Boston Market Meatloaf Copycat Recipe (So Easy and Full of Flavor!) (2024)

FAQs

What is Boston Market meatloaf made of? ›

How to Make Boston Market Meatloaf. Here are the steps for this recipe: Mix ground beef, chopped onions, garlic salt, diced tomatoes, breadcrumbs, and egg together until well blended. Place the beef mixture in a lightly greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Whether you slather a thick layer of ketchup on top of the meatloaf before it goes into the oven, add a few tablespoons to the ground meat mixture, or serve extra ketchup on the side, this tangy-sweet, umami-rich condiment balances out the richness of the beef, making it an essential part of the dish.

The Basic Meatloaf Formula

All recipes for meatloaf start with the same basic formula: 2 pounds of ground meat and a “panade” made of bread or crackers soaked in milk. Along with a few eggs, this panade helps to hold the ground meat together and adds some essential moisture to the mix.

You're Not Sufficiently Seasoning the Meat

This is crucial. Unseasoned meat, as you can probably guess, doesn't taste like a whole lot once baked into a loaf, so it's important to add ample salt in order to bring out the inherent savory flavors of the ground meat.

We marinate our poultry with a secret blend of herbs and spices, then slow-roast it to perfection in our rotisserie ovens. The result? A succulent, juicy chicken that's bursting with flavor, and a crispy, golden skin that's downright irresistible.

Milk and other dairy products, like heavy cream and buttermilk, contain both water and fat, adding two types of moisture to our meatloaf. There's a long-held theory that milk can tenderize ground meat, and this is the reason often cited for cooking ground meat in milk to make a Bolognese-style ragù.

In meatloaf, this is most commonly the eggs and breadcrumbs. Your binding ingredient is only second to the meat itself in your recipe and the reason why meatloaf crumbles. When this happens, it's because you didn't use enough. Next time, try adding in an extra egg and/or some more breadcrumbs.

Should I cook my meatloaf covered or uncovered? The meatloaf can be cooked uncovered. However, if you are concerned about it burning, you can cover the meatloaf with foil for the first 45 minutes and uncover it for the final 15 minutes to allow the meatloaf to brown on top.

Here's a simple trick to reduce the grease in your homemade meatloaf. When making meat loaf, line the bottom of your pan with slices of bread. Place the meat mixture in the pan and bake as usual. The bread will absorb most of the fat from the meat as it cooks.

To prevent a soggy bottom, Bangor Daily News suggests draining the grease from the loaf pan 15 minutes before your cooking time is up; this helps guarantee all sides bake to perfection.

Why is my meatloaf sitting in grease? ›

Placing a wire rack in your pan can elevate the meatloaf, allowing excess grease to drip away from the loaf. This method allows for even cooking while preventing the meatloaf from sitting in a pool of grease, resulting in a leaner final product.

You can velvet meat and make it melt-in-your-mouth tender by quickly tossing chunks of beef or chicken in about ¾ tsp of baking soda for about 15 minutes before your next stir fry, then rinse and pat the meat dry before putting in the pan.

If you don't have any bread, you can substitute it for breadcrumbs, crackers, cereal grains, oatmeal, instant rice, instant barley, or even potato flakes! However, bread is still the best choice of all the potential options.

Combine ground beef, onion, milk, bread crumbs and egg in a large bowl; season with salt and pepper. Transfer into prepared loaf pan. Mix ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard together in a small bowl until well combined; pour over meatloaf and spread it evenly over the top.

Onions, garlic and celery do pose one problem though: they don't cook down easily. Little bits of crunchy onion or celery or potent, hot garlic will spoil the comforting aspect of eating meatloaf.

Q: Why does my meatloaf always crack while cooking? A: Meatloaf usually cracks when the outside has cooked much more quickly than the inside. When meat cooks, the proteins contract and bind together; when it doesn't cook evenly, the outer proteins tighten up, leaving cracks in the top of your meatloaf.

Too Much Liquid

One of the most common reasons meatloaf is watery is an overabundance of liquid ingredients. Adding broth, milk, or eggs can enhance flavor and moisture, but too much can lead to a soupy consistency. Use these ingredients sparingly, and consider adding breadcrumbs or oats to absorb excess moisture.

It is usually made with ground beef, although ground lamb, pork, veal, venison, poultry, and seafood are also used, sometimes in combination. Vegetarian adaptations of meatloaf may use imitation meat or pulses.

The Best Meat for Cracker Barrel-Inspired Meatloaf

We recommend 80 percent lean ground beef. This fat percentage is high enough to make your meatloaf rich tasting, moist, and juicy but not so high that your meatloaf will be greasy.

Salisbury steak isn't technically a steak, but more like a patty. In fact, it's similar to meatloaf but usually without as many ingredients, shaped into a patty rather than a loaf, and served with a mushroom and onion gravy. If you like meatloaf, you'll probably love Salisbury steak.