Your best meat loaf recipe please

My Mum's and then mine was:

1lb mince
1 chopped onion
1 large handful of porridge oats
1 beaten egg
Plenty of salt and pepper.
Bacon rashers

Squidge everything by the bacon together by hand, well.

Lìne a loaf tin with the bacon rashers, so that they overlap the tin (meet rashers two by two along the tin).

Pack the mince mixture in.

Fold the overlapped bacon over the top.

Squirt some tomato ketchup over the top.

Bake at 180 for an hour.

We also used to do it with sausage meat instead of mince, and minus the bacon. I would add sage to the mixture and put a fruity jam on the top instead of the ketchup.

Boy, I'm hungry now!!

Thanks so much Ailedh that looks like the one my aunt used to make . We will be having this to-night .

Thanks Ailedh .
I used to make a Katie Stewart one , which is delicious , but fiddly .
Your recipe is much easier .

That sounds a lovely meatloaf I assume the oats are there to replace breadcrumbs to keep it moist I like the addition of oats.

Oo, glad it sounds good!

I suspect the addition of the oats was to make a pound of mince serve 2 adults, 3 kids plus leftovers! but I've always loved the texture.

In the same way, Mum always made sponge cakes with an 8 oz flour to 4oz sugar, 4oz butter ratio rather than the standard 4-4-4. That heavier texture is Still how cakes Should taste, for me!

I'm making it tomorrow!

Had meat loaf tonight. Lovely.
DH singing Bat out of hell!

Good sense of humour!

Auntieflo 😁

Thanks for this. never made one, never tasted one so far as I know.. and I am elderly and born and bred in Birmingham.
I have read about "meat loafs" always thought it was an American food... what do you serve with it please? forgive my ignorance lol

While certainly this is a"staple" dish for many American families (I'd say it's on a par with shepherds pie in the UK), our dear British Jamie has a delicious meatloaf recipe which we have used. IMO don't need to cover it in bacon (Jamies's suggestion) - or certainly not as much bacon as he states! (But you can do this, if you like bacon!) His recipe includes a tomato sauce - again, IMO this isn't necessarily needed - or you could use you own "sauce ideas". Worth a look?

P.S. I should have mentioned that Jamie's recipe uses crushed Jacobs Cream Crackers - not breadcrumbs.

I have never had a meat loaf and am not exactly sure what it is? Are there vegan version recipes ?

I think a nut roast would be a veggie alternative. Served with an onion or tomato gravy.

There are a million meatloaf recipes - and funny thing is, everyone’s (submitted) is the best! Hahaa! I’ll give you my ingredients, but leave the amounts up to you:

• for starters - 2/3 beef to 1/3 grnd pork
• chpd onion and green pepper
• Italian seasoned bread crumbs
• milk
• egg
• ketchup or BBQ sauce
• Worcestershire sauce
• garlic powder
• salt and pepper

Everything goes in one bowl, mix by hand till very well incorporated. Mold, place in shallow pan (with edges), bake. I do not put anything on top. Others may do ketchup or BBQ sauce.

One thing I always do - in a food processor (if you have one) I mince down the meats to a finer chop. Found out it holds up the loaf better when slicing.

Lover of cold meatloaf sandwiches!
USA Gundy

Sounds simple tasty recipe I've never made one but going to give it a try

polnan - you have missed out for sure if you’ve never had a meat loaf. So easy to make. One thing I Never do is add oatmeal! Oats do not make it moist, I only use seasoned bread crumbs to hold things together. Ground pork is used for flavor and moisture.

You serve it with whatever potato you like - mashed, scalloped, baked, au gratin. Serve veggies on the side, not inside loaf.
I make Shepherd’s Pie all the time. Love it.

Instead of breadcrumbs, my recipe uses butter biscuit crumbs. This ( a biscuit a little like a thin savoury shortbread ) might just be a Scottish thing.

I've only made meat loaf once, to an American recipe. I think it was a pretty standard mix - meat, breadcrumbs, egg, tomato ketchup, onion, garlic, seasoning, all squidged together and then baked. I subbed GF breadcrumbs, and barbecue sauce for the ketchup, and it was delicious and I should make it again.

Thanks for reminder- have'nt had meatloaf for years! Used to make it myself, very tasty.But when my older kids grew and got their own homes, the younger 2 were'nt keen (picky) so no point doing just for me.Might reprise it, and freeze any unused 🤔😋

Yes sheperds pie is a fave of myself and one of the sons.😋

My mum's was:
1 pack minced beef,
1 pack sausage meat
1 onion
1 cup tomato ketchup
Italian herbs
1 make of shortcrust pastry

Fry the onions, put in bowl with all ingredients except pastry and mix.

Pressed the wrong button!

Roll out pastry to an oval shape, large enough to go around the meat mix.
Shape the meat to an oval or hedgehog shape and wrap in pastry. Egg wash

Bake until done I suspect 40-50 minutes. Mum just cooked it till she smelt burning. I loved this as the pastry went pink inside ;)

Mince half a pound of beef mince with a quarter pound of ham and an onion to a very fine consistency,

Mix it with an egg, salt and pepper to taste, a spoonful of ordinary flour and a little water.

Put it in a well-greased stone jar (for preserves) or a casserole and cook it for 45 minutes or a little longer. The casserole or jar should be placed in a pot with boiling water that reaches half-way up the side of the casserole or jar, which should be covered with a lid or with greaseproof paper while cooking.

If the pot is sufficiently large, you can add peeled potatoes and carrots to the boiling water and cook them in the same pot as the meat-loaf for the last half-hour of its cooking time.

This is my Aunt Isa's recipe. I never dared ask her how old she was, but she was probably about the same age as my grandmothers, so born sometime around 1880.