Meatloaf is so much more than just a giant hunk of ground beef in a loaf shape. It should ooze with flavour, be moist and tender yet not crumble apart when sliced. The caramelised glaze is the crowning glory!
A loaf made entirely of meat. What’s not to love? (Vegetarians are excused)
It’s economical. It’s quick to prepare – albeit does take just over an hour to bake. It’s a classic family favourite. And leftovers make terrific sandwiches.
If you have it in your head that Meatloaf is really just a giant beef burger shaped like a loaf, it’s time to abandon that misconception. Meatloaf shouldn’t taste like a hamburger! It should taste like…. well, actually, that’s an interesting point. I’ve never really thought about what Meatloaf tastes like. There’s no denying there are some similarities, being made from beef mince (ground beef). But whereas you wouldn’t eat a hamburger plain, without toppings, sauces, cheese and a bun, you can certainly eat Meatloaf plain because it’s so juicy and tasty.
A TASTIER, JUICIER MEATLOAF
I think there are two little things I do a bit different from the usual Meatloaf recipe. Firstly, I do my usual grating onion over panko breadcrumbs which soaks them so they later puff up during baking, making our meatloaf nice and tender. This is also how I get the savoury onion flavour into all things meatball / patties / meatloaf instead of dicing them then frying them separately.
Regular readers are so sick of reading about why I do this. I use this technique so often!
Secondly, I use beef bouillon cubes (stock cubes or powder) for the seasoning. That’s the dark brown stuff crumbled on top of the meatloaf mixture in the photo below. So much tastier than just plain salt. Promise. 🙂
USE A LOAF PAN FOR A JUICIER MEATLOAF
Give it all a good mix together with your hands, shape into a loaf then plonk it into a loaf pan. I know some recipes like to freeform it, but I like to bake mine in a loaf pan because I find it cooks more evenly because it holds its shape. A freeform meatloaf is shaped like an oval bread loaf so it has pointier ends which will cook through faster and has a tendency to dry out a bit. (If you can shape it like a block loaf, then your mixture is way too dry!)
I also like to coat my meatloaf with a glaze which adds an extra something-something to the meatloaf both in looks and flavour. Fear no cracks, my friend! If you smooth the Meatloaf surface sufficiently, it shouldn’t happen but if it does, relish in it, don’t be deflated – just think of that glaze dripping down into those cracks!
I can’t think of a better way to serve Meatloaf than on a pile of creamy mashed potato, though for a lower carb version, cauliflower puree would be fantastic too.
Dollop of ketchup, steamed greens and you have yourself an epic plate of home cooked comfort-food bliss. Enjoy! – Nagi x
Meatloaf is so much more than a giant hunk of ground beef in a loaf shape. It should ooze with flavour, be moist and tender yet not crumble apart when sliced. And the caramelised glaze is the crowning glory! Try adding a couple of grated carrots into the mixture to bulk it up (2nd photo in post). Recipe VIDEO below.
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (Note 1)
- 1 large onion , grated
- 1 kg / 2 lb beef mince (ground beef), preferably not lean
- 2 eggs
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1/4 cup tomato ketchup
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley (optional), or 2 tsp dried parsley or basil
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 2 beef bouillon cubes , crumbled or 2 tsp beef powder (Note 2)
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 cup tomato ketchup
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp brown sugar , lightly packed
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Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Oil or spray a loaf tin. (Note 3)
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Glaze: Mix together in a small bowl. Set aside.
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Meatloaf: Place breadcrumbs in a very large bowl. Grate over onion. Mix so the breadcrumbs are all wet. (Note 4)
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Add remaining ingredients. Mix well using your hands. Form into a loaf shape, pinching together then smoothing over creases and cracks (helps prevent cracks during baking).
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Transfer into loaf tin. Brush generously with glaze, using about 1/2.
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Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and brush with most of the remaining glaze. If there is excess fat pooling, scoop/pour it off.
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Bake for a further 30 minutes. Remove from oven.
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Stand for 10 minutes before turning out and cutting into thick slices. You will probably get a bit of crumbling just on the edges of the first couple of slices, this is normal and indicative of the tenderness and juiciness of the meatloaf (zero crumble indicates firm packed harder meatloaf which isn't as enjoyable!).
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Ideal served with a dollop of ketchup, creamy mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables.
1. Panko breadcrumbs are larger than normal breadcrumbs so they make the meatloaf softer. Nowadays they are found in most supermarkets here in Australia, usually in both the Asian section and alongside normal breadcrumbs.
2. Using beef bouillon cubes rather than just salt really adds so much better flavour to the meatloaf.
3. My loaf pan is 23 x 13 x 6 cm / 9 x 5 x 2.5". As long as you have one about this size, this recipe will work fine though it might be flatter or taller.
4. GRATED ONION - soaking breadcrumbs with grated onion is a technique I use in most things made with a mixture like meatloaf for two reasons: 1) chopped onions need to be cooked separately other you end up with raw onion; and 2) the soaked panko breadcrumbs "puff up" when cooking, which makes the meatloaf/meatball/patties soft on the inside. If you're interested to read what others think, have a browse through the comments in my Italian Meatballs recipe!
5. Nutrition per serving, assuming 8 servings.
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
LIFE OF DOZER
So exhausted after a big play session at the beach, he didn’t even stir when I pulled out a giant hunk of beef. 🥩
For a convection oven what would you recommend for temp and time? Thanks!
Hi Di! Same temp is fine 🙂 There’s flex in cook time for a recipe like this so I just use the same temp whether using convection or standard oven. N x
I’m kind of embarrassed, but I made your meatloaf recipe last night while I was multitasking a few other things (I kept getting phone calls that I had to take, etc) and technically, I screwed it up. BUT: I now think of this as Nagi’s Fault Tolerant Meatloaf. It was still great! Okay – maybe not “great” like if I’d followed the recipe better. But still very good!
1. I spaced out and didn’t add the eggs or the bouillon cubes (!).
2. You are completely correct about grating the onions over the panko – they get really, really moist, and in fact I think that’s why my meatloaf wasn’t a disaster. It’s a technique that I’m going to use elsewhere.
3. As others have mentioned: the glaze added a lot. And it’s so amazingly simple!
4. I put three pieces of cheap white bread at the bottom of the loaf pan to soak up any excess grease. It seemed to work pretty well: I didn’t have any grease pooling on top of the glaze.
5. I think that allowing the meatloaf to rest for 10 minutes at the end made a very real difference. Usually my meatloaf comes out of the pan in chunks; *this* meatloaf came out in nice slices.
6. Speaking of ‘slices’, it is notable that this morning there is just one thin slice left in the refrigerator. Given the extreme pickiness of the person who shares my meals, this is really saying something!
Thank you for another great recipe!
AND IT STILL WORKED!!! YES YES YES!!!!
Hands down best meatloaf I’ve ever had (and my mum makes a pretty mean meatloaf!) Super moist and a fabulous taste!
Hi Nagi I just had to send you this message to say thank you for a great meatloaf recipe which we have just had for dinner. It turned out great looked even like your photo (well nearly ) and tasted even better.
Good morning Nagi.
For the record: This recipe was a hit with everyone who ate it for dinner last night. My husband is taking the last 2 slices to work for lunch today.
But it looked absolutely terrible and nothing like yours. And as I have said, I have never eaten meat in my life so I could not taste it to verify their reviews so watching them eat it made me cringe the entire time and think that the entire group was lying to me to make me feel good about my cooking, lol. But knowing that every recipe I have made from you has turned out good, I was torn and I now need to know what I possibly did wrong here.
When it finished cooking the 1 hour and 15 minutes, there was at least 1/2″ pool of grease around the entire meatloaf that I had to pour off and it had shrunk in the pan. I watched your recipe video at least 50 times at the 50-52 second mark to validate that your loaf did not come out like that so I knew I must have done something wrong. You said not to use lean ground beef so I used 1 pound 80/20 ground beef brisket and 1 pound 80/20 ground beef chuck and these were both purchased the day of me cooking the meatloaf yesterday.
I also used 2 extra large eggs. I was not sure on the size of eggs I was supposed to use but we always buy extra large so that’s what I had.
Next, when I was trying to cut the meatloaf into slices, it felt like there was resistance during the cut. Kind of like when you cut beef that has not been slow cooked long enough for the tissue? to break down but it looked fully cooked on the inside, there was no pink. And it also fell apart. It wasn’t like full crumbles but like the edges were falling off or the bottom half would not stay attached to the top half.
And the glaze on top still looked like I had just brushed the glaze on there. It was still as bright red as ketchup and not cooked looking like yours.
Also, I had potatoes cooking in the oven at the same time as the meatloaf so could this have affected it as well?
Did any of these things possibly cause the issues I was experiencing? All-in-all, according to the people who ate this, it was amazing but I need it to look as amazing and juicy as it does in the post if I remake this.
Thank you for taking the time to answer my question as always.
Hi Alexandria! I’m glad the flavour was enjoyed – you are so wonderful to cook meat for your family even though you don’t eat it!! 🙂 Let me answer each question one by one: Fat pooling – yes it can happen sometimes, just pour it off I will update the recipe with that tip. 2 extra large egg is fine – egg size won’t make a material effect on this recipe. Cut resistance is right! It should feel a bit firm because it is, after all, a meatloaf where the meat has been packed together and cooked for a relatively long time. But it is still JUICY. As for a bit of crumble, I actually put that as a particular note in the recipe notes. A bit of crumble on the edges is to be expected and it is an indicator of how tender the meatloaf is. If there is no crumble at all, that’s an indicator that the meatloaf has been packed in so hard and tight, it’s really dense which means tough meatloaf which is sad! You do need to cut carefully – meatloaf is not as robust as roasted meat. As for the glaze, I am puzzled! The sugar in the glaze should definitely caramelise a bit with the long cook time for this recipe! I am glad everyone enjoyed it though, and despite appearance issues, I can assure you it will still have been DARN TASTY!! N xx
Cooked this for the first time today for Sunday dinner. Had my daughter,son in law and two grand children over aged 2 and 3 months and 6 months. Everyone loved it even the 6 month old who is starting to eat solids. For our personal taste as a family we will tweak the recipes a bit…less ketchup and a fraction more herbs. Thank you for sharing this fab recipe.
So pleased to hear that Ellen! Thanks for letting me know 🙂 N x
Made this yesterday for dinner.
I’ve finally found my meatloaf recipe!!
Loved it.
Thanks.
Yesssss! So glad you enjoyed it Dee! N xx
Hi Nagi, I’m just wondering if I was to make the 4 person serving, would I still bake for the time mentioned, or would I half cooking time?
Hi Angie! Cook time will depend on how you shape it 🙂 If you shape it so it fills half the meatloaf tin (not sure how you would “fill” the empty space so the meatloaf holds its shape, then I think around 55 minutes will do. If you shape it freeform ie without using a tin, then it won’t have quite as much height (meatloaf sags a bit if cooked without a tin) so 45 minutes should do the trick 🙂 If you are uncertain, just check – cut a slit in the middle and pry it open, then cover slit up with glaze 🙂 N x
Thank you Nagi!!
The family was not too impressed when they heard we were eating meatloaf as the first (and last) time it was dry and not very tasty. Well this one I am allowed to make again. So juicy and tasty, really wonderful, I did add some chilipowder as well as we do like a little kick.
My glaze did not become a glaze strangely enough but stayed on as a thick layer of sauce Yes I did add it in 2 stages), but maybe might even prefer it that way. See how it goes next time.
Love it! Best meatloaf ever! I made it with ground turkey. Your technique of grating the onion into the panko made this super moist.
Hi!
This meat loaf was to die for! My family loved it. I didn’t change anything on the recipe and it came out superb!
Thank you! Dallas-Manchester, GA
HIGH FIVE! 🙌🏻 N xx
Really tasty. I used half beef and half soya mince to reduce the fat as I have high cholesterol. And tomato purée instead of ketchup. It still tasted meaty and everybody enjoyed I, I shall make again.
LOVE HEARING THAT Stephanie! N x ❤️
Absolutely, love, love the meatloaf.😍 My husband said it was delicious and asked me to make it again.
Thank you, Nagi for posting easy to make recipes and the ingredients that I already have in cupboard.
👍😊
HIGH FIVE to you Evelyn! I’m just the messenger 😇
Hi Nagi, I made your meatloaf tonight and it was amazing! It was so moist and flavourful and so, so easy to make! The only thing I did different, was I made an extra batch of sauce to drizzle over top the individual pieces when serving. Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly and will definitely be making this again and again. I do have one question though. When I took the meatloaf out of the loaf pan, it didn’t hold it’s shape. Do you have any idea why this might have happened? I just kind of placed the meatloaf into the loaf pan, I didn’t pack it in tightly – should I have? Even though it did fall apart, I will still make it again, but if you have any suggestions on how to prevent this from happening please let me know. Thanks again for another fantastic recipe!
Meatloaf -100% success got the Panko and loved it…I do have wrist and hand difficulties so I sliced the onion and then stick-blended until almost pureed….I used a small bin-liner to cover my hand when I combined everything and eventually a spatular to scoop the unmixed from bottom of bowl to better blend the mix. I had to reduce the oven temperature to 160CF/F i my oven……I also combined a couple of your Recipetineats for potatoes and did a sort of combined mashed and Crispy Smashed Potatoes. I had a fall on Thursday so I made all this up and sliced into Cold Cut Keeper and another container of Potato…..all I have to do is put serves of meatloaf and potato into serving bowl…zap….and eat!!!!!Yummo. The Glaze is gr8….so I will be using it for many things…minimum sugar unlike commercial product!!