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These Gluten Free Swedish Meatballs are the perfect cozy dinner. They’re warm and comforting with just enough (dairy-free) creamy gravy to make you feel a bit indulgent. What is even better is that they’re simple to make and a crowd favorite. They’re Whole30 and Paleo friendly and totally dairy-free.
Gluten Free Swedish Meatballs
Swedish meatballs may be just be the ultimate comfort, especially when they’re served on top of a bed of mashed potatoes! The meatballs are so tender with a hint of warmth from the allspice covered in a creamy gravy that just so happens to be dairy and gluten-free.
Ingredients Needed
Ingredients Needed- Ground Meat (We used beef and pork, but beef and turkey can work too!)
- Almond flour
- Onion
- Egg
- Spices
- Avocado Oil
- Coconut Aminos
- Dijon Mustard
- Beef Broth
- Cashew Cream
- Arrowroot Starch
How It’s Made Dairy-Free
We’re big fans of cashew cream here at LCK. Cashew cream is simply soaked cashews that are blended until they are smooth and creamy. It’s a great replacement for heavy cream or in some recipes cream cheese. It can be used for both savory or sweet recipes but also it’s just kind of delicious! It works so well with these Swedish Meatballs. We wrote a whole recipe, complete with a video, on how to make it. So check out this post if you want all the tips on making it.
If you can’t tolerate nuts, but can tolerate dairy feel free to swap out the cashew cream 1-1 with heavy cream.
How to Make Paleo and Whole30 Swedish Meatballs
Begin by making your meatball mixture by adding all the ingredients into a bowl and mixing together until fully incorporated. Roll meat mixture into 1-½” balls and set aside.
Next you’re going to sear the meatballs in a skillet and lock in all that delicious flavor. Brown on all sides of the meatball and then set them aside on a plate while you make the gravy.
Before you start the gravy, make an arrowroot slurry by whisking together the arrowroot starch and water. You’ll need this to thicken up the gravy. Set aside until you are ready to use it.
Then you’re going to toast up some grated onion, coconut aminos and dijon in the pan for a minute before deglazing that pan with some beef broth. Add in the cashew cream and some of arrowroot slurry and scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
Return the meatballs to the gravy and cook them until they’ve reached an internal temperature of 165ºF.
If the gravy hasn’t thickened enough, stir in the remainder of the slurry and then taste and adjust the seasoning!
What to Serve with Dairy Free Swedish Meatballs
Swedish meatballs can be served over a bed of mashed potatoes or buttered noodles and typically served with a sweet fruit compote like lingonberry sauce.
Some other options to serve with the dish:
- How to Cook Spaghetti Squash
- Oven Roasted Vegetables
- How to Make Cauliflower Rice
- Crockpot Cranberry Sauce
Watch the video:
If you like this meatball recipe, check out these others:
- Gluten Free Turkey Meatballs with Spinach
- Apple Sage Turkey Meatballs
- Thai Meatballs
- Eggplant Meatballs
GLUTEN FREE SWEDISH MEATBALLS
Ingredients
For Meatballs:
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 3/4 cup 75 grams almond flour
- ½ small onion grated
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley finely chopped
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon allspice
- 1-2 tablespoons avocado oil for searing
For Gravy:
- ½ small onion grated
- 2 teaspoons coconut aminos
- 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1-1/2 cups beef broth
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup cashew cream prepared
- 2 teaspoons arrowroot starch
- Chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Add beef, pork, almond flour, onion, parsley, egg, garlic powder, salt, pepper and allspice to a large bowl and mix together until fully incorporated. Roll meat mixture into 1-½” balls (about 3 tablespoons each) and set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium. Once hot add half of meatballs to the pan, and brown on all sides, about 1-2 minutes per side. Set aside. Repeat with remaining meatballs, adding more oil if needed, and remove from the skillet and shut off heat.
- Pour off excess oil from the skillet, without disturbing any of the browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
- Return heat to medium and add in the grated onion, coconut aminos and dijon and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add in beef broth and cashew cream and scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
- Meanwhile, make an arrowroot slurry by whisking together arrowroot with 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl.
- Whisk 2 teaspoons of the arrowroot slurry to the gravy until fully incorporated and bring the gravy to a soft boil. Lower the heat to simmer and add back in meatballs.
- Cook the meatballs, stirring occassionally, for 8-10 minutes, or until the meatballs have reached an internal temperature of 165.
- If the gravy hasn’t thickened enough, stir in the remainder of the slurry. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Serve meatballs with gravy and additional parsley over mashed potatoes, buttered noodles or spaghetti squash.
Notes
- If you can’t tolerate nuts, but can tolerate dairy feel free to swap out the cashew cream 1-1 with heavy cream.
What would Be the best substitutes for the cashew cream?
It’s in the post: “If you can’t tolerate nuts, but can tolerate dairy feel free to swap out the cashew cream 1-1 with heavy cream.”
Can you use light coconut milk in place of the cashew cream?
It would change the flavor and viscosity, but it can work.
Question: Is there a way to make this nut-free?
These are amazing! So much flavor and easy. I wanted the meatball part to be a little more hands off bc I’m pregnant and standing at the stove is hard. My husband suggested we preheat a cast iron skillet, sear one side of the meatballs, and then bake it the rest of the way in the skillet – and this worked great for us! I was still able to cook the gravy in the skillet for flavor when they were done.
Yum! Crowd pleaser tonight. I baked the meatballs in the oven for 15 min @ 350 and added them to the sauce the last few minutes of cooking. Still turned out delicious!