Thursdays Are For Cooking!
Home-Style Meatloaf
Kitchen Tested by Betty Crocker Kitchens
- Prep 10 min
- Total 1 hr 20 min
- Servings 6
Updated December 10, 2019
This is the classic meatloaf recipe, updated with modern ingredients. My Dad used to make this, and if you’re feeding 3 hungry hobgoblins on a tight budget as my parents were, it did save some money back then and likely will do so now. So here you are: Homestyle Meatloaf. Anything that fell onto the floor was fair game for the dogs!
Ingredients:
Meatloaf
- 1 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef
- 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup Progresso™ plain bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup milk
Topping
- 1/4 cup ketchup – Note: there are other options such as your own tomato/veggie, created mix in the blender
Steps
-
1 – Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, mix Meatloaf ingredients well. Press mixture in ungreased 8×4-inch loaf pan. Bake 40 minutes.
- 2 – Remove from oven. Spread 1/4 cup ketchup evenly over top. Bake an additional 15 to 20 minutes or until meat thermometer inserted in center of loaf reads 160°F. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Expert Tips
- To make this ahead, prepare and shape the loaf, cover and refrigerate for up to 5 hours. Bake just before serving.
- When purchasing ground beef, there are a couple of things you should check for, including color (bright pink with no signs of browning) and a sell-by-date (the nearer to this date the older the meat). Beef that is 80 percent lean has 20 percent fat. If you prefer leaner ground beef, look for 85 percent or 90 percent lean.
- Out of bread or prefer not to use it? You can swap in 1/2 cup Progresso® dry bread crumbs, 1/2 cup crushed seasoned crackers or 3/4 cup quick-cooking oats instead.
- A meat thermometer is a kitchen tool that we really think every home cook should own, because it’s a surefire way to cook your meat perfectly. In this recipe, you’re looking for a temperature of 160°F in the center.
- Did the meatloaf of your youth feature a packet of Lipton® onion soup or a shot of hot sauce? This recipe is amenable to customizations of that sort. While it’s perfectly delicious as written, it’s a solid place to start if you want to tailor your meatloaf to suit your tastes or indulge your nostalgia.
- When you want to shake things up, try our Cheesy Stuffed Meatloaf. It’s a variation on this classic recipe but adds in Italian seasoning and cheeses and features a combination of both ground pork and turkey, in place of beef. Find even more delicious versions of this dish among Betty’s best meatloaf recipes.
Bon Appetit!!!
Thank You for sharing your Dad’s recipe, Ex.
THAT is what makes it so special.
😊
You’re welcome, and when Pop made that meatloaf, ground beef of any kind was about $0.35/pound, a very far cry from current prices.
I am going to put this in my pellet grill with pecan pellets
Oh, yeah!!!!!
While reading this my stomach growled in anticipation.
For those who like to cook under pressure….
Meat Load and Mashed Potatoes (In ONE Pot!)
Ingredients
1½ pounds ground beef
2 eggs
chopped onion (1/2 to 1 whole onion, depending on what you prefer)
¼ cup ketchup
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup oatmeal
1 can tomato soup
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
8 small potatoes
3 Tablespoons butter
3 Tablespoons milk
salt
1 cup water
Instructions
In the bottom of your Instant Pot, place your potatoes so that they are level. Put in the metal rack on top of the potatoes pour in one cup a water and set aside.
In a medium sized bowl, stir together the beef, eggs, oatmeal, ketchup, salt and pepper, 1/2 of soup, and 1 T Worcestershire sauce with your hands (it really is easier that way). Mold and put into a pan or foil shaped like a loaf pan. In a small bowl, stir brown sugar, the rest of Worcestershire sauce, and rest of the soup and pour over top of loaf.
Close the lid and make sure the know is on “sealing.” Push the manual button and cook for 25 – 30 minutes. If your meatloaf is thick, you will want to stick with the 30 minutes.
When it is done cooking, move the knob over to venting (quick release) and wait for the steam to come out.
Remove the pan (or foil loaf) from the pot. Add butter, milk, salt and pepper on top of the potatoes. Mash to desired texture. Serve with potatoes with meatloaf.
For those who don’t like to read:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FLT9sUGFlc&w=600&h=480%5D
One side note……growing up, my mom used to place gouda cheese in the middle of the meatloaf and let it melt and become this warm, gooey mass of yumminess. Try it sometime.
Num, Num, Num! Put this on the plate next to some buttered slathered smashed taters w squash, or some new taters with green pole beans, or maybe a bed of rice (saffron would go well).
Have cheated and used a commercial (K Roger and or McCormick brand) meatloaf seasoning packet that does a pretty good job. While the oven is already on, might as well put on a skillet of butteredmilk cornbread. Don’t forget a mason jar of the house wine…sweet iced tea.
Tanks Ex…Let’s eat! Almost got my appetite back after the week of fighting the bacterial infection.
Chicken soup will do wonders for your tummy when you’re getting over a bug. Just make sure the chicken is cooked and properly shredded before putting it into the broth, and using canned or leftover chicken is fine.
Looks yummy.
Here at the GB Compound I’ve been canning tomatoes and yellow squash. While at it made a salsa with tomatoes, a large bunch of cowhorn peppers, 1 1/2 onions, and 2 cloves of garlic.
My first foray into canning. Borrowed son-in-law’s pressure canner as well to seal ’em up tight.
Now I need to make some home-made enchiladas to use that salsa on…
Yum!!!!
Meatloaf is one of the few things that I actually crave from time to time. Especially the ketchup slathered on the top part. Don’t know what there is about that ketchup on top, but it is a must. It sounds rather disgusting, when you think about it, but anything else simply will not do. Must be a good grade school lunchroom memory or something.
Yep. I get triggered by meatloaf occasionally. Hmmm.
I’ve always used a small can of tomato paste, rather than ketchup in the mix, for a more noticeable flavor.
But ketchup ALWAYS goes on top.
Mom went to the day old bread shop (remember those from the pre-preservatives days?), for an extra loaf that she would leave opened in the fridge to dry out. We kids would be volunteered to crumble the now very dry bread, and put it in Tupperware for later use….like in meatloaf!