Swedish meatballs may be one of the most popular dishes out in IKEA in Ballymun, but 'Swedish' isn't an entirely fair description of the dish.
Over the weekend, Sweden's official Twitter account made a startling confession about the country's most famous culinary export:
Swedish meatballs are actually based on a recipe King Charles XII brought home from Turkey in the early 18th century. Let's stick to the facts! pic.twitter.com/JuTDEjq9MM
— Sweden.se (@swedense) April 28, 2018
The news that Swedish meatballs actually originated in Turkey prompted many responses from people in both countries:
My whole life has been a lie https://t.co/tVcRmJx5By
— @sweden / Örjan (@sweden) April 28, 2018
I'm a Turkish man and I love Swedish meatballs â¤ï¸. Thanks for your honesty. âš–ï¸ðŸ‡¹ðŸ‡·
— Damdanakan (@rmstnvct) April 28, 2018
Variants of the meatball dish can be found across the Middle East and parts of Asia, with the Turkish version known as köfte.
One academic told Turkey's Anadolu Agency that King Charles XII also brought back other treats from his stay in Istanbul (which was then part of the Ottoman empire) - including coffee beans and stuffed cabbage.
Mind you we love coffee even more than meatballs! At one point we even had a coffee prohibition in Sweden!
— Sweden.se (@swedense) April 30, 2018
