This Meatloaf Recipe is not only delicious, but it has an amazing magical surprise in the middle!
Grandma handed down her famous meatloaf recipe and I have made it at least once a week since. I recently kicked it up and notch and added a fun twist… eggs in the middle! Eggs add something pretty awesome to a standard meatloaf. They are light and airy compared to a dense loaf of hamburger meat and the contrasting textures taste absolutely amazing.
I have heard a good many people say that only meatloaf they are interested in is the band. I say, let’s settle this over some dinner. This is it, the ultimate in comfort food. Why do some turn away from this amazing meal? Probably because they are doing it wrong, or their mom did. So, how do we turn a blah meatloaf recipe into something amazing? It has to be juicy, saucy, and full of flavor.
This meatloaf will knock your socks off! It has all of the aforementioned requirements. The seasoning in this meatloaf recipe is simple. A little hamburger mixed with onions, freshly cracked eggs, garlic, salt, pepper, milk, Worcestershire and some crushed up crackers. Simple right? It’s all in the details. For this recipe, we start by kicking up the flavor a notch by caramelizing the onions before we mix it into the ground beef. Throw everything together in one pot and get mixing.
HOW TO MAKE THIS MAGIC MEATLOAF RECIPE
First things first, you will need a few soft boiled eggs. If you are boiling them, I usually recommend about 4-5 minutes. That really depends on the freshness of your eggs though. I prefer to put them in a little bit softer than normal because this recipe is going to bake for an hour. Seriously, this is so easy! You saute the onions, boil the eggs, mix the meatloaf ingredients, put a small bit (about half the meat) in a greased oven safe casserole dish, place the eggs and then surround them with the remaining mixture.
Top it all off with a 50/50 mixture of ketchup and sweet barbeque sauce, and bake.
WHAT SHOULD I SERVE WITH THIS MEATLOAF RECIPE?
Let’s be honest, meatloaf is a heavy meal and we know you can’t eat just one slice! However, depending on how many people you have to serve, you might want this meal to stretch a little further. I would recommend pairing it with my baked parmesan shoestring fries or garlic potato wedges. You could simply serve it up with some green beans or sweet corn as well if you wanted something a little lighter.
TIPS TRICKS AND VARIATIONS
WHAT KIND OF MEAT SHOULD I USE FOR THIS MEATLOAF RECIPE?
Ground beef comes in many forms, you could go extra lean, or full fat. Marbling in meat generally equals more flavor so you can be the judge, but you can use any variation. For this meatloaf, I used a lean ground beef. (actually from our own butchered cow)
CAN I MAKE A MEATLOAF SANDWICH WITH THIS RECIPE?
Yes! The trick to making this meatloaf recipe “sandwich worthy” is to pack the meat mixture tighter. Generally speaking, for a lighter texture, I do not recommend packing the meat too tightly. For sandwiches though, you can really get in there and pack it in. The tighter the better.
DO I HAVE TO USE BARBEQUE SAUCE?
No, there are many variations out there for the tomato sauce on top. I would stick with ketchup, although you could mix in a little sriracha ketchup if you like it spicy. For the barbeque sauce, you could use brown sugar instead. The flavor you are going for has a sweet tang and ketchup mixed with brown sugar will work in the same way.
DO I HAVE TO USE THE EGG?
Not at all. You can skip it all together or, throw some mozzarella in the center for a cheesy meatloaf.
CAN I MAKE THIS MEATLOAF AHEAD OF TIME?
You can! The meat mixture and the sauce for the top can all be made a day in advance. I would hold off on the eggs because you want them soft. If you don’t mind a hard boiled egg then you can make that in advance as well!
Just look at that fun surprise!!! Not only do the eggs look delicious, but they taste amazing too! Your family will get excited about meatloaf again!
Ingredients
- 3 lbs ground beef
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cups onions chopped
- 1 cup milk divided
- 1 cup Ritz crackers crushed
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 2 teaspoons ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- 5 or 6 soft boiled eggs I boil extra just in case one
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup sweet barbeque sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°Fahrenheit.
- In a large non-stick pan heat oil over medium-high heat until hot.
- Add chopped onions and cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine beef, eggs, onion, garlic, crackers (or bread crumbs), salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.
- Add in half of the milk and mix. The amount of milk may vary. The texture should be soft, but not runny. Add more as needed.
- In a greased loaf pan, add a 1-inch layer of the meat mixture. Place the eggs in a neat row in the center.
- Add the remaining meat mixture on top of the eggs, carefully sealing all edges and pressing the meat in tightly.
- In a separate bowl, combine ketchup and barbeque sauce. Mix well and spread over the top of the meatloaf.
- Bake for 1 hour. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before cutting.
