Everyone knows them, almost everyone likes them, hardly anybody (here in Germany) can pronounce the name correctly: Swedish Köttbullar [ˈɕœtˌbɵlːar]. The phonetic transcription probably won’t help much either here ;) But it doesn’t matter – instead of “Swedish Köttbullar with noodles”, you can say “IKEA meatballs with noodles”. Everyone will exactly know what you mean by that ;)
Köttbullar (more or less pronounced Schöttbüllar) is a traditional Swedish dish that is known and eaten all over the world. Thanks to the big blue and yellow furniture stores. Small, fried meatballs in a delicious cream sauce, with potatoes or pasta as a side dish and often served with cranberry compote or jam. If Wikipedia is to be believed, however, the small meatballs are of Turkish origin. A souvenir of King Charles XII. he brought home from a long stay in the Ottoman Empire ;)
My recipe here is based on the “original” recipe from IKEA. With small changes here and there. Not because the original wasn’t good. I just prefer to make my meatballs a little bit differently. Without the use of an oven, for example… and I think you have to add some white wine to a cream sauce to get a really tasty dish. No offense though to all the Swedes that do not use wine here. They prefer the kids-friendly version. You can prepare it either way ;)
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Besides that – there is not much more to tell about this recipe. We love Köttbullar with pasta a lot – others prefer cooked potatoes or mashed potatoes. To be honest – all a really good match, but the pasta is easier to prepare ;P Well… and you should not leave out the cranberry sauce/jam/compote. It really makes the dish perfect. Next time you go to the big little furniture store you might want to take a jar home with you. Along with some tea lights, oatmeal cookies, and frozen cinnamon rolls. Those things always end up in most of the giant blue shopping bags, right?! ;P
Speaking of cinnamon buns. Here are some very fresh from the oven and extremely delicious – just made them the other day:
Vegan Swedish Apple Pecan Cinnamon Rolls (Kanelbullar/Kanelknuter)
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
For the meatballs:
some oil for frying
1 red onion, finely chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
28 oz. (800g) minced meat (beef & pork mixed)
3.5 oz. (100g) panko
1 large egg
5 tbsp. milk
salt, pepper
some all-purpose flour
For the sauce:
1.4 oz. (40g) butter
1/3 cup (40g) all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups (300ml) beef (or veggie) broth, warm
2/3 cup (150ml) dry white wine
7 oz. (200g) crème fraîche
1 tbsp. mustard
2 tsp. soy sauce
salt, pepper, nutmeg
your favorite pasta for serving
some chopped chives
Für die Hackbällchen:
etwas Öl zum Anbraten
1 rote Zwiebel, fein gehackt
2-3 Knoblauchzehen, fein gehackt
800g Hackfleisch (gemischt)
100g Panko
1 Ei (L)
5 EL Milch
Salz, Pfeffer
etwas Mehl
Für die Soße:
40g Butter
40g Mehl (Type 550)
300ml Rinderbrühe (oder Gemüsebrühe), warm
150ml trockener Weißwein
200g Crème fraîche
1 EL Senf
2 TL Sojasoße
Salz, Pfeffer, Muskatnuss
plus Lieblingspasta zum Servieren
etwas gehackter Schnittlauch
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
2. Shape the meat mixture into balls in the size of golf balls – works best with slightly damp hands. Dust the meatballs with some flour or roll them lightly in the flour. Heat up a large frying pan with some oil and fry the meatballs over medium heat until they are nicely browned all around. Once the meatballs are nicely browned, remove them from the pan and place them on a plate temporarily.
3. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel if necessary, then add the butter and melt. Add the flour, stir and let cook for about 1 minute, then gradually add the broth and stir in until you get a thick sauce. Add the wine and stir it in. Add the crème fraîche, mustard, and soy sauce and stir to combine. Season with salt, pepper, and fresh nutmeg to your liking. Add the meatballs back to the pan, cover with a lid and let everything simmer gently over low heat for about 10 minutes. If the sauce thickens too much, thin it out with some warm water.
4. While the meatballs are simmering in the sauce, cook some pasta according to the package instructions and serve along with the Köttbullar. Garnish with chopped chives if you like.
2. Die durchgezogene Hackfleischmasse zu etwa golfballgroßen Kugeln formen – funktioniert am besten mit leicht feuchten Händen. Die Hackbällchen mit etwas Mehl bestäuben oder leicht darin rollen. Etwas Öl in einer großen Pfanne erhitzen und die Fleischbällchen bei mittlerer Hitzezufuhr anbraten, bis sie rundum schön Farbe bekommen haben. Sobald die Bällchen schön gebräunt sind, aus der Pfanne nehmen und auf deinem Teller zwischenparken.
3. Die Pfanne ggf. mit einem Küchenpapier auswischen, dann die Butter darin erhitzen. Wenn sie geschmolzen ist das Mehl dazugeben, verrühren und etwa 1 Minute anschwitzen lassen, dann nach und nach die Brühe dazugeben und unterrühren, bis eine dicke Soße entsteht. Den Wein dazugeben und unterrühren. Crème fraîche, Senf und Sojasoße dazugeben und verrühren. Nach Belieben noch mit Salz, Pfeffer und frischer Muskatnuss würzen. Die Hackbällchen zurück in die Pfanne in die Soße geben, mit einem Deckel abdecken und bei niedriger Hitzezufuhr für etwa 10 Minuten leicht köcheln lassen. Sollte die Soße zu stark andicken, mit etwas warmen Wasser verdünnen.
4. Während die Hackbällchen und die Soße köcheln, die Nudeln nach Packungsanleitung al dente kochen und dann alles zusammen servieren. Nach Belieben noch mit etwas gehacktem Schnittlauch dekorieren.
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Swedish Koettbullar with Pasta
- Prep Time: 00:35
- Cook Time: 00:20
- Total Time: 02:00
- Yield: 5 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Sweden
Description
Everybody knows them from IKEA: Swedish Koettbullar with Pasta
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
some oil for frying
1 red onion, finely chopped
2–3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
28 oz. (800g) minced meat (beef & pork mixed)
3.5 oz. (100g) panko
1 large egg
5 tbsp. milk
salt, pepper
some all-purpose flour
For the sauce:
1.4 oz. (40g) butter
1/3 cup (40g) all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups (300ml) beef (or veggie) broth, warm
2/3 cup (150ml) dry white wine
7 oz. (200g) crème fraîche
1 tbsp. mustard
2 tsp. soy sauce
salt, pepper, nutmeg
your favorite pasta for serving
some chopped chives
Instructions
1. Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic. Heat up some oil in a frying pan and sauté the onion and garlic until slightly browned. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl. Add the minced meat, panko, egg, and milk. Season well with salt and pepper. Mix everything well, cover, and place in the fridge for about 1 hour.
2. Shape the meat mixture into balls in the size of golf balls – works best with slightly damp hands. Dust the meatballs with some flour or roll them lightly in the flour. Heat up a large frying pan with some oil and fry the meatballs over medium heat until they are nicely browned all around. Once the meatballs are nicely browned, remove them from the pan and place them on a plate temporarily.
3. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel if necessary, then add the butter and melt. Add the flour, stir and let cook for about 1 minute, then gradually add the broth and stir in until you get a thick sauce. Add the wine and stir it in. Add the crème fraîche, mustard, and soy sauce and stir to combine. Season with salt, pepper, and fresh nutmeg to your liking. Add the meatballs back to the pan, cover with a lid and let everything simmer gently over low heat for about 10 minutes. If the sauce thickens too much, thin it out with some warm water.
4. While the meatballs are simmering in the sauce, cook some pasta according to the package instructions and serve along with the Köttbullar. Garnish with chopped chives if you like.
Notes
Enjoy cooking!
I love my job, but in between I love to bake and try new things in the kitchen. A lot of my friends and colleagues encourage me to bake - for a very simple reason: they get the leftovers - and it seems they like it most of the time ;) 
