Crock Pot Swedish Meatballs are made simply with frozen meatballs, cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, and fresh mushrooms. A simple main course made with only 5 minutes of meal prep, cozy gravy, and perfect over egg noodles.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe:
You can make these crockpot Swedish meatballs in a creamy sauce with little effort. You can eat the meatballs with just the creamy gravy or over egg noodles for more variety.
- Easy cooking: Cooks on low in the slow cooker in 4-6 hours
- Simple ingredients: You’ll only need pantry ingredients and frozen meatballs!
- Serving variety: You can serve these as an appetizer or as an easy dinner.
If you love this recipe, you will thank us later once you’ve tried our Slow Cooker Pork Stroganoff. The taste is similar to the Swedish meatball sauce!
Key Ingredients:
Cream of mushroom soup and beef broth are the bases of the cooking liquid for the meatballs.
Mushrooms, onion, garlic powder, A1 steak sauce, paprika, salt, and black pepper are all you will need to season and get the best flavor.
Using frozen meatballs will keep this recipe super simple!
Sour cream or Greek yogurt adds to the rich flavor of this Swedish meatball recipe.
See below for a detailed list of ingredients!
Equipment Needed:
How to Make Crock Pot Swedish Meatballs:
- For the best results, whisk together cream of mushroom soup and beef broth right in your slow cooker. This way you can avoid extra dishes and miss out on extra sauce.
- To the crock pot, add fresh mushrooms, diced onion, garlic powder, steak sauce (A-1 sauce is our favorite), paprika, salt, and pepper, and mix all of the ingredients until they are combined to distribute the flavor into the sauce and meatballs.
- Add meatballs and mix until the meatballs are fully coated in the creamy sauce.
- Cover and cook the meatballs on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours, though we prefer this recipe on a lower heat to get the flavor to fully penetrate the meatballs.
- Stir in sour cream the last 30 minutes of cooking, but to keep it from curdling, either temper the temperature of the sour cream with a little bit of the gravy in another bowl or to turn it to low or warm for this step
- Serving the Swedish meatballs over rice, egg noodles, or mashed potatoes are all great options!
Tips and Recipe Notes
- Use low-sodium beef broth to reduce the amount of salt.
- Taste before salting the sauce. A1 and condensed soup add plenty of salt.
- Do not add water to the condensed cream of mushroom soup like you would when making the soup, just use the cream straight from the can.
- Add a little Worcestershire sauce to the cream sauce.
- If the sauce is too thin add a cornstarch slurry and cook on HIGH until thickened.
- Switch the sour cream for plain greek yogurt for a healther version of this comforting dish.
Stovetop Variation
Simmer the meatballs covered for 20-30 minutes in the creamy gravy recipe and then add in the sour cream carefully at a lower temperature to avoid curdling.
Storage and Reheating Instructions
To store the butter, refrigerate it in an airtight container for 4 to 7 days. For longer storage, shape the butter into a log, wrap it in plastic wrap and aluminum foil, and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge; however, try to avoid repeated thawing or refreezing.
FAQ’s for Juicy Meatballs
You will want to choose either homestyle or Swedish-style meatballs; skip Italian-style seasoned meatballs. The Italian meatballs will add more of a basil flavor to the savory sauce than you are looking for when making this comforting meal.
If you want to make up your own meatballs for this recipe, you are welcome to do so! However, to prevent the ground beef or sausage meatballs from breaking while they cook in the slow cooker, make sure to bake them ahead of time.
To get the flavor we all know and love from IKEA’s meatballs, add a spoonful of lingonberry jam on the side for classic contrast.
Cook egg noodles separately and toss them with a little butter, spoon meatballs and sauce on top just before serving for an easy hearty meal.
More Homemade Dips and Spreads:
Slow Cooker Hawaiian Meatballs, Sweet and Sour Meatballs, Sweet and Tangy Meatballs, and Sweet Polynesian Meatballs are great for when you want tangy meatballs for a simple meal or appetizer.
Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Meatballs or Instant Pot Italian Meatballs are perfect for more traditional yet flavorful meatballs the whole family will love!
Crock Pot Swedish Meatballs Recipe
Ingredients
- 10.75 ounces cream of mushroom soup
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
- ½ onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 Tablespoons steak sauce, A1
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 28 ounces frozen meatballs, homestyle
- 1 cup sour cream
Equipment
Instructions
- Whisk together cream of mushroom soup and beef broth in your slow cooker.
- Add mushrooms, onion, garlic powder, steak sauce, paprika, salt, and pepper and mix until combined.
- Add meatballs and stir in until meatballs are coated in sauce.
- Cover and cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours.
- Mix in sour cream the last 30 minutes of cooking.
Notes
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To make this a freezer meal, place all ingredients except for the sour cream into a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag. Lay bag flat in the freezer.
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When ready to use, remove bag from the freezer and place in the fridge and let it thaw for 24 hours.
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Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Dump the contents of the bag into the slow cooker and cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10.
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Mix in sour cream the last 30 minutes of cooking.
Nutrition
Video
Did You Make This Recipe?We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a review or a question in the comment section below the post.
When do you add the sour cream? Thanks!
My boys love the Ikea meatballs, and these look even better. Can’t wait to try these!
Where does the sour cream go? On top, or mixed in?
I am so sorry! You just mix it in the last 30 minutes of cooking. We have updated the recipe. Thanks!
Hi MaryEllen!
I am so sorry I left that out on accident! You just mix it in the last 30 minutes of cooking. Thanks!
I accidentally mixed in the sour cream with cream of mushroom & beef broth… Do you think it’ll still be okay?!! Oops :(. Thank you!!
Do you need to thaw the meatballs or do they go in frozen?
I lived in Sweden for several years and the gravy recipe I learned for meatballs was simpler, though I don’t know if it would work as well for a crockpot.
1 cup beef broth
1 cup heavy cream or whole milk
2 tbsp. flour
Soy sauce
Salt and pepper
Carefully whisk flour into the beef broth and mix until smooth. Add the cream and cook gently until thickened. Season to taste with sauce sauce, salt, and pepper.
Swedish meatballs are ridiculously easy to make as well. Only requiring a beef/pork mixture, egg, breadcrumbs, onion, milk, and salt and pepper.
The jars of lingonberry jam from Ikea are a perfect accompaniment to the meatballs and gravy.
Also, if you really want to be authentic and eat the meatballs Swedish style, try them with small peeled boiled potatoes. That was the most popular side dish with meatballs in the south of Sweden.
I lived in Sweden for several years and the recipe I learned for gravy was a little easier, but I don’t think it would work very well for the crockpot. Swedish cuisine is actually very light on spices and seasoning.
Here is my gravy recipe that I love.
1 cup beef broth
1 cup heavy cream or whole milk
2 tbsp. flour
Soy sauce
Salt and pepper
Carefully whisk in the flour into the broth in a pan over low heat. Mix until smooth. Then add the cream and stir until thickened. You can turn up the heat a little bit to get it a bit thicker. Once thickened season to taste with soy sauce, salt, and pepper.
Swedish meatballs are also very simple to make. I make about 500 or so meatballs every year for a Swdish mid summer party. I have a meatball making party at my house and we roll meatballs-the help is necessary to churn out that number of meatballs quickly.
My recipe calls for 1/2 lb ground beef, 1/2 lb. ground pork, 1 finely minced medium onion, 1 egg, 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, 3 tbsp. whole milk, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp white pepper. Mix and form into meatballs.
You can fry these in batches or bake them in the oven at 375. I usually bake them.
If you make your own meatballs, then use the pan drippings to make the gravy instead of broth.
Thank you for the nice recipe.
The recipe sounds really easy & good ! However do you think I could make my own meatballs?3
I made these for dinner tonight & served them over egg noodles. My 16yo loved them, of course everyone else did too
Your own meatballs will work fine in this recipe!!
Just throw them in frozen!
After cooking and cooling these, could they be frozen and reheated later? If so, any specific steps to follow?
Hi Ashley. You could certainly freeze them and reheat later. 🙂 Just put them in a freezer bag or an airtight container.
A-1 Sauce is basically Worcestershire sauce and ketchup — mix some up and you’ll be happily surprised! One less prepared sauce to keep on hand!
Do you think this recipe could be doubled in the slow cooker or is that going to be too much and not cook adequately?
Any substitute suggestions for the mushrooms. My family and I don’t like, therefore don’t eat, mushrooms. But the rest of it sounds wonderful.
I actually love mushrooms and I have made the real sweetish meat balls while in school in homeck and they were delicious and the gravy was also very good and yummy !!!
I would only double it if your crockpot was 6 quart or bigger. It may take a little longer to cook. Just watch closely and check for doneness.
Stumbled across this recipe while looking for a Swedish meatball recipe. Had to take the time to tell you that I too come from a family of six sisters, no boys. It has been a really cool thing for us all to grow old together. We all live all across the United States, from Baltimore to Alabama. Still stay in contact, and still cherish my sisters. Here, here to being a part of my six sisters!
Joni Coward
Graniteville, South Carolina
Did these as a standalone for a Christmas hors d’oeuvres buffet this year and they killed. As about half my family is allergic to mushrooms, I subbed in cream of broccoli instead with no ill effects. As good as they were, I would advise against doubling; we had leftovers for days 😉
Made these today and they were delicious. But how do I keep the sour cream from curdling? I’m going to try a lighter version with turkey meatballs and light sour cream next time.
Thank you for the recipe. I live in a country without processed foods (frozen meatballs?!?) so ‘from scratch’ ideas are great.
Just don’t add the sliced mushrooms. As far as the cream of mushroom soup, the mushrooms in it are cut so tiny, you won’t even know it’s in there.
Pinned and I will be sharing at Katherines Corner on Tuesday xo
My son requested these, so I made this recipe and am waiting for it to finish. It smells amazing. However, when I stirred it the last couple times I noticed the “gravy” is not gravy-ish; it is very runny. I followed the directions exactly. Will the sour cream thicken it enough?
I had to make a dish for a pot luck and chose this because I had some frozen meatball. Everyone raved about it and asked me for the recipe.
Too salty; sauce too runny. While the recipe was a good starting point, these were not comparable to Ikea meatballs.
We made these exactly….sort of…tonight. We used HP sauce because we did not have A1 and we used M&M meatballs which just happened to be italian.
Other than that, this was an amazing dinner served over rice. My son (17) pretty much licked his plate clean and my husband was making yummy noises.
This was our first recipe from the Six Sister’s collections but won’t be our last!! Thank you. I’m glad I purchased all six of the e-cookbooks when they were on sale.
Thanks Kristina for your sweet comments!! Glad to know the men in your life liked the meatballs!!
Tonight was my second time making them. I forgot to add the sour cream at the end. I remembered after everybody had eaten. Opps! But then I realized that some members of my family have dairy sensitive tummys and I cut fat and calories by leaving it out. Everybody liked them anyway so it all worked out.
Light sour cream will curdle even more due to the low fat content.
I looooove Swedish meatballs. I’ve only ever made them from scratch before (which is time consuming), but this was a great tasting alternative. I cut the broth by about 1/2 a cup, added a hefty teaspoon of dry mustard and 1/4 teaspoon each of nutmeg and allspice. Only used half the sour cream at the end. Quick and easy fix for my cravings, thanks for the recipe.
These were really quite good. I only used half the sour cream called for. I also increased the amount of mushrooms called for. Also they make an extremely large amount! A great meal to serve over egg noodles while watching the Sunday football game.
Mine is also turning out runny. I am thinking of adding some flour but don’t want to ruin it. I noticed there are no replies to other comments that reported the same issue. Any suggestions?
You can easily thicken it up with flour or corn starch mixture.
Is it possible to make this in an Instant Pot?
This should work great in the Instant Pot. This post should help you.
https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/how-to-convert-recipes-into-instant-pot-recipes/
I have made these so many times and the last few times i made them in the instant pot. If making in the instant pot make sure to saute mushrooms and onions first .then add all other ingredients like normal. Cook on manual for 8 min with quick release. I usually decrease the beef broth a little as well . Yum!
Thank you for sharing. I like to make my own meatballs rather than store bought as I am really fussy about what goes into my meat etc. Thanks again.
So good to know! Are the ratios 1:1?
I’ve made this twice! Turned out great! The whole fam loved it!
This one never even made it to the freezer. My boyfriend decided he was throwing it in the IP right away! It was delicious. I think I’ll add a little corn starch at the end next time to thicken, but otherwise so good!
I have this thawed and rady to go but forgot sour cream. How do you thin a little cream cheese would do or should i just omit it all together?
I’m not sure how good cream cheese would be for a substitute for sour cream. Plain Greek yogurt makes a good substitute if you have some on hand.
I have made this recipe several times. In fact, I have a crockpot cooking now with the meatballs. My brother-in-law loves it.
Absolutely delicious! Perfect amount of sauce. We served over egg noodles.
I loved the flavor, but found it a bit salty. I’ve used frozen meatballs for other things & never found them salty. But between the prepared meatballs & the prepared soup, even my husband commented that it was overwhelming. I didn’t add the salt recommended & I use no salt beef broth. Any ideas?
I’m not sure why it would have been so salty. We have not had that issue. Just use reduced sodium any way you can.
I tried this recipe knowing that my family is uber picky about meatballs. Sometimes they like them, most of the time they don’t. This recipe was a hit!!! I thought we’d have lots of leftovers that no one would eat, but we didn’t! Everyone was fighting over second helpings. I did omit the fresh mushrooms, as no one in my family will eat them, but overall… a really big hit! Will definitely make again (in fact, I’m taking some tonight to a friend that just had surgery.) Thank you for a wonderful recipe sisters!
So glad the family loved the Swedish Meatballs. And so nice of you to share with a neighbor in need!
Everyone in the family loved it!!! Easy and delicious!
We are so glad your family loved the Swedish Meatballs.
I’m not a fan of meatballs but I really did like this recipe. It had everything going for it, easy recipe, frozen meatballs, and a slow cooker . I am keeping this recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Have you ever tried Golden Cream of Mushroom Soup instead of regular? Game changer for me. I use it when I cook a roast, we like hamburgers and gravy (great with mashed potatoes).
Sounds amazing! Thanks so much for sharing.
I’d planned to do this tonight, but my meatballs are in the fridge instead of freezer. Will that make a difference?
You can use defrosted meatballs in this recipe, just check on them sooner as they’ll heat through a lot quicker