Easy Meatloaf
This quick and easy meatloaf makes that old-fashioned dinner hour suddenly attainable. Everyone in our house cheers when meatloaf is on the menu!
This easy meatloaf is made with your choice of ground meat, and pantry-stable spices (that’s what makes it easy!), and bakes up in a loaf pan for easy serving and slicing.
I know meatloaf doesn’t sound like an exciting dinner option. But when you’ve got kids who love it, you can bet on this dinner being popular!
What makes this an Easy Meatloaf?
This doesn’t rely on ANY fresh vegetables for flavor. It’s all pantry ingredients. This means that it comes together quickly because you’re not chopping or mincing fresh onions or garlic. Or worse, dragging out the food processor to do the work for you.
You can put this together in just about 10-15 minutes. Quicker if you take the time to gather ingredients and measure ahead of time.
Do I have to bake this in a loaf pan?
No! You can use a loaf pan, a baking dish, or a baking sheet. If you use a baking sheet or baking pan, you can free-form the loaf with your hands into a large oval.
Line your baking sheet if that’s what you’re using because a smaller loaf on a baking sheet is going to splatter, and a lined pan is easier to clean up.
What do I need for this easy Meatloaf
This meatloaf uses a lot of pantry staple ingredients which means you can probably make it without a lot of shopping involved.
- ground meat, use a mix of ground beef, turkey, pork, or veal
- onion powder
- garlic powder
- Italian seasoning (basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, and marjoram)
- salt
- black pepper
- panko bread crumbs
- eggs
- glaze of your choice, either bbq sauce or ketchup with a dash of chili sauce in it or a little sriracha
Recipe Substitutions
You can use any ground meat you like in this recipe. Just be aware an all-poultry version probably only needs one egg instead of two. If you like fresh onion or garlic, chop it up and add it to the loaf mixture.
Recipe Variations
You can make it spicy by subbing in red pepper flakes and a pinch of cayenne. Or add liquid smoke and glaze with BBQ Sauce for a bbq flavor. Or make the loaf all chicken and do a lemon garlic flavor for spices, again cutting the egg down to one for an all-poultry loaf.
What To Serve With A Meatloaf?
Mashed potatoes are always a hit with ANY meatloaf, try these whipped potatoes for a next level potato experience. Or make a casserole while you already have the oven going, this french fry casserole is going places. Hopefully, straight into my mouth!
Want to make Meatloaf in the Air Fryer??
Try this Air Fryer Mini Meatloaf Recipe. So delicious and so easy in the air fryer!!
Easy Meatloaf
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground meat a mix makes a nice meatloaf
- 1 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- 2 eggs
Instructions
- preheat the oven to 375°
- crumble the meat in a mixing bowl
- sprinkle the spices on top
- add the panko and eggs
- use our hands to gently mix and combine
- don't crush or go hard on the mixture, just gently combine
- put in a 9×5 loaf pan
- press to fill the pan completely
- make sure the top is even
- bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes and then glaze with bbq sauce or ketchup
- bake another 10 minutes until the top is just starting to get a little crispy in spots and the temperature is 160°
Want to try this recipe. Looks delicious.