Hello everyone, today it’s the second episode of our Northern Europe Series.
I told you in the previous show that I went to Copenhagen in Denmark,
Stockholm in Sweden,
And Helsinki in Finland.
I went after the local foods there.
I tried bakery in Copenhagen, Denmark.
I joined a little tour in Stockholm, Sweden.
There was a tour guide, leading us among the streets.
and visited some very traditional markets.
As well as some famous restaurants,
street food, and cafe.
But the most important food was the Swedish meatballs.
It’s really iconic in Sweden.
It’s said that every grandma has stored a large amount of meatballs at home,
and they freeze them just to get ready if their grand children are coming.
so that they can serve with the meatballs.
So today I am going to show you how to make Swedish meatballs.
Very basic ingredients.
You will need pork mince, beef mince, mix the two together, and add in some simple seasonings.
Start of by preparing the onions.
Dice them into fine pieces.
And parsley as well.
Parsley is for garnish later.
Cut off the leaves, and roll them up.
And then dice.
You will need beef stock for this recipe.
Sometimes when I’m lazy, I buy the stock bricks from grocery stores as well.
Follow the instructions and dissolve it in hot water.
Now fry the onions.
Add in a knob of butter and some vegetable oil.
Add in diced onions when butter melts.
Cook over low to medium heat until slightly browned.
Let them cool and set aside.
Now put pork mince and beef mince in a large bowl.
Add in salt and sugar.
black pepper.
fresh cream.
Or milk if you don’t have cream.
Next, egg.
breadcrumb.
I also have a nutmeg here, for touch of spice.
I am using a whole nutmeg, grate with a grater.
About this much.
Now add in cooled fried onions.
Mix well.
Add in a little beef stock.
Not too much. Add in 50-80ml for two times.
Since we have breadcrumb in the meatballs, so adding stock makes them soft.
And it also makes the meatballs moist and tender.
Mix well. Better chill it for a while and make sure the flavors blend in.
Take it out and roll into meatballs.
It’s up to you if you like it big or small.
Personally I like small ones, just a mouthful size.
Now they are done. Set aside.
Next up, prepare the sauce.
You will need beef stock, cream, flour and butter.
Heat oil first.
Add in a generous amount of oil in a pan.
Put the meatballs in the pan.
Sear them until golden.
Be careful do not break the meatballs when you flip.
Brown each side evenly.
Transfer them on a plate and set a side.
Now, the sauce.
There is still much oil left in the pan, you can wipe it clean with a piece of kitchen towel.
Not too clean, and save some in the pan.
Add in butter.
Cook over medium heat and let the butter melt, and then add in flour.
Cook the flour for a while.
Until it gets some color on.
Pour in beef stock.
Not too much, here I have about 300ml.
Stir immediately with spatula.
Once it boils, the sauce is getting thicker.
Reduce the sauce.
When it’s thick enough, put the meatballs back in the pan.
Since the stock bricks are salty.
you need no more salt at this point.
Cover with lid.
Let them cook with sauce for about 8 minutes or so.
Stir occasionally.
Make sure they are coated with sauce.
Add in fresh cream before you turn off the heat.
It’s optional, but it adds a rich flavor.
Now it’s almost ready.
Now let me show you how to make the side, mashed potato.
Peel potatoes, cut into large chunks, and put them in cold water.
Add in some salt.
Bring it to a boil.
Until potatoes are cooked through.
Drain and transfer them in a bowl.
Add in butter.
Some salt and pepper.
Season while it’s still hot.
You don’t have to mash them until creamy.
I like it rough with little potato lumps in it.
Now, plating.
Mashed potato first.
And then meatballs with sauce.
Now the Swedish meatballs are done.
Sprinkle some parsley to garnish.
There are pork mince and beef mince in the meatballs.
So you can have both of them in a single bite.
And the sauce with butter, cream and beef stock,
the flavor is rich.
Along with buttery mashed potatoes.
So the whole plate is very rich.
So you will need some snacks to balance the flavor.
First, pickles.
And then next one is, jams.
If you never taste it before you may find it a bit odd to go with meatballs.
But in fact jam can reduce the richness and cool down the flavor.
And it compliments with the meaty flavor.
That’s all for today. We have three episodes for Northern Europe series.
So next week it will be the last one.
The agenda is the same, Izakaya on Wednesday and Amanda Tastes on Thursday.
But I have been really busy these days.
So I am not sure that we are going to upload on time next week.
If I cannot make it I will let you know.
So see you next week, bye!