It's not your grandma's meatloaf, it's better... there, I said it! I know, some of you are thinking "them's fightin' words" and hitting unsubscribe right now. But in all seriousness, I don't go labeling recipes as being "best" willy-nilly. As a mater of fact, out of nearly 600 recipes, there have so far only been 3 that I've deemed worthy of getting the title "best"
Sure I have a page with a few dozen of my favorite dishes on this site, but in order to get "best" in the title it has to be something unparalleled. In this case, this meatloaf is the kind of delicious that has me sneaking back to the fridge to nibble on leftovers as I write this post.
While meatloaf has legitimate ancestry stretching back to various dishes from across Europe, it didn't become widely popular in the US until the Great Depression. Rationing made it necessary to find clever ways to stretch what little meat was available, and it's around that time that meatloaf became as American as apple pie (which isn't actually American at all, but that's a topic for another post). Sadly the budget friendly, belly filling qualities of meatloaf made it perfect for school cafeterias and microwave dinners, which gave it a bum rap over the years.
The thing with meatloaf is that it's not a solid piece of meat, which means you can season it right to the core, then adjust the richness and texture to suit your tastes. Personally I like my meat tender, moist and flavorful. To paraphrase Descartes: "I crave, therefore I make"
Breadcrumbs and milk not only make the meatloaf tender, the milk adds moisture, while the breadcrumbs reabsorb the juices released by the meat. As for flavor, I throw everything I have in my flavor arsenal at it; this includes onions, cheese, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and to top it all off, thick slices of bacon. A sweet tomato glaze on top not only helps disguise the rather unsightly log of meat, it brings a balancing sweetness to the savory meat underneath.
Make It Better.
Add 1 cube of caramelized onions from my perfect caramelized onions post to add a flavor boost that will take this meatloaf to another level.
The other trick to making a great meatloaf is to not take the name so literally. If you make meatloaf in a loaf pan it ends up cooking in its own grease, making it soggy. By forming it into the shape of a loaf on a sheet pan, the excess fat drains away, leaving you with a moist, tender loaf that's neither mushy nor greasy.
Serve this with mashed potatoes, and use the leftovers for meatloaf sandwiches (not that you'll have much in the way of leftovers)
As a house-keeping note, you may have also noticed that I've started adding an equipment section to each post (like the one below). The idea behind the section is to demystify what equipment you'll need to make the dish. Use the arrows to scroll through the list and mouse-over each piece of equipment to see a description of what it is. Also, if you happen to be missing a piece of equipment, I'd be much obliged if you bought it through one of these links, as the small cut of sales I get help pay for the cost of running this site.
📖 Recipe
Units
Ingredients
- 450 grams ground beef
- 280 grams ground pork
- ½ medium onion (minced)
- 2 cloves garlic (finely minced)
- ½ cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
- 40 grams Gruyere cheese (grated)
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon pimentón (smoked paprika)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper (to taste)
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme (stems removed, leaves minced)
- 170 grams thick-cut bacon
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Add the ground beef, ground pork, onion, garlic, panko, Gruyere, egg, milk, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, honey, soy sauce, pimentxf3n, salt, pepper and thyme to a bowl. Put a food-safe glove on and use your hand to knead the mixture until uniform.
- Line a broiler pan with some parchment paper. This makes cleanup much easier and it prevents the meatloaf from sticking to your pan. Shape the meat mixture into a loaf on the parchment paper. Top with the bacon, slightly overlapping each slice.
- Bake the meatloaf for 30 minutes. While the meatloaf is in the oven, make the glaze by mixing the ketchup, honey, Worcestershire sauce, and mustard in a small bowl to combine.
- Remove the meatloaf from the oven and cover with the glaze. Return the meatloaf to the oven and bake for another 20-30 minutes, or until an instand read thermometer reads 160 degrees F.
- Remove the meatloaf from the oven and allow it to rest for at least 15 minutes before cutting into it. Serve with mashed potatoes.
Patrick says
Thanks! I'm sure it's better with the cheese, but it was still mighty flavourful without. I used some nutritional yeast and almond milk.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Patrick, nutritional yeast would be okay for the flavor that cheese imparts, but I'm not sure if the cashews will do what the milk and cheese does from a texture standpoint. Cashews tend to get thick when heated whereas cheese melts. For the milk you might be better off replacing with your favorite non-dairy milk (soy, rice, coconut etc), as for the cheese, the idea is to introduce fat(in addition to the cheese flavor), so you could probably get away with just using a more fatty ground meat, or adding some chopped bacon inside the meatloaf. You could also use extra soft tofu, which doesn't have much fat, but it gives the meatloaf a more tender texture and a bit of creaminess, which is the reason for wanting more fat in it.
Patrick says
Hi, Marc: I'm going to attempt this recipe but dairy-free. Do you think a cashew/nutritional yeast would be an okay substitute for the cheese and milk?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Eileen, I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed this! Marjoram is a great substitute for Thyme, but I imagine cayenne must have made the meatloaf spicy (not that that's a bad thing)!
Eileen says
This meatloaf was absolutely amazing! And I love that you used parchment paper also! I had to make a couple of changes because I didn't realize (until last minute) that I didn't have the paprika and thyme! I quickly looked online for a substitute and although it seemed a little odd, I used marjoram and a little cayenne pepper. It was the best meatloaf we've ever had! I'll definitely pass this one on and make it again and again! Thank you!
Marc Matsumoto says
Thanks, I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it:-)
Clarice says
This IS the best meatloaf recipe ever!! I got tired of meatloaf for a while but I'm a fan again after this one.
Sarah Mcl says
Fully expected this to be a let down. WOW. So tasty. A new favourite that will be getting made regularly - so easy too!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Baily, glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Baily says
This is one of the best meat loaf I ever ate! I follow the recipe exactly, but opt out the bacon, not a fan of bacon. It was still so tasty! thank you for sharing this recipe with the world! I found my new favorites dish to make!
Michelle says
AWESOME!!! So excited about this recipe...I added a good handful of chopped flat leaf parsley to the mix and followed all the rest. I wish I had another stomach :)). I will be including this in my rotations. BEST EVER!!! I am so happy to have such a hit to share or maybe I'll keep 'em guessing. Thank you very much, I'll be checking out more of your work.
Nathan Oberle says
Awesome recipe! When I make it, I like to add an extra tsp of pimenton, don't overlap the bacon (it gets soggy) , and finish under the broiler to get the bacon extra crispy.
Marc Matsumoto says
I know what you mean, and I'm glad to hear this was able to change your mind:-)
Tina says
I am NOT a fan of meat loaf, but my husband is. So when I found this recipe I had to make it for my husband. Let me just say that because of this recipe I am now a meat loaf LOVER!!!!! It is AMAZING, and my kids ( 6 and 9 ) love it too!!! Thanks for this awesome recipe, and opening my pallet to bigger, and better things 😀
amy says
oh my its in the oven at this very moment and it smells and looks very delsih!!!!
thanks for this easy and incredible recipes
Brenda says
Marc, I made this meatloaf tonight and my family could not seem to get enough of it. It was simply delicious. This recipe is the best and will be used by me often. I hated meatloaf but this did not even taste like what I was used to. My husband is already looking forward to me making it again..
Marc Matsumoto says
Glad to hear you enjoyed it! If you're looking for crispy bacon on top, I can see how par frying it would definitely work better:-)
Rudy the cat says
Marc, loved your meatloaf, changed one thing, (not any of the receipt), cooked the bacon bout half way and cut it into smaller pieces and sprinkled it on top of the glaze. That seems to work better for me. Thanks.
jatipete says
it looks and reads yummy. gotta try it sooooooooooooooooooon...
Marc Matsumoto says
Comte, is the closest, but cheddar, pecorino, or even parmesan would work.
Judy says
What other cheese can u use other than gruyere?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Sandy, if you look in the ingredients list, Worcestershire sauce and honey are listed twice (once in the middle and once towards the bottom). I separated out the measurements to avoid the problem you had. Did you end up adding worcestershire sauce and honey twice to the meat or did you just miss the second time they were listed in the ingredients?
SandyS says
It says to put the Worcestershire sauce and the honey in with the meat mixture. Then at the bottom it says to make the glaze with them. I think I just messed this up. To late now, it's in the oven:/ Hope it still tastes good.
rebecca at thisfineday says
I hate hate hate meatloaf, but I may be able to make a serious exception for this bad boy! Thanks- you may have just converted me to a meatloaf lover.
https://thisfineday.com
Natasha says
I literally just served this up to my family!! My goodness this in my opinion is the BEST meatloaf recipe I have ever cooked, it was a huge hit. This will now be my go to recipe. Unfortunately I had no bacon in the house but everything else, if it tastes this good without bacon I can't wait to try it with. Moist, flavourful and just absolutely delicious. Thank you soooo much for posting this, I have been looking for this recipe for years!!! 🙂
Gina says
Finally made is yesterday and it is so yummy!!! I also made the mistake of adding mustard (like one of your readers below) and put in 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce instead of 1 TBSP (mistook the measurement of the glaze recipe to the meat mixture) ..but the meatloaf still turned out great! Thanks Marc for sharing this recipe. Will do this again soon!
Gina says
Finally made is yesterday and it is so yummy!!! I also made the mistake of adding mustard (like one of your readers below) and put in 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce instead of 1 TBSP (mistook the measurement of the glaze recipe to the meat mixture) ..but the meatloaf still turned out great! Thanks Marc for sharing this recipe. Will do this again soon!
AmyAlbrecht says
Have to try 🙂
Sela says
The best meatloaf ever!!! Thanks for sharing your recipe, Sela from Michigan.
pcstock says
Thx. Just didn't know if your amounts were with the tube tomato paste. That is the only kind I use.
pcstock says
Thx. Just didn't know if your amounts were with the tube tomato paste. That is the only kind I use.
Marc Matsumoto says
I use the type in a tube too. Just squeeze it into a measuring spoon.
pcstock says
I use concentrated tomato paste in a tube. How do you advise according to your recipe quantity?
Thomas Abraham says
I'm not seeing a recipe for the glaze??
Marilia says
Never mind! I see it now! In the oven 😉
Marilia says
I'm not seeing a recipe for the glaze??
Marilia says
I made this last night for dinner and it was a hit! The only thing I would do differently is cook the bacon before hand so it is crispy and crumble it into the meat mixture. The glaze would be the only thing on top. When I made it your way the bacon was not crispy and the meatloaf was hard to slice. Otherwise it was delicious!
Island Embrace says
Made it and it was truly amazing. Thanks for the great recipe.
Evan Jacobs says
This is an amazing tip. I never thought to test cook the meat mixture in the microwave!
Marc Matsumoto says
Yep that's right. It's good to flavor both the meatloaf and the glaze.
Island Embrace says
Looks fab...however, the recipe is confusing: the glaze ingredients also seem to be included in the meatloaf itself. Is that correct?? Thanks! 🙂
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Tim, If you're using kosher salt (any brand but Morton's) you'll need to double the salt. If you're worried, take a spoonful of the mixture, pop it in the microwave for a few seconds until cooked, and taste it before you bake the whole thing. Keep in mind there's salt in the bacon and glaze. Lastly, if you're refrigerating the mix, be sure to give it more time in the oven as you'll be starting from a lower internal temperature and it will take more time to cook through.
Tim says
Mix is made and chilling/marinading in the fridge for cooking in about 6 hours. Accidentally put the mustard into the meatloaf mix. Hoping that won't be too overpowering. Probably just give it a bit of zing. Half a teaspoon of salt seems light for so much meat. I guess though there is salt coming in from the soy and worcestershire. Shall report back on the level of brownie points this gains me with the fiancee and parents. Thanks!
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Chester, I used to use Kosher salt measures for all my recipes, but because the salinity of Kosher salt varies wildly by brand (Morton's brand is twice as salty as Star), it caused issues with readers ending up with food that was too salty. Since Kosher salt (with the exception of Morton's) is half as salty as table salt, you generally need to double the amount of salt called for in a recipe (unless it specifically says to use Kosher salt).
I realize this is a pain, and confusing, but it's the unfortunate reality thanks to a lack of standards about what Kosher salt is. My best advice is to taste everything as you go so you can adjust accordingly. In the case of meatloaf since you won't want to eat the mix raw, you can microwave a small clump of meat for a few seconds until cooked and give it a go.
Chester says
Had this for dinner tonight and it was great but I was left feeling it could use more salt. I used Kosher salt in the mix, is that what was intended or should I have used table salt?
Moodie Foodie says
Just made this tonight for dinner. The addition of the paprika brought it home for me. Thanks for this great recipe
Moodie Foodie says
Just made this tonight for dinner. The addition of the paprika brought it home for me. Thanks for this great recipe
Marc Matsumoto says
Food processors are great, I have lots of recipes on here that I use a food processor in, but this just isn't one of them:-) Good luck!
Agnesma says
tks, I will try tonight by hand mixing. I will find other ways to use the food processor then.
Agnesma says
tks, I will try tonight by hand mixing. I will find other ways to use the food processor then.
Marc Matsumoto says
Honestly I'm not sure because it will depend on how powerful the motor on your food processor is, the size of it, etc. One thing I do know is that you won't want to run it continuously as it will not mix evenly. You'll want to pulse it, scraping down the sides as you go. If you're worried about how it's going to turn out, hand-mixing is a safer/faster option since you don't need to worry about over-mixing and you won't have to keep opening up the food processor to scrape down the sides.
Agnesma says
tks, Marc. If I do 45 seconds will that be considered too long? Sorry, I am new in cooking.
Agnesma says
tks, Marc. If I do 45 seconds will that be considered too long? Sorry, I am new in cooking.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Agnes, you want everything to be well mixed together, but be careful not to over-process the mixture otherwise the meatloaf will take on a rubbery texture.
Agnesma says
Hi, Marc; If I use my food processor to mix the ingredients together, how many pauses do I need to do? Do I need to mix or knead till all ingredients are all stick together or just till combined? tks for reply
IGredux says
that top picture... ohhhh... that top picture... i think my eyes are melting...
Oui, Chef says
WOW...sounds great, and you even made it look good in a photo, a near impossibility with meatloaf!
Simon @ SoyRiceFire.com says
A very sophisticated meatloaf. Great job!
Jennifer says
That looks amazing Marc!
Jennifer says
That looks amazing Marc!
The Culinary Chase says
yum!
Marilia says
I really love your blog and the concept behind it! Gorgeous photos, too! 🙂
The Culinary Chase says
yum!
Marilia says
Looks amazing! makes me hungry at midnight..