Holiday fun: One gigantic meatball is nearly all you would need to feed 25 guests

'It's the proper Christmas showstopper.'
(IKEA courtesy photo via The Washington Post) 

Known for its flatpack furniture and iconic cafeteria offerings, Ikea is breaking from its minimalism-design traditions and serving up turkey-sized meatball. "The British branch of the Swedish retailer is holding a contest in which it is giving away 30 of the giant orbs, along with another 30 'vegan-friendly Veggieball Christmas Trees,'" reports Emily Heil of The Washington Post. "Ikea did not specify the weight of the thing, but the hulking, perfectly round meatball/boulder feeds up to 25 people, it said."

The overwhelming globe of meaty wonderfulness had some people wondering if the contest was a hoax. "But over the weekend, the company revealed the legal terms and conditions of the giveaway, making it look like this was, in fact, the real deal," Heil writes. "Winners, the company said, must pick up their prizes from their Ikea stores on Dec. 22-23. 'The Turkey-Sized Meatball is real!' it said in an Instagram post. 'It's big. It's tasty. It could be yours!'"

Ikea's normal-sized Swedish meatballs are a favorite, with some customers frequenting the store to stock up on meatballs. "During the pandemic, the company even released its recipe to give housebound devotees their fix," Heil adds. "They are typically served in a cream sauce, and the giant holiday version appears to come with a side of that traditional pairing to pour over the top."

"But the gargantuan version of the' ball perplexed my colleagues. First, guessing the size was difficult: 4 oz. servings for 25 people totals 6 ¼ pounds," Heil explains. "But Ikea claims that it is 'turkey-sized,' and most holiday turkeys are 10 pounds or more, reporter Becky Krystal noted. Then again, unlike its poultry rival, the meatball contains no bones."

Reporter Tim Carman "thought that all of these mysteries might be made (sort of) clear. 'Does it come with a 20-step instruction booklet, impossible to follow?' he wondered. . . . Online, people expressed similar wonder at the mammoth orb," Heil reports. 'We're gonna need a bigger gravy boat,' one commented, reprising an iconic line from the movie Jaws. 'Going to need an Uber XXXXXL to get that bad boy home,' another surmised. . . . Jokes aside, the contest had nearly 10,000 responses on Instagram alone as of Tuesday last week."