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that matches you with fine wine you'll love
and delivers it right to your door.
The holidays will be here sooner than you think,
so now is the perfect time to order your first box
of Bright Cellars to stock up on wines
for your holiday parties or themed cocktails.
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your first six-bottle box, plus a bonus bottle.
More on that later.
Now, let's get down to basics.
(cheerful music)
All right, so the first thing we're gonna make
for our Swedish meatballs are some quick-pressed pickles,
for which we're gonna need one large cucumber.
You can optionally use a peeler to create
a sort of pattern on the outside of the cucumber,
but if you're like me,
you're not very artistically inclined,
you might end up regretting it.
Either way, we are slicing it
as thin as possible, either by hand
or on the thinnest setting on our mandoline slicer
before commencing the quick-pickling process,
combining two tablespoons of white vinegar
and two tablespoons of sugar.
Tiny whisk together until dissolved,
poured over the cucumber slices,
and then pressed to expedite the pickling process.
So we wanna weigh them down
using a bowl that fits inside of our initial bowl
and then weigh that bowl down with something heavy,
like, I don't know, this'll probably work.
But on the off chance my apron becomes wrinkly
in the next half hour, I'm gonna use a cast iron pan.
Then we're letting these guys sit
at room temperature for 30 minutes,
during which time we can prepare some herbs:
an entirely optional tablespoon each
chopped fresh dill and parsley.
That, along with some kosher salt
and freshly ground black pepper to taste,
we're gonna add to the pickles.
Give 'em a mix, and there you have it: uh, pressed pickles.
Next up, I want you to ask yourself,
have you considered the lingonberry?
Where is it from?
What is it?
Am I saying it right?
No one knows the answers to these questions,
but we do know that Swedish meatballs are commonly served
with lingonberry jam and that if you can't find it,
good ol' fashioned cranberry sauce
makes for an acceptable substitute:
one pound fresh or frozen cranberries,
simmered together with 1/2 cup each water and sugar
until the berries have all burst
and a thick, jam-like consistency is achieved,
anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes.
Let it cool completely
and refrigerate until ready to use.
Next and last on our list of make-aheads is mashed potaters.
I have here three pounds of russet potatoes
that I'm going to peel and cut into 1/2-inch cubes,
throwing them directly into a bowl
of room-temperature water, both to prevent them
from discoloring and to rinse off excess starch.
Go ahead and drain these once you're done chopping them,
and then place them into a pot with some fresh, cool water
and a whole bunch of kosher salt,
covering, bringing to a boil,
and simmering gently for about 15 minutes
until the potatoes are completely tender.
Drain these guys, and then it's time to mash,
using your mash method of choice.
I like to rice.
Once all the potatoes have been riced,
we're following standard mashed potato procedure
by combining 1 1/4 cups milk
with four ounces of unsalted butter
that we're gonna bring to a bare simmer
before pouring over the potatoes
and mixing until homogeneous
with a sprinkle of white pepper,
a coy grating of freshly ground nutmeg,
something I think works particularly well
with the spices in this recipe,
and just a whole lot of kosher salt to taste.
Something I learned recently
is that hot things taste saltier than not-as-hot things,
so, you know, do with that what you will.
Anyway, mashed potatoes. Done.
Next and last, the star of the show: the Swedish meatballs,
for which we're gonna grate half a medium onion
on the large holes of a box grater.
These guys are gonna get sauteed until soft
and lightly browned in a cast iron or carbon steel pan
with one tablespoon of melted butter,
anywhere from three to five minutes
over medium, medium-high heat,
adding a little bit of salt to help draw out moisture.
Then we're spreading these out on a rimmed baking sheet
to allow them to cool completely before we add 'em
to our meatball mix, which we're gonna start,
as we so often do, by making a panade:
1/2 cup of unseasoned bread crumbs, one large egg,
1/2 cup of milk, 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper,
and 1/8 teaspoon of ground allspice.
Tiny whisk together into a smooth mixture
that's gonna help keep our meatballs moist
and give them structure.
Speaking of which, it's time to add the meat.
You can use your meatball mix of choice.
We want one pound of meat total.
I'm going half beef, half pork.
Add our onions and about a teaspoon
or a big ol' pinch of kosher salt,
and get to mixing this stuff together by hand
until it is a smooth, homogeneous mass,
one that we can begin to shape into meated balls,
the Swedish variety of which are typically
on the smaller side of the meatball spectrum.
I'm shooting for no bigger than an inch
so as to maximize my potential number
of meatballs eaten in one sitting.
Once everybody's formed up
and impeccably arranged on a rimmed baking sheet,
we're gonna let these chill in the fridge for 30 minutes,
helping them firm up and keep their shape
before we start frying in that same carbon steel skillet,
wiped clean with three tablespoons of melted butter.
These guys are really small,
so by the time they're browned all over,
they should be cooked through,
but if they're not, you can finish them in the oven.
The bigger concern here is burning the butter.
We're gonna use the butter to build the sauce.
We don't want it to burn.
The sheer amount of meat and moisture
in this pan should help prevent that from happening,
but don't overdo it with the heat, keep your wits about you,
and don't be afraid to finish these guys in the oven.
Once they're either cooked through
or you're ready to build the sauce,
it's time to extract these guys from the situation
and build a roux in all that beautiful melted butter.
So we're adding two tablespoons of flour to the pan
and whisking it in with all that delicious fat,
cooking for one to two minutes
until the raw flour smell dissipates,
and then slowly streaming in one cup
of beef stock, preferably homemade.
If you don't have homemade,
Better Than Bouillon is a great alternative.
Stream that in in little splashes, whisking constantly
and incorporating fully before adding any more.
This is going to help prevent lumps
from forming in your gravy.
Once all the stock's been added,
we're gonna add two tablespoons of heavy cream,
whisking until completely incorporated,
and then this is not traditional,
but both to darken the color and add a little bit of flavor,
I like to add a teaspoon or two of soy sauce,
which, generally speaking,
works great with gravies of any kind.
Season with a little pinch of kosher salt,
a little sprinkle of white pepper,
and a few twists of freshly ground black pepper.
Then we're gently simmering this guy
for three to five minutes until it reaches
a nice, thick coat-the-back-of-a-spoon consistency,
tasting for seasoning before serving.
Speaking of which, it's finally time
to eat all the delicious smells we've been making,
plating up with our mashed potaters,
meatballs, lingonberry or cranberry jam,
some of our quick-pressed pickles, and of course,
a whole lot of our rich, savory, flavorful gravy.
You can finish cooking the meatballs in the sauce,
but I think this looks a whole lot nicer.
Make sure you hit both the meatballs and the potaters.
Optionally hit with a little garnish of fresh parsley,
and job done: Swedish meatballs,
better than you can get at any furniture store.
That's a Babish guarantee.
Alls it needs is some delicious wine
from today's sponsor, Bright Cellars.
Bright Cellars matches you with wine you'll love
based on a quick and simple seven-question quiz
and ships your personalized box right to your door.
Their wine education cards for each bottle
provide information like tasting notes,
suggested pairings, serving temperature, and origin,
and this presents us the opportunity
to make glogg, the Swedish mulled wine
typically served with Swedish meatballs.
This Petite Sirah should do the trick
with its notes of fruit and black pepper.
Go ahead and drop the entire bottle
into a large saucepan,
along with the peel and juice of one large orange,
and then in either a cheesecloth or this tea infuser,
we're gonna place two sticks of cinnamon,
two whole cloves, and five green cardamom pods.
Then we're gonna drop in and realize
at this point that you might need a saucepan
that is taller than it is wide,
so we're gonna transfer it over there,
along with 1/3 cup each blanched, slivered almonds
and 1/3 cup of raisins.
Then we're gonna cover this guy up,
bring him to a simmer, and let him cook for five minutes,
then let steep for 30 minutes
before digging out the tea infuser,
then adding one cup of brandy, whiskey, port,
or if you wanna be traditional, you can use aquavit.
Then, you can optionally dig out the orange peels
before serving up, being sure to dole out
plenty of almonds and raisins in every glass.
Now, I used aquavit,
which is a liqueur reminiscent of star anise,
which turned out to be a rather unfortunate mistake.
That is not great. (crew laughs)
So make sure to use whiskey, port,
or brandy, or maybe just stick to wine,
like this lovely, medium-bodied red from Allonym.
To try these for yourself, use the link
in the video description to get an exclusive offer
of 50% off your first six-bottle box, plus a bonus bottle.
(mellow jazzy music)