Easy Turkey Swedish Meatballs
This recipe for Swedish Meatballs is made with lean ground turkey and a creamy sauce to create a delicious, lighter version of traditional Swedish Meatballs.
Servings: 4
Equipment
- Rimmed Baking Sheet (crucial for perfect meatballs!)
Ingredients
Swedish Meatballs
- 2 slices sandwich bread plain white or wheat, not seeded or multigrain
- ¼ cup milk or half and half
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ¼ cup yellow onion diced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves optional
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 large egg whisked
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken stock
Swedish Meatball Sauce
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 1 cup milk or cream
- ½ tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
Instructions
Swedish Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 425℉ (220℃). Spray a rimmed sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, soak 2 slices sandwich bread in ¼ cup milk .
- While the bread is soaking, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, and melt 1 tablespoon unsalted butter. Once the butter has melted, add ¼ cup yellow onion (minced) and 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves and sauté, stirring often, until the onion has just softened. Remove the skillet from the heat.
- Add the sauteed onions and thyme to the bowl with bread and mix until bread falls apart and the onion mixture has cooled slightly. To this mixture, add in 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice, and 1 large egg. Mix together until the ingredients are well combined.
- Add 1 pound ground turkey to the mixture and using your hands, gently mix together until the seasonings are well distributed throughout the meat. Be careful to not overwork your meatballs, to prevent tough meatballs.
- Scoop out about 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture, using a medium cookie scoop, and then gently shape into 1-inch meatballs. Place the meatballs onto the prepared baking sheet. Slowly pour 1 cup low-sodium chicken stock around the meatballs.
- Bake the turkey meatballs for 25 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature of 162-165℉ (73-74℃). (They will continue to rise a few degrees as they rest after baking.)
Swedish Meatball Sauce
- While the meatballs are baking, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons unsalted butter over medium heat in a medium saucepan. Once the butter has melted, slowly whisk in ¼ cup all-purpose flour, until a thick paste forms. Cook for 1-2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste from the sauce.
- Slowly whisk in 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock until incorporated. Season with 2 sprigs fresh thyme, ½ teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ½ teaspoon grated nutmeg. Bring gravy to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low. Whisk in in 1 cup milk and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until sauce is thick, whisking often.
- Remove the gravy from the heat, remove the thyme sprigs, and stir in ½ tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce . Serve the sauce over the baked meatballs with noodles or mashed potatoes, as desired.
Video
Notes
Turkey: Use lean turkey ground turkey breast or dark meat. Alternatively, you can replace the turkey with ground pork or beef (or a combination of the two).
Thyme: Feel free to omit fresh thyme, this is not traditional, I just find it adds tons of flavor.
Bread: You can opt to use white bread, wheat bread, or even your favorite gluten-free bread to make these meatballs.
Milk/Half and Half: The meatballs and the gravy use milk, cream, or half and half. Use milk to keep the gravy and meatballs lower in fat or use half and half to really make these meatballs decadent.
Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free bread in place of regular bread in the meatball mixture and use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend and gluten-free Worcestershire sauce for the sauce.
Egg-Free: Instead of using an egg in this recipe, use an additional 1 slice of bread and 2 tablespoons of milk. The extra bread will work as a binder for the meatballs.
Storage: Leftover Swedish Meatballs can be stored in an airtight container along with the sauce, after they have cooled slightly, for up to 3 days. Reheat the sauce and meatballs in a heat-safe bowl in 1-minute intervals in the microwave until warmed through.
Nutrition
Calories: 436kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 89mg | Sodium: 1125mg | Potassium: 681mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 820IU | Vitamin C: 3.1mg | Calcium: 118mg | Iron: 2.5mg
