • 1 jar berry jam*)
  • 1/4 cup breadcrumbs

You might have

  • 1/2 cup milk (plus some for the potatoes)
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp agave syrup (or honey or sugar (or to taste))
  • 1/8 cup vinegar
  • salt & pepper

Sauce

  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup broth

Optional

  • Fresh parsley or dill (finely chopped)

Culinary Spice Kit

  • Onions, white pepper, allspice, black pepper, yellow mustard, ginger

Pickled Salad

  1. In a BOWL, mix 1/3 cup of water with the vinegar and salt to taste. Sweeten to taste. Mix well.
  2. Add cucumber slices and mix well.
  3. Optionally, add fresh parsley or dill.
  4. Let it rest in the fridge for 2 to 24 hours.

Meatballs

  1. In a BOWL, whisk the egg.
  2. Add Köttbullar spices, milk, and breadcrumbs. Mix well. Let it soak for 10 minutes.
  3. Add the meat and salt to taste (1 tsp recommended). Knead until everything is well combined. Don’t overdo it.
  4. Form little meatballs.
  5. In a PAN, melt 2 tbsp butter over medium heat.
  6. Fry the meatballs until they are cooked through.
  7. Shake the PAN occasionally to brown the balls all around.

Sauce

  1. In a small POT, melt 2 tbsp butter over medium heat.
  2. Add flour and gently whisk for about 3 minutes until it changes color.
  3. Whisking continuously, add milk and broth and bring to boil over medium heat.
  4. Turn heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

Mashed potatoes

  1. Mash the potatoes and reheat them with a little milk.
  2. Add salt to taste.

Serve

  1. Serve the meatballs with the salad, mashed potatoes, jam, and optional sauce. Enjoy!

*) Lingonberry is the best choice, available, for instance, at IKEA stores. Raspberry or blueberry jam works fine as well. Or, cook cranberries with some water and sugar into a thick sauce. Or, serve just with fresh raspberries or blueberries.
Substitute pickled cucumber salad with any other pickled vegetable that you prefer.
Substitute breadcrumbs with flour or ground nuts.

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