(Köttbullar)
No Swedish Christmas smörgåsbord could be complete – could even get started – without the meatballs. The quantity you make can vary widely, but make them you must, or it just isn’t Christmas. (Which does not mean you cannot make them at other times. Lars’ sisters have come to regard them as a staple food. They freeze well and make a handy quick meal – you can take out just the amount you need.)
Don’t try to add seasonings to this recipe or make it “fancy” in some way. The result may taste all right, but it won’t be the familiar Swedish meatballs.
Meatballs can be made ahead and frozen. After they are completely cooked in the broth, drain the meatballs and freeze them on trays covered with wax paper, and after they’re frozen solidly, pack them in airtight containers. The broth should be frozen separately, and made into gravy when you serve the meatballs.
Making meatballs is a time-consuming task, not to be rushed and best done as a family, to the accompaniment of your favorite libations. Some extra hands of friends and neighbors are handy, if you’re making a large batch.
The following is the basic recipe, and calls for a total of one pound of meat. When we’re having a BIG party, we make the big kettle full of meatballs, using between two and five kilograms of meat. Do use butter here, and not margarine. It’s essential for the flavor.
250 g beef, ground
45 ml onion, finely chopped
250 g pork, ground
7.5 ml salt
225 ml bread crumbs
1 ml white pepper
1 egg
15 ml butter
Milk, about 125 ml
To Fry: 30-45 ml butter
For Gravy:
pan juice
15 ml flour (optional)
180 to 225 ml cream (optional – can also substitute skim evaporated milk, which tastes very rich without the calories)
salt, white pepper
Have butcher grind pork and beef together two or three times through the meat grinder. (If you have trouble finding a butcher who will do this, you can do it at home, but you’ll likely wind up investing in an electric grinder after just a few years of making these!) It must be ground very finely, not coarsely like hamburger. Bread crumbs also must be extremely fine, as must onion. Melt butter in heavy skillet and fry onions just until they turn translucent, being very careful not to let them get too dark or burn. (If they do burn, start over again – don’t try to make do – you won’t be happy with the results.)
Put the bread crumbs in a large bowl and soak in milk. Addmeat, egg, onion, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly until completely smooth, finishing process with hands. Shape into small balls, about 2 cm in diameter, by rolling between your hands.
Fry in butter until evenly browned, shaking pan continuously to make balls round. (This is the traditional way, but Lars’ parents usually take the easy way out, developed by his Grandma and Grandpa Hedbor. They broil them in the oven, placing the meatballs on cake racks set on trays with sides to catch the drippings. Watch very closely and turn to brown all sides.) Remove each batch from pan and place in pot large enough to easily hold the whole batch – we usually use a large Dutch oven. Clear the skillet after each batch by swishing a little water around it, and pour water together with drippings over meatballs in the pot.
When meatballs are all browned, add a little more water, if needed, to just about cover meatballs, and simmer very gently for an hour or so. We usually just add salt and white pepper to taste and serve as is, but you can also make a thickened gravy. Remove meatballs from broth, mix flour and cream together, and add to broth, and simmer gently until thickened, adding more cream if needed.