I wanted to kick off my recipe section with one of my favorites. Truth be told, I make quite a bit of meat loafs and meatballs. All different flavors and styles. Why? Because ground meats are affordable and delicious! And usually, I have a good variety of ground meats.
Don’t get me wrong – just a plain beef patty can be tasty. But why not do something more, especially when it’s simple?
In Denmark, we like to serve this dish with a side of lingonberry jam, pickled red onions, a green salad, and a variety of potatoes – but often I just enjoy by itself.
Keeping it simple
This will be the guiding principle here with my recipes. Sure, I sometimes make more complicated dishes… but this blog is about optimization. And optimizing your kitchen and recipes is about quick, simple, and tasty.
Why this recipe works?
A quick and easy meatloaf that is remarkably tender – and gluten free. While not the most robust in flavor , it takes on sauces and toppings very well. Still great on its own, however.
By using a thin sliced bacon, you’ll end up with a crunchy bacon wrapping at the same time as the meatloaf gets to temperature.
Makes an outstanding leftover, can enjoy cold and slices are amazing on a sandwich! Or just reheat and enjoy.
While traditionally this dish uses pork and veal, you can use a variety of ground meats. The texture and flavor will certainly change, but feel free to experiment.
This is a great base meatloaf that can easily be modified. Please share with me on X or in the comments here your modifications.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs Pork and Veal (50% of each)
- 1 Large Onion (Finely diced)
- 1/2 Cup Whole Milk (I use A2)
- 1/2 Cup Rolled Oats (Organic if you have it)
- 2 Large Pasture Raised Eggs
- 2 Teaspoons Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
- 6oz Thin Sliced Bacon (Important that it’s thin sliced, approximately 10 slices)
Instructions
Add everything other than the bacon into a mixing bowl and mix together. Mix thoroughly. If the mixture is too loose to hold its shape on a sheet pan, add a little more oats. If it’s too firm, add a little more milk.
(told you this was simple)
Form into a loaf on a sheet pan. We use a sheet pan instead of a loaf pan in order to have the sides open to bacon wrap it.
Add slices of bacon around the meatloaf.
Cook for approximately 40 minutes at 400 degrees.
Check with an instant read thermometer (a must have) and pull when the middle reaches 160 degrees.
Let cool for 10 minutes, slice and enjoy!
Side suggestion
For our dinner recently, we added roasted potatoes and sunchokes. Just boiled until tender, then smashed and placed in the oven at the same time as the meatloaf and taken out at the same time. Easy!
A side of lingonberry jam as your “sauce” is also very traditional and pickled red onions goes well with it, too.
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