Troubleshoot this recipe

[jennyema]

Ok, I thought about this more ...

I think it's the meat texture ... assuming your meat was chunkier (less fine) than the grind from the supermarket. The finer you grind something the denser the loaf you make from it.

I think you will be disappointed if you leave out the egg. Meatloaf needs a binder. Egg does this (and egg/crumb or grain together), but ketchup doesn't. Maybe try egg whites?

 

[mudbug]

I think I would soak a couple of pieces of plain old sandwich bread in some milk and add that to the mix, plus probably another 1/4 cup or so of milk. Sorry, geebs - I can't do without the eggs, either.

 

[Michael in FtW]

Sounds like a combination moisture/binder problem. If you soaked the croutons in 1/2-cup milk for about 15-mins, that might help, and if you added another egg that should, too. But .... since you don't want the egg .... here is a recipe I found just for you!

Eggless Meatloaf

3/4 C. plain dry bread crumbs
3/4 C. skim milk or water
1-1/2 lb meatloaf mixture (ground pork, veal or pork-veal-beef )
1 - 2 grated onions
1 medium-sized peeled, grated, raw potato
a pinch of salt, pepper
a pinch of marjoram
1 crushed clove garlic or 1 t garlic powder
1 C water

In a large bowl, mix bread crumbs and milk or water. Add meatloaf mixture. Add grated onions and raw potato. (The grated potato replaces the egg as a binder.) Mix well by hand until thoroughly blended. Season to taste with salt, pepper, marjoram and crushed garlic or garlic powder. Mix well, shape into a loaf and place in the center of a cake pan greased with oil. Add water to pan and bake about 1 hr in pre-heated 350° oven.

If you have your own meat grinder at home it is best to run the meats, onion, garlic, potato all through together to get the most incoporated product.

 

[GB]

Michael you rock!!! Thanks so much for that eggless recipe. I can't wait to try it

Thank you to everyone else too. I knew I could count on all of you for great advice and suggestions.

 

[auntdot]

GB, I have to agree with Topaz, you might want to try just the the white of the egg.

I believe the binding agent in the egg is the albumen that exists in the white of the egg and is basically tasteless to me.

To me the taste of the egg is all in the yolk.

Might try making a small batch and even use store bought chopped meat just to give it a try (we, like you, almost always grind our own, and for convenience use the processor instead of the grinders we have).

Just a thought if the grated potatoes don't do it for you.

 

[GB]

I just would not make it again if I needed to use more egg, even just the whites. I can taste and feel even just egg whites in many things even when it is just a little. It is almost like an electric current on my tongue. It is a very unpleasant thing for me.

 

[marmalady]

Geebs, you gotta get over that - egg whites is goood!

 

[buckytom]

gb, when i make meatloaf, or meatballs, i eye the volume of meat, and add about 1/3 of that volume in bread crumbs. i've never measured, but that has always worked for me.

my mom alwasys uses fresh bread, torn into small chunks by hand. her meatloaf was legendary...

just a coupla suggestions.

 

[GB]

I wish I could. I really really do. Of all the foods I don't eat, eggs are the one I hate the most, but they are what I wish I could eat the most. I think it is even more than just simply not liking then. My body actually has a violent reaction to them. I describe it like it is an allergy even though it is not. The weird thing is that in the morning if someone is making eggs it smells good and also makes me gag all t the same time.

 

[GB]

gb, when i make meatloaf, or meatballs, i eye the volume of meat, and add about 1/3 of that volume in bread crumbs. i've never measured, but that has always worked for me.

my mom alwasys uses fresh bread, torn into small chunks by hand. her meatloaf was legendary...

just a coupla suggestions.

Yeah it did look like I had a lot of meat. It was overflowing from the loaf pan.

Years ago my mom was taking a trip to FL by herself and leaving my brother, father, and me on our own. She left us all sorts of food and instructions on how to feed ourselves. One night we decided to make meatloaf. The three of us make it together. While making it, dad dropped the loaf on the floor. Well being the boys and men that we were, we applied the 3 second rule and picked it up and continued to make it. The meatloaf had absolutely NO taste, but it held together perfectly. We still joke that dropping it on the floor is the trick. Maybe I should have tried that

 

[Michael in FtW]

... While making it, dad dropped the loaf on the floor. Well being the boys and men that we were, we applied the 3 second rule and picked it up and continued to make it. ...

That's what Julia Child would have done!

 

[auntdot]

OK GB, I now understand, only one egg (am a bit slow, and sorry Jennyma, did not see your posting before mine about the egg whites).

I started to think (always a bad idea, my worst food ideas emerge when I do that).

Just a couple of probably dumb ideas.

Maybe a gelatin solution might work, or perhaps a soy powder mixed with water or stock.

Wonder if the water that canned kidney or pinto beans are packed in, perhaps with some of the beans ground up with the immersion blender, might work.

Don't know if a starch like arrowroot or cornstarch would do the job, but it might be worth a shot. Or the potato starch option, previously mentioned, might do.

Can always get some cheap chopped beef, make teeny loaves with each one using a different ingredient. Probably what I would do, but then again I am very compulsive.

For the ones you don't like, there is always the cat or dog.

I doubt this helps, but it is after midnight, am tired, and think I will have a glass of wine and just go to bed.

 

[LEFSElover]

18 ounces of meat times 2, if I read right, seems a lot of meat and with the moisture added due to the onion and carrot, it seems to me that 6 ounces of dried croutons isn't right either. I'd say not enough bread, but then, what do I know? I do agree that fresh bread would make more sense. You've got 36 ounces of meat there and that's the size of a football, not a meatloaf.

 

[jpmcgrew]

What a bummer to not like eggs does that mean you cant eat cookies,cake,pancakes?

A few good squirts of ketchup would be good also I think you really need to work your meat mixture really well by hand to help it to hold it together.

 

[Barbara L]

I'm not going to attempt to answer your question, as it seems to have been well covered. I just thought it was interesting. Personally, I have never made meatloaf with bread or crackers, just oatmeal. I love the texture it gives the meatloaf. That is how my mom always made hers too.

Barbara

 

[Saltygreasybacon]

Here's my 2 cents,,,,I think your mixture is way to dry. When I make meatloaf I add at least a full cup of tomato sauce to the mix. My meatloaf is so runny that I have to put in into a meatloaf pan because there is no way you could shape it into a loaf. When it's done cooking, let it rest for at least 10 minutes and it hold together and will be the moistest loaf you'll ever have. Got the idea from a copy cat recipe for Boston Market meatloaf, check topsecretrecipes.com I think it's there.

 

[ajrubyo]

Dry Meatloaf

I think you need more moisture. Perhaps some Italian tomato sauce, or salsa, or plain tomato sauce? Also a tbsp. or so of oil. Grating the vegetables is better than chunks, it releases the moisture. Grated zucchini is good for this,if you like it. To help hold it together, maybe a half cup or so of grated parmesan cheese, or even mozzarella. The corn/potato starch is good, but can dry things out without enough extra moisture. And for a nice taste, try stuffing mix (Stove Top) blended or crushed a bit instead of bread or breadcrumbs. Unfortunately, the egg yolks give lots of moisture, I usually add an extre yolk to mine, but these hints might work for you. Hope this helps.

 

[velochic]

I had the same problem and I sauteed my veggies in a tad bit of evoo before adding them. The water evaporated in the veggies and the oil acted better as a binder. The veggies seem to just melt into the loaf and it's not chunky at all. I didn't have to add another egg.

 

[cantcook]

I didn't read EVERY response but I agreed with some of the others I've read.

Couple points, I don't know how you defrosted your meat IF it was frozen. DON'T thaw in the microwave. Let it thaw at room temp on its own
You won't taste the other egg, use it
you need a greasy meat for a good meatloaf, IMO...if your meat is lean add a little butter or bacon drippings........bacon drippings would be my first choice.

 

[Chef Wil]

I would add a little more fat, instead of GR I would have used all GC or even GB for part of the mix. I usually use 1/2 GC and 1/2 ground pork. The moisture content is even more important to me. Add a little red wine or a touch of milk to the recipe and it will get better. Also try using 15 to 20 pulses or get a meat grinder, I don't think meat can be done right in a food processor, breaks up the cells too much and it comes out pasty textured.

I teach a survival cooking course called The Surviving Gourmet every sumer. In it I suggest using ground fresh cat-tail tubers as a binder for breads and things. There is almost no taste to it and I make cookies breads and muffins with it. Easy to find, almost any marsh or wetland in the US has it growing. Easy to use, just peel it and toss the tuber into a food processor. Easy to store, keeps for a few weeks in a fridge or you can freeze it.