Crockpot meatloaf

[Megatrillionss]

Hi. Im new here, so I hope I am posting this question in the appropriate place.
I began cooking meatloaf in my crockpot instead of my oven. It comes out great, but theres always a lot of fluid/grease/fat? pooled up at the bottom. Is this normal? Is there any way to avoid it?

 

[caseydog]

That is normal if you cook meatloaf in a pan. You can use a leaner meat, and sweat your veggies to dry them out a bit. Do you use bread crumbs? That will help some, too.

CD

 

[Cheryl J]

Hi. Im new here, so I hope I am posting this question in the appropriate place.
I began cooking meatloaf in my crockpot instead of my oven. It comes out great, but theres always a lot of fluid/grease/fat? pooled up at the bottom. Is this normal? Is there any way to avoid it?

Hi Megatrillionss, and welcome to DC.

If you're cooking meatloaf in a crockpot, yes, there will be a lot of pooled grease and there's no way to avoid it. Is there any particular reason that you choose to use a crock pot instead of the oven? Meatloaf does best in a dry oven environment to get that nice crust and on a rack to let the grease drain.

 

[GotGarlic]

Hi and welcome to Discuss Cooking [emoji2]

This would be a bit of a pain with a crock pot, but I pour off the fat and liquid from a baked meatloaf and make gravy for the mashed potatoes with it

 

[tenspeed]

Depending upon the size of your crock, one of these may fit.

https://www.amazon.com/ChefLand-Roasting-Cooling-Stainless-Grilling/dp/B00RLQY9IK/

It won't eliminate the pooled grease, but it will keep the meatloaf out of it.

 

[Sagittarius]

Welcome Megatrilloss.

I have always prepared my meatloaf in classic tradition in the oven ..

Why a crock pot verses oven ?

 

[Andy M.]

To answer the original question, yes, it's normal. It seems more off putting in a crockpot as there is no way for the liquids to run off as in a baking pan.

If you don't have an oven or toaster oven, then your crockpot method will do. If possible, try to find a rack that fits in the crockpot so the meatloaf sits above the drained liquids. Otherwise, remove the cooked meatloaf to a rack and let it sit for 10-15 minutes to drain.

 

[cjmmytunes]

In my Ninja Kitchen system, I have a mesh rack that I use when I am baking stuff that I don't want to be in the liquids.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

There are two ways to avoid the grease:

1. If you have or can find a rack that fits the bottom your crock pot, place the rack in first, the put the meatloaf on top of the rack.

2, Line the bottom of the crock pot with several layers of paper towels. The paper towels will absorb the grease. Remove the meatloaf, then discard the greasy paper towels.

 

[tenspeed]

You can also layer the bottom of the pot with thick sliced onions to keep the meatloaf above the grease.

 

[GotGarlic]

Curious - why do you cook meatloaf in the slow cooker? Baking it in the oven, either free form on a rack on a sheet pan or in a loaf pan with a removable draining insert, would alleviate the problem and avoid the waste of paper towels or onions. And in my opinion, it tastes better that way, too

 

[rodentraiser]

Megatrillionss, another way you can avoid having the meat sit in the grease while it's cooking in the crock pot is simply to ball up some aluminum foil. Put a couple large balls on the bottom of your crock pit and place the meat on top of them.

And if you use a crock pot liner, all you have to do is take the meat out and throw out the liner. No fuss, no muss.

GG, I like to do foods in the crock pot myself, especially pork roast. If I'm not feeling really lazy I'll sear it first, but usually I just dump it in there, throw in whatever seasonings and marinade I want and then forget it. Sometimes I'll add a couple potatoes. I don't always miss the crust on some meats. It's for days I'm feeling lazy.

 

[GotGarlic]

Megatrillionss, another way you can avoid having the meat sit in the grease while it's cooking in the crock pot is simply to ball up some aluminum foil. Put a couple large balls on the bottom of your crock pit and place the meat on top of them.

And if you use a crock pot liner, all you have to do is take the meat out and throw out the liner. No fuss, no muss.

GG, I like to do foods in the crock pot myself, especially pork roast. If I'm not feeling really lazy I'll sear it first, but usually I just dump it in there, throw in whatever seasonings and marinade I want and then forget it. Sometimes I'll add a couple potatoes. I don't always miss the crust on some meats. It's for days I'm feeling lazy.

This is meatloaf, though. The time-consuming part is getting out the ingredients and mixing them together.

Maybe it's because my slow cooker is old, but it seems to dry out just about everything I cook in it and the flavor is washed out. I like meats much better braised or roasted in the oven.

 

[rodentraiser]

I know. But sometimes it's just more fun to throw things in a crock pot. For instance, tomorrow I'm making my potato cheddar bacon soup and I could toss the potatoes in a pot with water and cook them in about 15 minutes or so.

But instead, I'm tossing chopped frozen hash browns into a crock pot and letting them cook for 6 hours or so. I don't know why. Six of one, half dozen of the other.