How To Make Swedish Meatballs & Cream Sauce

You can buy both of these in the Ikea food shops (frozen meatballs, packet mix sauce) but if you fancy the food without the mile-long trip round the store and a 30-minute wait at the checkout – and that doesn’t include the hassle of finding a parking space and getting out of the car park afterwards – try making these at home instead. (This amount of meat makes between 25–30 meatballs.)

1. Step 1:

   Make the meatballs by squishing the meat and all the seasonings together in a bowl and rolling the mixture into small balls with your hands. (Don’t use flour; just wet your hands with water.) To cook: either flash fry the meatballs for a couple

2. Step 2:

   Meanwhile, make the cream sauce by pouring the evaporated milk into a measuring jug and topping it up to the ¾ pint (450 ml) mark with boiling water.

3. Step 3:

   Pour the milk/water mixture into a saucepan and bring

4. Step 4:

   While you’re waiting for the milk to boil, mix the gravy powder, cornflour, sugar and garlic salt with a very little cold water (about 1–2 tbsp) to make a smooth paste in a mug or small bowl.

5. Step 5:

   As soon as the milk is hot enough (you may notice the beginnings of a crinkly skin on the surface), add a few tablespoons of the hot milk to the paste, making sure it’s well mixed, then pour the warm paste slowly back into the pan, whisking or stirring all the time to make a thick, lump-free sauce.

6. Step 6:

   Serve the meatballs with chips or rice, with the sauce poured over the meatballs and the fruit jelly on the side.