Meatloaf. It’s a meal as old as time, right? I grew up eating it every Thursday. Or was it Wednesday? Well, it was once a week. Meatloaf is cheap. It’s simple. And it’s not entirely time consuming. It CAN be. But it doesn’t have to be.
When my aunt made it she just put her chopped onion and peppers in the meat and baked. She topped it with ketchup when she served our plates. She always served it with string beans and potatoes (sometimes mashed).
When I started really cooking for myself I was so clueless as to how to make this entirely too simple dish! I asked my brother for his recipe and over time tweaked it all to be my own.
One of my alterations was the type of meat used and my “glue”. Traditionally, meatloaf is made with beef. However, I’ve come to love ground turkey or even ground chicken! My “glue”? Instead of tearing up a slice or two of bread, I use either breadcrumbs or oatmeal. Yes, oatmeal.
Let’s begin. You’ll need:
- 1-2 pounds of ground beef, chicken or turkey
- 1/4 cup of tomato sauce (you realize I’m guessing. I eyeball it and adjust depending on how much liquid and/or fat is in the meat AND amount of “glue”.)
- 1 large egg. Use 1 egg per pound of meat. This keeps your load firm.
- 1 handful of uncooked oatmeal OR one slice of bread torn up OR 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs (measurement should be adjusted depending on amount of meat).
- A little Worstershire sauce
- Seasonings:
- Seasoning salt OR Goya sazón
- Goya adobo
- Pepper
- Dried chopped onions. You can also just use a fresh onion
- Garlic powder.
- A bit of cumin and turmeric (if you didn’t use sazón)
Here’s what you do:
- Preheat the oven to 375-400 degrees.
- Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl. Make sure everything is incorporated in but don’t over-mix.
- Form the mixture into a loaf and turn it over into a baking dish and
- Sprinkle a little more oatmeal or breadcrumbs over the top and cover with foil.
- Bake for 45 minutes. It will not be ready at this point.
- After the 45 minutes, pour a can of cream of mushroom condensed soup over the entire loaf.
- Put back in the oven uncovered for another 45 minutes to an hour. Remember, this is according to 1lb of meat. More meat requires a longer cook time.
- When done, let your meatloaf sit for about 5 minutes and serve!
What about sides? Rice is wonderful. So is Mac and cheese or mashed potatoes. And of course a vegetable. I’m partial to broccoli.
As always, if you try this recipe let me know in the comments below.
Buen provecho!
FourWheel Kitchen 