Thursday, February 26, 2015

build a better meatloaf

I have had some bad meatloaf from some very well meaning people, some from actual restaurants, and all suffering from the same problems: spongy texture, bland flavor, and over-baking. They are, of course, all linked together, but since I've decided to come back to blogging with my own instructional recipes, I want to break down an often maligned classic entree and return it the kitchen rotation of new cooks that think they "don't like meatloaf." (Or scroll down to skip to the recipe)

problem one: boring flavor

Ground beef is a popular meal base because it can be just about anything. Chopped and fried, it can be added to most sauces or bakes to make a side dish into an entree. But served as a greasy slice of meat-bread hybrid, it can take a lot of ketchup to make it edible.
The seasoning of meatloaf isn't very complicated, but I'm willing in this instance to rely on Stove Top to provide the herb mix and croutons (I also buy it in bulk during the holidays when it's only $1 a box.) Onion, garlic and Lea & Perrins Original bring the dish to a much better flavor profile for a beef dish. Alton Brown likes to grind his croutons into breadcrumbs (a next level recipe), but I prefer to leave them whole. It saves time cleaning the food processor, as well as making a firmer loaf.

problem two: greasy mush meat

One version of meatloaf we grew up with was made with saltines. This is a war-time filler to make a small portion of meat bigger for a family. But saltines are going to take a perfectly good meat product and make it taste like wet sawdust. The worst thing to do to a relatively weak flavor like ground beef is mix it with a ton of flour. Crackers are 99% flour, so they're great to soak up soup broth, but adding them to meatloaf turns it into a grease-soaked sponge sitting in a bread loaf pan. Which brings us to...

problem three: the loaf part

Do not put your meatloaf in a loaf pan. This pan is a waste of money. Very simply, your meatloaf will not soften and rise like a yeasty white bread, so don't bake it like one. Use a baking sheet. This meatloaf is held together by the egg, which cooks at a lower temperature than the meat, holding everything together on the baking sheet as it cooks. The grease runs off naturally to one corner of the pan, and it even cooks faster.

the recipe

1 lb ground beef (80/20 "chuck" is best)
1 box stuffing mix (chicken flavor, white bread)* 
1/2 cup minced onion
1 clove garlic, pressed or finely minced
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
2 Tbls worcestershire sauce
3 Tbls ketchup for glaze

1 large bowl or stand mixer
1 baking sheet w/1" lip

Mix beef, garlic, egg, milk, onion and worcestershire sauce in large bowl, or stand mixer. Once well mixed, fold in stuffing mix. Gather meat into a ball, transfer to a foil lined baking sheet and shape into loaf (about 4in x 8in). Coat the loaf in a thin layer of ketchup to prevent over-browning. Bake at 350F for 35 minutes or until a external digital thermometer reads 160F. Allow to cool 10 minutes before serving. Serves 4.

*I normally don't use pre-packaged ingredients, but this time convenience and flavor beat religiously cooking from "scratch"

Enjoy! 

No comments: