Ketchup drizzle on meatloaf

Cooking Discussions Cooking, Cookbooks, Ingredients
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Do you?

My better half always prepares meatloaf when it’s on tap here at home. I do not interfere. (it’s for dinner tonight!). One thing she has never used, ever, is ketchup. Just mentioned I’m writing this post, and she said: “you don’t like ketchup in meatloaf.” So I guess that’s how and why, her recipe has played out over the decades. It is one of my Comfort Foods. I love it cold on a gummy white bread sandwich the next day. I pilfer chunks from the 'fridge with little guilt, when no one else is paying attention.

Your meatloaf observations cheerfully solicited.

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I always drizzle Heinz (only) ketchup on top on my meatloaf before I bake it, and I drizzle it with soy sauce as well. I am also a fan of cold meatloaf sandwiches (with mayonnaise) on gummy white bread, but I never have them because I can’t bring myself to buy the bread. When I was growing up, Wonder Bread was forbidden, and we always ate Roman Meal and some kind of Hollywood diet bread - yuck.

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Sometimes a bit of ketchup in the meat mix but we use brown gravy for meatloaf most of the time. The whole point is for sandwiches!

My preference is dark rye with a slice of cheese melted on both pcs and a nice room temp slice of meatloaf.

We make three loaves in one oven, slice and freeze to use over time or for parties.

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I don’t usually put ketchup on my meatloaf. Not that I oppose ketchup, it is just not what I think of first.

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I’m the same way, next day cold with ketchup on white bread!

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Mayonaise and horseradish for the next day cold sandwich.

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I am more of a brown gravy person, I have been told; meat loaf and ketchup, salsbery steak and brown gravy.

Same thing, different sauce?

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I don’t make it, but it’s comfort food when I go home:
V1: ketchup inside and spread on top (concentrates to a glaze)
V2: can of crushed tomatoes on top (also concentrates and caramelizes)

Cold from the fridge is good, with or without bread, but it’s especially good in a toasted sandwich (pressed grilled cheese style, the bread nice and crusty on the outside)

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I have used bacon, I would rather have bacon than ketchup.

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A few slices of bacon on top of the ketchup drizzle.

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Ming Tsai has a recipe involving sambal and Dijon mustard that I enjoy riffing on when I make meatloaf every now and then. Usually I’ll make this meatloaf using ground turkey as the protein and the condiments really bring the flavor.

I am with you on meatloaf sandwiches and cold meatloaf, except for me it’s rye bread.

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1:2 ratio of ketchup to brown sugar, mixed together and spooned on top for the last 15 minutes of baking.

Next day sandwiches = white bread + cold meatloaf + mayo.
We don’t mess with the formula.

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My BH did this for years when our children were growing up in the house. We viewed it as a healthy alternative to beef…

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I think if I saw this prep on a diner menu, while eating out, I would try it.

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I love ketchup but I do not like it on or in meatloaf. Not sure why. I make a more 'Italian" style meatloaf, and I do use some marinara sauce and either romano or parmagian cheese. I love this meatloaf :slight_smile:

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Definitely ketchup and some brown sugar on top with what the girls call my “Martha (Stewart)” meatloaf.
I add grated celery, carrots, parsnip, a splash or Worcestershire, along with my usual of white onion, garlic, egg, bread crumbs or old bread, some white wine s&p.

So that out of the way, lets move on the second part of this topic:
I call it cold meatloaf, the girls call it leftovers… I really do not care what you call it, but a little slice cold out of the fridge, dipped in ketchup or mustard is one of my go to favs, and I will often lay in bed at 3AM wide awake wondering at what point in my life will I break my own rule of eating in the middle of the night…I do confess having a piece of meatloaf slightly warmed with two over easy on top for breakfast, and if it was covered with some bacon, it be on anyone’s menu.

Sandwiches:
Additionally it can be on “Gummy” white, baguette, challah (Which by the way Friday night diner growing up often was roast chicken and meatloaf and of course a big shinny challah on the table.) It really does matter what kind of bread. I guess we can do a thread on paring up different types of meatloaf on different breads?
A big NO NO…lettuce and tomato on the sandwich…:no_entry_sign:

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BBQ sauce as a glaze, bacon crisscrossed on top of that.
Bell peppers in your meatloaf.?
One of the joys of adulthood was eliminating them from our family recipe.

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Made a meatloaf on Sunday, (note that was prior to the start of this thread), and did a ketchup/chipotle/habanero salsa glaze and it was really good.

I’ll be having that white bread sandwich so lovingly described above for lunch. I might add a schmear of leftover mashed potatoes to it as well. I’ll cut a slice of the cold meatloaf and quickly toast it in a skillet with a bit of bacon fat.

BTW, the loaf itself was a off-the-cuff affair with grass fed beef, homemade toasted bread crumbs, a little water, a half package of onion soup mix, a little garlic salt, some parsley, a bit of Worcestershire, a tsp of beef bouillion and a slight handful of dried onion flakes I wanted to use up.

It was very onion-y but excellent.

Looking forward to that sandwich.

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Is there a benefit to adding water to your meat mix?

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Just realized reading through the replies in this thread that I neglected to talk main ingredients my wife uses to make up the loaf. Here goes. Two / one ratio, 70/30 hamburger, and ground pork–not pork sausage, so less grease. Two eggs cracked into the meats and combined by hand. 1.5 cups of milk, 1.75 cups of breadcrumbs, one envelope, dry onion soup mix. A pinch of sea salt. A pinch of black pepper.

Last nights meatloaf was terrific. :grinning:

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