Burgers/Meatloaf--Cook-Off 10

[kayb]

Mine's a fairly minimalist meat loaf. A pound of beef, or if I want a big one, a pound of beef and a pound of pork. An egg. Panade of soft white bread and milk, the milk squeezed out. Seasonings -- salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup. (I don't like chopped veggies in my meat loaf, so I don't use them. I usually make mine quite flat and thin on a sheet pan, as I like a high ratio of outer crunch to inner soft. Also helpful for cutting sandwich-sized slabs the next day for sandwices. Sauce on top that's 3:1 ketchup to Worcestershire. On a baking stone to help the bottom crisp, 425 oven for 10 minutes, then down to 375 for another 15. Drain off the grease, and let it cool for a bit.

 

I will always be grateful to @rotuts for the tip of using Brie on a meat loaf sandwich. Blissful. Toast the bread, mayo, meat loaf on one side, Brie on t'other, back in the CSO to warm the meat loaf and melt the Brie a bit, slap them together. 

 

Bread and butter pickles are a fine addition.

[rotuts]

Brie ( Camembert )  esp Home Aged   is a treat on ML sand.

 

I like the TML at room temp , possible LTMayo

 

on fresh untested bread , sasurdough

 

but Ive been known to Micro the Brie until just warm and soft !

[lindag]

I've used a Turkey Meatloaf recipe from Tyler Florence that forever changed my mind about meatloaf, it is superb.

Unfortunately I don’t have it here right now.

[rotuts]

@lindag

 

is this it or close ?

 

http://www.oprah.com/food/homemade-turkey-meatloaf-with-tomato-relish-smashed-potatoes-and-roasted-green-beans

[Anna N]

 I have to confess that the Cuisinart steam oven never even entered my mind. Although it is now pretty much front and centre in my kitchen I manage to easily ignore it in favour of my Breville. I am sure it is a matter of habit more than anything else. Up north in Manitoulin the Cuisinart steam oven is the only option as far as a countertop oven goes so I look to it for everything. But down here not so much. The Breville has seniority and being a senior myself I respect that.

 

 When I took it from the oven and tasted it I knew at once that I should have done the seasoning test. It’s something I do with most things where you can take a small amount and fry it up to check if it has enough of whatever.  

 

I considered the rolled oats as they would’ve met a gluten-free requirement for someone who chooses not to eat much gluten but then rejected it in favour of the Panko and grated onion. I was, after all, trying mostly to please myself and be “happy in the kitchen” like the late but still much loved Michel Richard. 

 

 I should have pulled it sooner than I did but I became distracted as one often does even when happy in the kitchen. 

 

 

[lindag]

21 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@lindag

 

is this it or close ?

 

http://www.oprah.com/food/homemade-turkey-meatloaf-with-tomato-relish-smashed-potatoes-and-roasted-green-beans

I will check when I get home.

[rotuts]

I Just realized why i never put veg in meatlaof.

 

to cook the veg , you over cook the meat and its dry no mater what you do.

 

140 is the temp I pull my ML

 

never met a veg that was cooked at 140.

 

if you use the CSO  you won't get a crust some people like very easily

 

but it can be done.

 

or torch a little

 

i torch the bacon ( Benton's ) i use on top of my TML

 

or briefly under a watchful eye use the CSO steam broil.

 

i use oatmeal simply because i have it and it keeps

 

I rarely have panko   but Im sure if I use Panko would not be able to tell the difference.

 

not over cooking ML is a key for me.

Edited March 16, 2018 by rotuts (log)

[lindag]

Watching Ina Garten today and she's making meatloaf:

 

Chef Kevin Penner's meat loaf

 

I looks SO good!!!

[rotuts]

I know traditional ' meat loaf mix ' has veal in it.

 

I doubt very much you can taste veal if you use beef and pork and all those flavorings in the above Rx

 

not being critical , but

 

I think this mix came about when veal was in almost every USA market , and there were plenty of veal bits and trimmings to

 

grind and use up.

 

 most supermarkets I venture into have little to no veal at all.

[lindag]

I can get ground veal here at most markets but it's almost always pre-frozen.  

Like you probably do, I usually just sub with more beef/pork,

[rotuts]

@indag

 

consider trying a turkey ML  if you can get 93% lean at an attractive price

 

here their seem to be at least three large providers :  ShaddyBrook farm ,  butterball , and maybe Jennie-O

 

the SBF  goes on sale periodically  ( 22.4 oz it seems )

 

https://www.shadybrookfarms.com/products/

 

I have no idea why they have so many sizes

 

the 1 lbs  sometimes goes for 1.99    and the  1.3 sometimes for 2.49

 

I stock up.  the ML is just as good from a frozen brick   as Im able to Vacuum bag it.

 

there is some Jus in the bag , but that all goes into the loaf.

[suzilightning]

I use bison, turkey, ground chicken, 93% ground beef or any combination thereof.  The only thing Johnnybird will NOT stand is veal.  I also grate my onion into the panade which can be either oatmeal or gluten free breadcrumbs(I grew up with the oatmeal), some beef broth and worcestershire sauce.  I mentioned somewhere (dinner thread?) I had tried Sunny Anderson's meatloaf in a bundt pan that also had some pesto mixed into the loaf along with an egg.  It was par baked in the pan, depanned after about 25 minutes onto a baking sheet then draped with thinly sliced potatoes, brushed with butter and finished baking in the oven.  I t was really quite good!!

Here's her recipe link:  https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/sunnys-meat-and-potatoes-bundt-loaf-4624975

[lindag]

1 hour ago, rotuts said:

@indag

 

consider trying a turkey ML  if you can get 93% lean at an attractive price

 

here their seem to be at least three large providers :  ShaddyBrook farm ,  butterball , and maybe Jennie-O

 

the SBF  goes on sale periodically  ( 22.4 oz it seems )

 

https://www.shadybrookfarms.com/products/

 

I have no idea why they have so many sizes

 

the 1 lbs  sometimes goes for 1.99    and the  1.3 sometimes for 2.49

 

I stock up.  the ML is just as good from a frozen brick   as Im able to Vacuum bag it.

 

there is some Jus in the bag , but that all goes into the loaf.

 

I'll post the TF turkey meatloaf recipe first thing in the A.M.

[Shelby]

3 hours ago, rotuts said:

I Just realized why i never put veg in meatlaof.

 

to cook the veg , you over cook the meat and its dry no mater what you do.

 

140 is the temp I pull my ML

 

never met a veg that was cooked at 140.

 

if you use the CSO  you won't get a crust some people like very easily

 

but it can be done.

 

or torch a little

 

i torch the bacon ( Benton's ) i use on top of my TML

 

or briefly under a watchful eye use the CSO steam broil.

 

i use oatmeal simply because i have it and it keeps

 

I rarely have panko   but Im sure if I use Panko would not be able to tell the difference.

 

not over cooking ML is a key for me.

 

When and if I put onion...or the dreaded bell peppers....I cook them for a bit first.  Lately, I haven't been putting any veggies in.  Dunno why.

[rotuts]

better W/O

[Shelby]

11 minutes ago, rotuts said:

better W/O

How did I know you were going to say that? 

[Shelby]

22 hours ago, Shelby said:

This is a very timely bump for this topic.  Ronnie ground up a country ham steak or two the other day.  I'm supposed to make him some ham salad out of it....and I will, but I want to use some of it to make a meatloaf.  I've laid out some venison burger.  I know that ham is salty and a bit dry so I'll make adjustments to the panade (why doesn't my spell check recognize "panade"--am I spelling it wrong?)

Quoting myself to say that this turned out really good--I didn't say this earlier, but I was quite skeptical that this was going to work.  I was worried about the saltiness and the the dryness but  it turned out to be one of the best meatloaves I've ever made.  I made very sure not to add any additional salt besides my usual couple glugs of Worcestershire sauce.  It might be a tad too salty for some, but we are salt people.  

 

I also made sure to do what @rotuts suggested and I pulled it at 140F and let it rest.  

 

The mix was bread torn up and soaked in milk, an egg, about a pound of venison burger, a little less than 3/4 lb of ground ham, black pepper,  a couple glugs of Worcestershire sauce and a few squirts of Ketchup.  The sauce for the top was mustard, ketchup and brown sugar.  Baked for about 30 mins at 350 F.

Edited March 17, 2018 by Shelby (log)

[rotuts]

what did you use for ' fat ' in the ML ?

 

I assume the venison did not have much

 

from the ham ?

 

if salt is an issue w ham :   soak it in Ice water for a bit and pat dry.   ice keep the fat firm  so you don't end up

 

w greasy water.   you want the fat in the ML

 

consider finely diced fat from bacon

 

Yum.

Edited March 17, 2018 by rotuts (log)

[Shelby]

6 minutes ago, rotuts said:

what did you use for ' fat ' in the ML ?

 

I assume the venison did not have much

 

from the ham ?

 

if salt is an issue w ham :   soak it in Ice water for a bit and pat dry.   ice keep the fat firm  so you don't end up

 

w greasy water.   you want the fat in the ML

 

consider finely diced fat from bacon

 

Yum.

 

Our venison burger is mixed with some fatty ground pork  

 

I am so glad you posted about the internal temp --I've always pulled it at 160F and I always forget it keeps cooking after that.  This was so juicy and perfect!

[David Ross]

23 hours ago, Anna N said:

 I am reviving this topic only because I don’t know where else to post!

 

 I have had in my mind for sometime that I wanted to make meatloaf. I have made them in the past but it must be close to 40 years ago. 

 

I have a hungry son-in-law and a hungry bachelor son so I knew if I made one there would be a home for it. 

 

 

 There is nothing particularly special about my recipe or my meatloaf.  The only thing I will mention that might be a little different from what everybody else has done is a trick I read here.  It is to grate the onions into Panko to create the panade. 

 

 I am quite pleased with this but as with all things there is room for improvement. I will wait for some feedback from my guinea pigs (or any eG members who think they have THE RECIPE) and then I may attempt another one. 

 

I know @rotuts is a huge fan of turkey meatloaf but that would never pass muster in my family. 

 

I see a lot of meat loaf being made and enjoyed on eG and I was especially taken by meatloaf sandwiches.  Now that I have never tried. 

 

 If you’re a fan of meatloaf why not join in here and share your enthusiasm. 

 

 

I'm glad you did revive it!  I myself also have had a hankering for meat loaf so made one last night.  Well....it was only fair, which attests to the fact I only make it maybe 2 times a year.  Back to the drawing board.  But your meatloaf looks mighty good to me.

 

[rotuts]

@ 140 , the veg won't cook completely.

 

maybe peas .  who ever put peas in a ML ?

 

make them a side dish.

[Shelby]

4 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@ 140 , the veg won't cook completely.

 

maybe peas .  who ever put peas in a ML ?

 

make them a side dish.

No vegetables were hurt in the making of my last meatloaf.....except for the onion in the onion powder......

[rotuts]

of course , another significant issue for the ML Crowd is :

 

how do you make Tomorrows Sandwich ?

 

One Thick Slice , or several thinner slices = to the thickness of the Single Thick Slice ?

 

One of many  important issues for sure.

[gfweb]

19 minutes ago, rotuts said:

of course , another significant issue for the ML Crowd is :

 

how do you make Tomorrows Sandwich ?

 

One Thick Slice , or several thinner slices = to the thickness of the Single Thick Slice ?

 

One of many  important issues for sure.

 

Two thinner slices allows for a good pan-fried sear on 4 sides instead of just two.

Crucial.

As is Russian dressing or sauteed onions

[rotuts]

@gfweb

 

interesting.   ive never seared the ML for a sandwich.

 

room temp , of course .

 

Ill give that some thought.

 

maybe a light torching ?

 

140 or even less for the Temp Pull-Out is crucial for a tender , juicy ML

 

unless you like Dry as a Bone  ML