Whole30 Swedish Meatballs | Easy Paleo Dinner Recipe (2024)

Whole30 Swedish Meatballs are in my friends. Creamy, delectable and unbelievably delicious Paleo Meatballs. In this blog post, we will walk through what it takes to make Healthy Swedish Meatballs and share with you all the tips and tricks that make this dish an absolute must for anyone following the Whole30 diet.

Easy Paleo Swedish Meatballs Recipe

Typically, Swedish Meatballs are made using a mixture of pork and beef and are then often combined with a filler such as flour and/or breadcrumbs, pieces of bread or mashed potatoes that help to hold the ball together. However, as you very well know, Whole30 and Paleo do not allow the usage of wheat products. Hence the use of almond flour in our recipe.

Seasonings such as herbs and spices are added to enhance the flavor of the meatballs, which are seared first then immersed in a creamy gravy.

Here is a breakdown of the ingredients I have used for the meatballs:

• Ground beef: I very much prefer to use only beef for meatballs. I prefer the taste and texture to that of a mix of pork and beef. This is a personal preference so feel free to use a mix.
• English thyme: What a flavor enhancer this is! I highly recommend using thyme in your mixture, it makes a huge difference and a little goes a long way. You can use fresh or dry. Just keep in mind that dry herbs are much stronger than fresh.
• Almond flour: also called almond meal. This is the filler we are going to use in our recipe to ensure that our meatballs hold their shape well.
• Eggs are not added for moisture, on the contrary. They are a binder and work in tandem with the almond flour to provide to build the perfect meatball texture.
• Onions provide a lot of flavor to your meatballs and are frankly unbeatable when it comes to that. They also help keep your meatballs moist and juicy.
• Salt + Pepper.

And for the sauce:

• Ghee a.k.a. clarified butter is Whole30 approved even if it is derived from dairy; Ghee doesn’t contain lactose or antigenic proteins like most dairy products.
• Tapioca Starch or Arrowroot Starch. This the thickening agent we are going to use for our gravy. You can use either Tapioca or Arrowroot, they both work very well.
• Chicken broth: you can also use beef broth. Broth in general adds a lot of flavor and my favorite one to use homemade chicken broth.
• Coconut aminos is a salty & savory dark sauce made from the fermented sap of coconut palm and sea salt. It is a fantastic replacement for soy sauce which makes it perfect for this recipe. Read more.
• Dijon Mustard : You can use either grainy mustard or ground. Make sure the mustard you are using does not have any white wine in it. You can also use yellow mustard.
• Coconut milk : go for full fat canned coconut milk. I highly recommend Thai Kitchen’s Full fat coconut milk. It’s simply better than any other alternative out there.

How to Make Whole30 Swedish Meatballs

Making Swedish Meatballs is a pretty straightforward process. Follow these simple steps and you will get it right every time.

1. In a food processor, pulse onion with thyme until you have a fine onion mixture well combined with the thyme. In a large bowl, add in the onion mixture with the salt and pepper. Add in almond flour, egg, and beef. Mix by hand.
2. Scoop up a heaped soup spoon of meat mixture and roll into a meatball. This should produce 10-12 meatballs. Heat pan on medium-high, add 1 tbsp of oil, and add meatballs in once heated. Fry them until browned, approximately 2 minutes on each side, only turning the meatballs once they’ve started to brown.
3. Reduce heat to medium and add ghee (clarified butter). Let melt, and then add tapioca starch. Whisk together to make a roux, then slowly add chicken broth, whisking until fully incorporated. Add coconut aminos and Dijon mustard then whisk. Let simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
4. Add in coconut milk and continue whisking. Let simmer on medium heat for 2-3 minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste.
5. Gently add the meatballs back into the pan in order for them to finish cooking. Do not stir until they are finished cooking. Let simmer until sauce thickens, approximately 7-8 minutes.
6. Serve with a generous dash of pepper and a sprinkle of thyme.

2 Helpful Tips

1. A general rule when forming meatballs is to work quickly and not over handle the mixture. Once the ingredients are combined, stop mixing.
2. When you do shape the meatballs, have a bowl of cold water on hand to wet your hand before rolling each one.

Bonus: Working with a well-chilled mixture yields better results. Once mixed, let your mixture chill for 30 minutes before shaping into meatballs. This is completely optional, of course, but It does make a difference.