IKEA’S SWEDISH MEATBALLS RECIPE

IKEA’s meatballs are almost synonymous with the store name itself. You know the drill — a trip to IKEA, whether to get a Poäng armchair or a Docksta table, almost always ends with a plate of their iconic dish.

And, if we were to record all the items that Singaporeans stockpiled before the circuit breaker, IKEA’s frozen meatballs would probably be on that list. But for those of us who didn’t manage to snag a bag, the wait is over.

Our favourite furniture store is taking its build-it-yourself concept to the next level — now, apart from their furniture, you can even build for yourself their Swedish Meatballs.

That’s right, IKEA has just revealed its legendary Swedish Meatballs recipe, right from the meatballs down to the mandatory accompanying cream sauce.

IKEA SWEDISH MEATBALLS RECIPE

One glance at their straightforward instructions and you’ll know the dish is certainly far easier to assemble than any of their furniture items.

These are the ingredients you’ll need to make the famous IKEA Swedish Meatballs at home:

MEATBALLS
- 500g beef mince
- 250g pork mince
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 clove of garlic (crushed or minced)
- 100g breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 5 tablespoons of milk (whole milk)
- Generous amount of salt and pepper

CREAM SAUCE
- Dash of oil
- 40g butter
- 40g plain flour
- 150mL vegetable stock
- 150mL beef stock
- 150mL thick double cream
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

How to make the IKEA Swedish meatballs:

1. Combine beef and pork mince and mix with your fingers to break up any lumps. Add finely chopped onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg and mix. Add milk and season well with salt and pepper.

2. Shape mixture into small, round balls. Place on a clean plate, cover and store in the fridge for two hours (this will help them hold their shape whilst cooking).

3. In a frying pan, heat oil on medium heat. When hot, gently add meatballs and brown on all sides. When browned, add to an ovenproof dish and cover. Place in a hot oven (180C conventional or 160C fan) and cook for a further 30 minutes.

How to make the cream sauce for the IKEA Swedish Meatballs:

1. Melt 40g butter in a pan. Whisk in 40g of plain flour and stir for two mins. Add 150mL of veg stock and 150mL of beef stock and continue to stir. Add 150mL of double cream, 2 tsp of soy sauce and 1 tsp of Dijon mustard. Bring it to simmer and allow the sauce to thicken. 

2. When ready to eat, serve with your favourite potatoes – either creamy mash or mini new boiled potatoes. Enjoy!”

And there you have it, your very own IKEA Swedish Meatballs. Plate them on their Oftast plate and recline in your Poäng armchair for the full IKEA indulgence.

Now, there’s no need to camp outside their doors the day they open.

Wow. Another year just passed by like that. This year was a big one, and I couldn’t have done it without you guys. Thank you for being here.

I ate a lot last year, and I managed to travel quite a bit as well. Like what I always say, travelling is just an excuse for me to eat more. So I’m not surprised that some of the best meals that I had last year were during my travels.

To be frank, it’s quite difficult to impress my jaded palate nowadays. You see, the problem of having too much good food is you will always have a benchmark to compare against, and this will lead you on a (never-ending) quest for something equally good, if not better – which is often quite impossible.

Thankfully, I’ve had several really good meals throughout the past 365 days, and I hope that I’ll be able to share with you more good food this time next year.

So for now, here are the 10 Best Meals that I had in 2011.

New Year Resolution in 2012: Eat more!

JAAN Restaurant in Singapore

Ever since Chef Andre Chiang left JAAN, the fine dining restaurant at Swissotel the Stamford – ranked #39 in S.Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2010 – had struggled to fill his shoes. After eating there recently, I’m happy to say JAAN’s talented new Chef de Cuisine Julien Royer is the right person to lead them to greater heights.

The food was very, very good. It is one of the few meals I had in 2011 that made me sit up and take notice. JAAN is definitely one of the best restaurants in Singapore, and as long they stay on track, I’m sure it will not be long before they are back among the best restaurants in the world.

2 Stamford Road
70F Swissotel The Stamford, Singapore
Tel: +65 6431 5670
Mrt: City Hall Station

Café des Fédérations Bouchon in Lyon

When I was planning my Europe trip, Lyon wasn’t even in the picture. I wanted to visit some of the cities that I’ve always wanted to go – like Madrid, Venice, and Prague. After I figured that it is impossible to squeeze in all of them, I decided to keep it within the area, and Lyon – known as the food capital of France – immediately came to mind.

I’ve read a lot about the bouchons in Lyon; everyone raved that the best food in France could be found there. The Bouchon is a Lyonnais version of the classic French bistro. I’ll be writing a separate post on the food that we had, to cut the long story short, I had one of my best meals in 2011, if not my life, at Café des Fédérations.

8-10, rue Major Martin, Lyon
Tel: 04 78 28 26 00
Metro: Hotel de Ville

Bistro Soori in Singapore

Another really good meal that I had was at Bistro Soori. I wasn’t expecting much before going, and boy was I blown away by the food. It has a cosy and intimate setting, and some of the dishes – Pork Belly, Rack of Lamb, and Pandan Souffle – that we had were outstanding.

Sometimes, good things happen when you are least expecting them.

2 Teck Lim Road, Singapore
Tel: +65 6438 3802
Mrt: Outram Park Station

Zubuchon Lechon in Cebu

The lechon from Zubuchon is quite easily one of the best things that I’ve ever eaten. Utterly delicious.

One Mango Mall
General Maxilom Ave, Cebu City
+63 32 2395697

Prive Restaurant in Singapore

One of my favourite restaurants in Singapore is Prive at Keppel Bay. They serve good and unpretentious food. The meats that we had from the Josper Grill menu (prices range from $52 for Kurobuta Pork to $75 for the 280g Ribeye Cap) were fantastic. Definitely worth a try if you are in Singapore.

2 Keppel Bay Vista
GF Marina Keppel Bay, Singapore
Tel: +65 6776 0777
Mrt: Harbourfront Station

Cerveceria Catalana in Barcelona

Among the tapas places that we ate in Barcelona, Cerveceria Catalana stood out for serving good tapas at reasonable prices. It was one of the best meals that we had during the 5 days there. Just in case you are wondering, the jar of sangria you see in the picture doesn’t have anything to do with my choice. I’m completely sober as I write this.

236 Mallorca, Barcelona
Tel: 932 16 03 68
Metro: Passeig de Gràcia

Antoinette Patisserie in Singapore

Antoinette, without a doubt, is my favourite patisserie in Singapore. I lurveee Chef Pang’s creations and if I lived near the Lavender area, I could imagine myself dropping by the Parisian tea salon every other day. Try the Antoinette Chocolate Earl Grey Cake.

30 Penhas Road, Singapore
Tel: +65 6293 3121
Mrt: Lavender Station

Dinner at Martell’s Château de Chanteloup

I had many good meals during Martell’s Pure Gourmet tour, but the highlight was definitely the risotto that we had during one of the dinners. Paired with a glass of cognac, it was out-of-this-world-good. I can never see risotto in the same light again.

Naughty Nuri’s Warung in Bali

Naughty Nuri’s Warung is famous for its pork ribs, with many people calling it the place to go for the best pork ribs in Seminyak. It was so good that I polished off the whole rack by myself.

Jalan Batubelig 41 Kerobokan Kelod
Kuta Bali Indonesia
Tel: +62 361 847 6722

Pierre Herme in Paris

What do I need to say about Pierre Herme? It has always been my dream to visit the famous patisserie in Paris, and what a moment it was. After having the desserts from Pierre Herme, life will never be the same again.

If you asked me 4 years ago whether I could see myself blogging for a living, hell no. For most of us, blogging is just a hobby and it does not bring in enough to pay the bills. I have no idea what happened exactly, but four years down the road, here I am, still blogging. The truth is, I’m really thankful to be able to do this full time.

Blogging gives me a lot of satisfaction, and nothing makes me happier than knowing that people enjoy reading my blog. Sometimes, people even call me a ‘food critic’. Yes, that’s right. Or a restaurant critic, if you may. You know, a person who eats (in the best restaurants) for a living. I’d always cringe at that.

I am not a food critic. Food blogger, yes. But food critic, no.

Certainly, it sounds really cool to put ‘food critic‘ as your occupation title when you are filling up a survey form or applying for a new credit card. But do you know how hard journalists work? No, you don’t. Most people only see the glamorous side where the media folks get to dine at fine dining restaurants in style. “Professional” food writers from newspapers and food magazines work for very long hours under tremendous stress and they do not get paid very well. A professional food critic is someone like Wong Ah Yoke from Straits Times. You are a goner if you fail to recognise him in your restaurant.

Would I want to write “professionally” for newspapers or food magazines? No, definitely not. I don’t think I am qualified. I have no culinary background and I can’t write very well.

Being a full time food blogger suits me better.

There are no deadlines nor any obligations to write about something that I dislike. I can choose to write whatever I want – nonsense or not. And I can even declare my undying love for desserts without having any “editors” stare at me in disbelief, as if I’m a nutcase.

“Why do you only write positive reviews? A food critic is supposed to be objective and writes about both the positive and negative aspects of the dining experience.”

Like I said, I am not a ‘food critic’. I’m hardly objective since I can go on all day about dim sum, brunches and cakes. And just in case you are wondering why I only write positive reviews – no, I am not toying with the possibilities of getting free food from posh restaurants. On a calculated average, I receive 4-5 food tasting invitations per week, and they are all from PR agencies and restaurants themselves. Most of the time, I would turn down 90% of them because there are simply too many invitations and it is really quite impossible to accept and attend to every single one. I’m not boasting about it, but hey, that’s a fact okay? You can read more about my post on food tasting 101.

Okay I digressed. The only reason why I do not blog negatively is simply because I have no time. Do you know how many backlogs I have? Restaurants that I’ve visited but yet to blog about? Too many. Since I am already struggling to cover the restaurants that I like – an average of 4-5 per week – what makes you think I have the luxury of time to dedicate entries just to criticise?

Besides, I believe everyone comes to my food blog because they want to find new and interesting places to try, and not because they really want to hear me rant about lacklustre service & mediocre food. Food blogs that do that are aplenty, and you are free to hop by those if you’d like.

So you want to be a food critic? If it has always been your dream, then good luck for it! As for me, I am happy with my title of ‘Food Blogger‘, and it is here to stay. I have a new post for you tomorrow, see you here!