Chef's notes:
Meatloaf, as we know it, is most definitely an American classic. Although you may be surprised to know that it is also a classic in several countries throughout Europe. As it turns out, shaping ground meat into a loaf isn’t that hard to figure out. Many recipes for meatloaf are quite similar to recipes for meatballs, which isn’t really that surprising since they are both often served with similar sauces. One thing that I am not a fan of is putting fillers in my meatloaf. I add one cup of bread crumbs to my mixture to help glue everything together. But my loaf is all meat, baby, not an oat to be found.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds ground beef
- ½ pound ground pork
- 2 onions, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 3 eggs
- 3 Tbsp parsley
- 1 ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- Ketchup for the top
Meatloaf Recipe: Beef, Onion, Garlic, Eggs, Bread Crumbs, Parsley, Sea Salt, Black Pepper, and a Bit of Pork
- Assemble the ingredients for meatloaf. For meatloaf you want to focus on using a good-quality meat. You may use all beef for this meatloaf, but I like to supplement with a small quantity of pork. It will help keep the meatloaf juicy. My meatloaf recipe is very simple and not too heavily seasoned. My roommate loves meatloaf and he said this was the best he’s ever had. I’m inclined to agree.
- Mix them all together in a bowl. The onions and garlic rarely get cooked all the way when they’re put in raw, so I cook mine first in two tablespoons of butter. Then put them in with everything else when they’re cool to the touch. Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl. Use your hands and make sure you get the bottom mixed in as well. The ground meat begins to break down a little as you mix it. A little breakdown is okay, but you don’t want it to turn into a gooey paste.
- Roll the meat into a round loaf. Lay out a piece of aluminum foil on the counter and put the meat mixture on it. Spread it out evenly over the whole thing so that it’s about four inches thick. You’re going to roll it up into a tube, like a cigarette. It will be the best way to make your meatloaf all round and nice like mine. Otherwise you can freestyle it on the pan or use a loaf pan.
- Bake the meatloaf. Cover the ends of the meatloaf with more foil. Put it onto a thick sheet pan and then into a preheated oven at 375 degrees F. Bake the meatloaf for an hour before checking the internal temperature with a digital thermometer. Once it reads 155 degrees, take it out of the oven, remove the aluminum foil, and drain the pan, if necessary.
- Glaze the meatloaf and slice it. Spread on some ketchup as a glaze. Then turn on the broiler and pop it on the bottom rack of the oven and broil it for a few minutes to thicken up the ketchup. Then let it rest for 15 minutes before slicing it with a serrated knife. Served cold it makes a great sandwich. I should know, as I just ate one not more than five minutes before writing this.
Tips & Tricks
- Meatloaves can be made from any type or combination of meat. Experiment and have fun.
- As I said above, the ground meat will begin to break down after it’s been mixed for a while. The small bits of ground meat become elongated and “stringy.” You will know it when you see it. Some of this break down is good and it will help to give the meatloaf consistency. But you don’t want too much of this. It will become a gooey paste if you mix it too much.
- Laying strips of bacon on the aluminum foil before putting the meat on it would have been a cool way to include some bacon in the recipe. The bacon would have really boosted the flavor of the meatloaf. The fat would have basted the meatloaf as it cooked. Maybe you should give that a try; I bet it would be good.
- I don’t normally use serrated knives for much other than bread. But for this it really made slicing easy. Plus I guess it’s still a loaf of something.
