Slow Cooker Swedish Meatballs
Slow Cooker Meatballs (Swedish)
One of my favorite recipes from my husband’s grandmother were her Swedish meatballs. They were amazing! Who knew you could finish them in a crockpot!?
Ingredients:
For the Meatballs:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound breakfast pork sausage (I used Jimmy Dean — classic!)
- ½ cup finely crushed croutons (or breadcrumbs — whatever you’ve got!)
- ¼ cup finely chopped onion
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
For the Sauce:
- 1 can (10.5 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup
- 3 cups beef bouillon (or 3 cups hot water + 1 bouillon cube — I used Knorr)
- 1 envelope dry onion soup mix (Lipton works great)
- 4 oz cream cheese, cubed
Instructions
- Mix it up!
In a large bowl, combine your beef, sausage, crushed croutons, onion, salt, pepper, allspice, onion powder, and paprika. Give it a good mix — I usually just use my hands because it’s quicker (and a little fun, honestly). - Roll ’em.
Use a medium cookie scoop or a spoon to form about 1½ tablespoon-sized meatballs. You’ll get around 30 small ones. - Brown those babies.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs for about 2 minutes per side — we’re not cooking them through here, just getting that nice golden crust. - Get the crockpot ready.
Spray your slow cooker with nonstick spray. Add the mushroom soup, beef bouillon, and onion soup mix. Give it a quick stir. - Add the meatballs.
Gently place your browned meatballs into the slow cooker. Pop the lid on and cook on high for 2 hours and 45 minutes. And no peeking! (You know you want to, but resist.) - Make it creamy.
When time’s up, remove the meatballs and set them aside. Add your cubed cream cheese right into the broth and use an immersion blender to make everything silky and smooth. No immersion blender? No worries! Pour the broth into a regular blender (in batches if needed), blend with the cream cheese, then pour it back into the slow cooker. - Finish it off.
Add your meatballs back in, give everything a gentle stir, and keep it warm until dinner time.
Serving Ideas
Serve these over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or even rice. Add a side of green beans or a crisp salad, and you’ve got dinner done.
Notes & Tips
- No beef bouillon? Use beef broth instead!
- Croutons vs. breadcrumbs: Either works — use what you’ve got in the pantry.
- Make-ahead tip: You can brown and freeze the meatballs ahead of time, then just toss them in the crockpot when you’re ready.
This dish smells amazing while it cooks — like cozy fall evenings and homey dinners at grandma’s. My kids usually show up in the kitchen about an hour in, asking, “What’s for dinner?” and honestly, that’s the best compliment.
These go great over mashed potatoes, noodles, and rice. You could also just make them as appetizers and have guests use toothpicks to eat them.
The sauce is so creamy and delicious you will go back for seconds!
FAQ:
Do I need to brown the meatballs before putting them in the slow cooker?
By browning the meatballs in a skillet prior to put them in the slow cooker you are “locking in” the oil of the meat in the balls. This way your broth won’t be too diluted.
Why finely chopping the onions?
By chopping the onions finely, you add the taste of the onion and their moisture to the meatballs without overpowering.
Why add crush croutons instead of breadcrumbs?
The crushed croutons add an extra layer of spices while doing the work of a bread crumb.
Crockpot Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatball Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound breakfast pork sausage
- ½ cup finely crushed croutons breadcrumbs
- ¼ finely chopped onion
- 2 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon Allspice
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
Sauce Ingredients:
- 1 can 10.5 oz condensed mushroom soup
- 3 cups beef boullion 3 cups hot water + 1 cube of beef boullion I used Knorr
- 1 envelope Dry onion soup mix I used Lipton
- 4 oz cream cheese
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine beef, pork, crushed croutons, chopped onions, pepper, salt, allspice, onion powder and paprika
- Rolls mixture in balls, 1 ½ tablespoon, using a medium cookie scoop.
- In a skillet, over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter.
- Brown balls, 2 minutes each side.
- Spray slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.
- Mix in the slow cooker 1 can mushroom soup and 3 cups of beef bouillon and dry onion soup mixture.
- Add the meatballs.
- Cook on high 2 hours 45 minutes. No peaking!
- Take all the meatballs out of the broth. Set aside.
- Add cubed cream cheese and with an immersion blender, blend broth and cream cheese together.
- Add the meatballs back into the sauce.
- Keep warm until you are ready to serve.
Notes
Crushed croutons can be replaced with your favorite breadcrumbs
For this recipe I used breakfast pork sausage from Jimmy Dean. Any sausage blend can work. SKILLS: If you do not have an immersion blender, you can use a blender. Once you have removed all meatballs from the broth, add the broth to the blender and add the cream cheese. Caution not to fill the blender too much. Once all blended, pour the broth back into slow cooker and add the meatballs. Keep warm until ready to serve.
