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I love these Low-Carb Baked Swedish Meatballs made with ground beef, sausage, onion, garlic, and the perfect spices! Use pork or turkey breakfast sausage for the meatballs, whichever you prefer.

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Baked Swedish Meatballs close-up photo

I love these Baked Swedish Meatballs so much that I’ve been making them for years! And if you’re looking for low-carb and Keto Appetizer Recipes, these are such a great choice for anyone who’s watching their carbs that they seemed perfect to feature for Friday Favorites this time of year!

But if your experience with Swedish Meatballs is limited to Ikea Swedish Meatballs, it might be only the seasonings used in this recipe that are familiar. I love so many things about this recipe for Swedish Meatballs that I spotted years ago on a Swedish food blog: the finely chopped onion, that it doesn’t use breadcrumbs or serve the meatballs with a creamy gravy, and the way the meatballs are baked instead of fried.

The biggest change I made was in my version of Baked Swedish Meatballs was to make the meatballs with a combination of turkey breakfast sausage and ground beef. You could certainly use pork sausage too if that’s what you prefer! I tested the recipe with my niece Kara, and we both thought these meatballs were completely delicious.

What ingredients do you need?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

Are the Baked Swedish Meatballs gluten-free?

Of course not using breadcrumbs to hold the meatballs together makes these Swedish Meatballs gluten-free, FTW! Most sausage will be gluten-free, but check the package to be sure.

Can Baked Swedish Meatballs be made ahead and kept warm?

I haven’t tried making these meatballs ahead and keeping warm in a slow cooker, but I’m pretty sure it would work if you’d like to serve Swedish Meatballs for game-day food! If anyone makes these and keeps them warm that way, please come back and let us know how that turned out!

Do you have to use a rack to bake the Swedish Meatballs?

I’m a fan of baking meatballs and meatloaf on a rack so the fat drips down. See below for two different baking racks that we rigged up from what I had in my kitchen; the meatballs on the wire rack cooked more quickly and browned better on all sides, so use that type if you can. Cooking the meatballs on a rack like this is not 100% necessary, but there will be some liquid that oozes out and baking on a rack lets that drip down away from the meatballs.

Want more ideas for low-carb meatballs?

Check my round-up of 20 Recipes for Low-Carb and Keto Meatball for even more ideas for meatballs for dinner or game-day noshing.

Baked Swedish Meatballs process shots collage

How to Make Baked Swedish Meatballs:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

  1. I used ground beef and ground turkey sausage, but use pork sausage if you prefer. Crumble meat into a bowl and let it come to room temperature.
  2. Be sure onion is very finely minced so it’s well-distributed through the meat. I used my beloved Cuisinart Food Processor (affiliate link) to chop the onion, which worked well.
  3. Add the onions and spices to the bowl, and gently mix the meat and seasonings with clean hands.
  4. I recommend using this type of rack for baking the meatballs if you can.
  5. Spray the rack with olive oil. Use a tablespoon-sized measuring spoon to scoop out meatballs and form them with your hands. We made about 40 small meatballs, about 10 servings for an appetizer.
  6. Bake meatballs 20 minutes or slightly longer; until they’re slightly browned and cooked through. (We turned the ones on the rack with smaller holes half way through, but the ones on the wire rack didn’t need to be turned.)

Baked Swedish Meatballs on serving plate

Make it a low-carb Meal:

If you wanted to serve this for a low-carb meal you could make the Baked Swedish Meatballs a little bigger and serve with something like No Mayo Vinegar Coleslaw, Greek Salad with Peppers or Lemon Parmesan Kale Salad.

More Tasty Meatballs You Might Like:

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe has been added to a category called Weekend Food Prep to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

Baked Swedish Meatballs on serving plate
Yield: 10 servings

Baked Swedish Meatballs

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes

I love these Low-Carb and Keto Baked Swedish Meatballs, and they're a delicious appetizer, or make them a bit bigger and serve as a main course.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. ground beef
  • 1 lb ground turkey breakfast sausage (see notes)
  • 1 small onion, diced very small
  • 1 T garlic puree (also called ground garlic)
  • 1/2 tsp. Veg-Sal (see notes)
  • 1/4 tsp. white pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
  • 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
  • 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400F/200C.  Put meat in mixing bowl and allow to come to room temperature while you finely chop onion. I used my beloved Cuisinart Food Processor (affiliate link) to chop the onion, which worked well.
  2. When the meat is room temperature, mix in onions, garlic, Veg-Sal, pepper, ginger, cardamom, allspice, and cinnamon. Mix with your clean hands just until spices and meats are well combined; don’t over-mix the ingredients.
  3. Mist pan or grilling rack with olive oil or non-stick spray.  (Baking on a wire rack with a baking sheet underneath it will make the meatballs cook more evenly and it also lets any liquid that oozes out drip down away from the meatballs.)
  4. Use a tablespoon-sized measuring spoon to measure out meat, forming small meatballs by rolling with your hands and placing them on the rack as you go. We made about 40 small meatballs, but they can be a bit larger if you prefer, just adjust the cooking time.
  5. Bake until meatballs are slightly browned and cooked through,  about 20 minutes for small meatballs.  Serve hot.

Notes

Use ground pork or pork sausage if you prefer. If you don't have Vege-Sal (affiliate link) use a slightly smaller amount of regular salt.

Nutritional information based on appetizer-size serving of four meatballs.

This recipe was originally from Anne’s Food, and slightly adapted by Kalyn.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

10

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 235Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 5gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 113mgSodium: 332mgCarbohydrates: 2gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 19g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

© Danica Thomas
Category: Appetizers

Baked Swedish Meatballs shown on serving platter.

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
These Baked Swedish Meatballs will be good for any type of low-carb diet, although you’d want to use pork sausage if you’re making them for Keto. With low-fat ground beef and low-fat ground turkey sausage or ground turkey, the meatballs are a good dish for all phases of the original South Beach Diet

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Appetizers or Oven Dinners to find more low-carb recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Danica's Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe for Baked Swedish Meatballs was first posted in 2007 and I’ve made it many times since then! It was last updated with more information in 2023.

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