Meatloaf experiment

[NMDemDist2]

We love us some meatloaf, but I'm trying to lower the fat and calorie count in fitting with our new 'lifestyle' (read diet)

so at the store today I picked up a pound of 4% fat burger, a pound of ground turkey and in place of the Jimmy Dean ground sausage i usually use (2 # beef to 1 # sausage) i picked up some extra lean ground pork.

I'm thinking i'm gonna have to up the spices a bit to take the place of the sausage, so sage and what else??

I usually don't have to spice it up too much, but i'm open to spice suggestions so what do you use in YOUR meatloaf??

I'm going to mince a white onion and red bell pepper, add some bread crumbs and a couple eggs to hold it together, i usually add some dried mustard and some garlic, worchestershire sauce, tomato sauce and of course salt and pepper.

any other suggestions are very happily accepted

[maddezmom]

1. I always add some red pepper flakes when I make breakfast sausage

[NMDemDist2]

2. great idea!!

thanks!

I'm gonna be heading in there in a few minutes to 'stir it up'

[Denninmi]

3. Well, I think you have the spices covered.

My question, though -- will it be too dry. Since you've eliminated a lot of the fat, do you think it will have enough moisture in it?

Not that I have any idea about how to augment the moisture level, mind you.

[NMDemDist2]

7. Stinky says add ice flakes

i may have to try that on this round.......

[Stinky The Clown]

28. The ice serves two purposes . . . .

The ice helps the meat hold together by keeping the fat content cold.

The ice stays in the meat while cooking. It melts and adds moisture to the meat. Near the surface, it also tends to steam the meat, helping heat migrate inward and cooking slighty faster.

[NMDemDist2]

30. my blender could chop ice I suppose and with the danish dough hook

my hands wouldn't freeze working it in...

hi Stink!!

[Whisp]

31. grating onions also works

I find it makes the hamburger/meatloaf, etc., really moist. It can get a bit watery so I add a little more breadcrumbs to offset.

Actually I never use breadcrumbs - I stick some soda crackers in a zip lock and roller pin them to smithereens and use that.

[NMDemDist2]

32. i have put onions and bell peppers through the food processor in the past

i just didn't do it with this batch.

[Pab Sungenis]

4. You will need moisture.

Do not add extra breadcrumbs as a filler, they will dry it out worse.

Recommendation for moisture, spice, and flavor: add a one-pound jar of salsa to every three pounds of meat.

[NMDemDist2]

6. good point on the bread crumbs

dunno about the salsa though we already do a lot of salsa based stuff here in New Mexico.

i'm going more for a midwest taste...

maybe just stewed tomatoes..

[Pab Sungenis]

20. Stewed Tomatoes should work perfectly.

I usually use salsa as a shortcut so I don't have to dice up onions, peppers, and other chunkies.

[kurtzapril4]

29. I usually add....

a pomade(I think that's what it's called), which makes all mixed meaty things juicy. All it is is a slice or two of bread(crusts removed) mixed with enough milk to form a paste. Mix into your meatloaf mix as usual.

I make my meatloaf with 95% lean beef and ground chicken. I add garlic powder, onion powder, egg beaters, fresh cracked black pepper, and about a half a cup of A-1 sauce.

Then I make a barbecue-type sauce to put over it made of ketchup, A-1, and a little brown sugar. I put it on in the last 20 minutes of cooking.

[WhollyHeretic]

5. I use egg beaters in mine.

Egg beaters are a dieters best friend. A lot less calories, no fat, and still all the protein.

[NMDemDist2]

8. great idea, but i didn't get them at the store today

i did plan on adding real eggs but the eggbeaters is a great idea in the future

[NMDemDist2]

9. OK, here's what i did

the above mentioned meat products
1 white onion, chopped small
1.5 tsp dried sage
1.5 tsp thyme
garlic salt
tsp dried mustard
2 tsp mild hot sauce
2 TBSP worchestershire
11 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes
small can of tomato sauce
3/4 cup oatmeal
about 2/3 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (maybe more)
2 large eggs, slightly beaten

it's in the fridge now, i'm gonna let it chill for a couple hours then bake

hope it's gonna be a loaf, it was kinda wet......

and if you have one of these danish dough hooks, they are the BEST for making meatloaf without freezing and yucking up your hands...

[EFerrari]

10. NMDem, could I ask you a question about extra lean ground pork?

I've never tried to buy it, so I don't know. Do you basically have to eyeball the stuff when you buy it or does the package come with specs?

[NMDemDist2]

11. it's a new product i'm seeing @ my Albertsons

marketed by "Farmer John" (sic) and is marked "Ground Pork Extra Lean"

here's a link to their webpage with nutrition info

http://farmerjohn.com/products/fresh-pork/

[EFerrari]

19. Thank you.

[PADemD]

12. Seasoning

I use McCormick Perfect Pinch Original All-Purpose Salt Free Seasoning

[freshwest]

13. My 'healthy' version in years past was vegetable intensive.

I also used the mix to make burgers that were a big hit with the family, too.

My ingredients were:

Ground beef, diced garlic, onions, red peppers, tomatoes, green chilis, and lots of fresh zucchini, with a little bit of tomato paste or sauce.

I'd mix all of that up and some crumbled bread, maybe an egg to bind it together. I'd also add some seasoned pepper but no salt.

Everyone loved it. There was another thing I made with ground beef that you might want to try if you're not into the vegetables.

I used to make meatballs with sourdough bread crumbled in, and lots of parmesan cheese, parsley and minced garlic. Then fried them in olive oil until they were golden brown and had a hard time fighting off the crew as they cooled off on paper towels. Most of them didn't make it to the marinara sauce.

If you really would like to cut the calories and fat down, I'd suggest grinding portabellos, mixing them with spinach and tomatoes, feta or parmesan and bread crumbs, and going that route as a meatloaf.

You might want to add an egg but I don't think it's necessary on any of the recipes I just wrote. The amount of bread might do the trick. If it's in a pan, it'll nearly fall apart when served. The more binding the better it'll slice.

Some people like them seasoned like Swedish meatballs, that's very different from my varieties were. Very heavy on the tomatoes was my method which created with the oil from the meat (which you could get with adding olive oil if you want) to almost make a sauce for the vegetables you serve with it or mashed potatoes, etc.

Good luck with your meal.

[NMDemDist2]

14. i thought of grabbing some zucchini today

but it was $2.49 a pound

your ideas sound wonderful, I put the recipe I used in post # 9 here, it's baking now, I'll be back with a review in a couple hours

[maddezmom]

15. eggplant works well, too.

Hope it's delicious.

[NMDemDist2]

16. for eggplant

would i want to peel it and salt it and let it set? like i do if i'm doing parmesan or just grate it and rock and roll??

[maddezmom]

18. when I've used it. I've diced and salted it for about 30-60 minutes or so if they are mature/large

put it on some paper towel or a flour sack before adding to the meat mixture. But if they are little ones I've just diced and thrown in. I've done this a few times with meatloaf and meat balls and my kids never noticed the difference.

[freshwest]

25. How did it go? I liked the eggplant version later in the thread. Although I don't salt or peel it.

I use it to make a sort of cornbread dressing recipe for less carbs that I posted in the Lounge around Christmas.

And some have recommended carrots and I've shredded them and added them along with spinach to some recipes.

Thanks for all the great ideas, everyone!

[NMDemDist2]

26. see the "RESULTS" post below n/t

[Angry Dragon]

17. I use grated carrots in mine

[grasswire]

21. my meatloaf recipe calls for milk

I spose that would work for your moisture. Oatmeal, diced onion, poultry seasoning, S&P, milk, eggs.

[pengillian101]

22. I agree.

Soaking the oatmeal or bread crumbs or crackers in milk works good. (That's my bland midwestern style.)

But reading this thread, the idea of SALSA sounds great! I think I'll try it next time.

[NMDemDist2]

24. i used plain yogurt

seemed to work great!

[freshwest]

27. Thanks for the results. I'd never thought of adding yogurt or milk, that's a new one for me.

I think the more sage the better, no matter what.

[NMDemDist2]

23. RESULTS

the texture came out very good, but not spicy enough. I had very little of the sage and thyme left in the bottles, so i didn't have much choice on the amounts, but they should have been doubled at least. and some basil would have been good in there too. that being said...

the texture was the best i've gotten in a long time, it held it's shape excellently! i'm wondering if the yogurt was the secret there.....???

since it was 3# of meat, i did two loaves, both in a standard 9.5" bread loaf pan, one with just a foil liner, one in my meatloaf draining insert. both methods worked fine and the loaf held together beautifully

it wasn't dry at all, i took it out of the oven at 165 degrees and let it rest for about 10 minutes

here's the recipe again (all measurements are approximate, toss a little of this and a lot of that), but tweak those spices up big time!

1# ground turkey
1# hamburger (4% fat)
1# extra lean ground pork
1 white onion, chopped small
1.5 tsp dried sage
1.5 tsp thyme
garlic salt
2 tsp dried mustard
2 tsp mild hot sauce
2 TBSP worchestershire
11 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes
small can of tomato sauce
3/4 cup oatmeal
about 2/3 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (maybe more)
2 large eggs, slightly beaten

form loaves, cover top with Chili Sauce or Ketchup

Bake at 350 for an hour, then 375 for 20 minutes (why did it take so long?? but it did)