It's still raining in Sydney. I miss the sunshine and blue sky. It's cold and it is the perfect weather to have meatballs and potatoes for dinner.
My question is: "Swedish or Dutch?"
Swedish meatballs are called "Köttbullar" and they are made popular by IKEA's cafes. In the Netherlands, a meatball goes by the name "Gehaktbal" (ball of chopped meat). Meatball is and has been for many years the most common dish in Swedish and Dutch households.
I decided to go for Swedish meatballs. (Reason to be revealed at the bottom of the post).
I have been on the hunt for a Swedish meatballs recipe. I asked my friend Miss D. who lives in Sweden with her Swedish husband for their family recipe. Guess what she replied me? "We don't make our own meatballs. We buy the frozen ones from the supermarket. His grandma used to make them long long time ago." What a bummer!
So I turned to the recipe from "IKEA's Real Swedish Food Book" which I purchased recently.
Swedish Meatballs with Cream Sauce Recipe
Ingredients:
- Meatballs:
- 250 g minced beef
- 250 g minced pork
- 1 egg
- 200-300 g cream and water (or milk and water)
- 2 1/2 tbsp onion, finely chopped
- 50 g unsweetened rusk flour (you can replace with breadcrumbs)
- 2 cold boiled potatoes
- 4-5 tbsp butter, margarine or oil
- Salt, white pepper
- Allspice (optional)
Cream Sauce:
- 100 ml cream
- 200 ml boiling water or beef stock
- 1 tbsp white flour (optional)
- Salt and white pepper
Method
- Heat the onion till golden in a couple of tbsp of lightly browned butter. Removed.
- Mash the potatoes.
- Moisten the rusks in a little water.
- Mix minced beef, minced pork, egg, onion, mashed potatoes, rusks, cream and water into a smooth mixture of the right consistency and flavour generously with salt, pepper and allspice (optional).
- Using a pair of spoons rinsed in water, shape the meat mixture into relatively large, round balls and transfer to a floured chopping board, then fry them quite slowly in plenty of butter.
- To make the cream sauce: Swirl out the pan with boiling water or meat stock. Strain the pan juice and dilute with cream. Thicken with white flour if preferred. Season well, and serve this and the meatballs with freshly boiled potatoes, uncooked lingonberry jam (Opps!!! I forgot to buy this jam on my recent trip to IKEA!), a green salad and salted or pickled gherkins.
After reading the recipe, I decided to open my freezer door to pick up the big packet of frozen Swedish meatballs I bought from IKEA and ran to my pantry to grab the IKEA's pre-packed cream sauce.
Can't blame me... it's a cold, rainy, lazy winter day Down Under.