Gluten Free Meatloaf

my take

Nicole's Recipe Notes

If you think of meatloaf as a lot of work, remember that you only need to combine some basic ingredients in a single bowl: beef, spices for depth of flavor, a binder like quick oats, grated cheese for texture and flavor, milk for moisture, and eggs as a binder. Then, you only need to shape and bake.

Most meatloaf recipes call for either breadcrumbs as a binder, like we use in our gluten free meatballs, or quick-cooking oats. I prefer to use the oats and make meatloaf without breadcrumbs because they maintain some subtle texture in the milk. But you can use coarse breadcrumbs if you prefer.

You can make this adaptable recipe with all dried herbs or mostly fresh, but my favorite way to make it is with dried onion, garlic, cumin, and plenty of fresh parsley.

You can make this same recipe as miniature meatloaves instead of one large meatloaf. That way, they cook faster and look a little more special on top of a mound of mashed potatoes.

Of course, you don't need the glaze but it really adds a lot of flavor, color, and keeps the meat moist and tender. Warm, flavorful, and fragrant, meatloaf is the ultimate comfort food. Make it for your family tonight!

what's in it

Recipe Ingredients

• Milk: Adds moisture, flavor, and softens the oats
• Eggs: Act as a binder to hold the meatloaf mixture together as it bakes, and add some rise
• Worcestershire sauce: Adds that “umami” depth of flavor
• Oats: Help bind the mixture together, retain moisture, and provide structure to the meatloaf
• Parsley: Adds an earthy flavor, some color and brightness
• Salt: Brightens and balances the other flavors
• Cumin: Adds a smoky taste and aroma
• Mustard powder: Adds a tangy flavor and a little spiciness
• Onion flakes and garlic powder: Add richness, savory flavor, and the minced dried onions add some subtle sweetness with a less pungent aroma than if you used onion powder.
• Cheddar cheese: Adds cheesy flavor, richness, and some sharp depth to the mixture.
• Ground beef: I like to use 90% lean ground beef so that the meatloaf leaks less fat during baking. There are enough other ingredients that add flavor and moisture that the meatloaf is never dry. You can also use a combination of beef, pork and/or veal.
• Ketchup: Provides flavor, moisture, sweetness and a touch of acidity as the meatloaf bakes.
• Dijon mustard: Adds a smoky sharpness to the glaze, and thickens it a bit to help keep it in place.
• Brown sugar: Adds depth of flavor, more sweetness, and helps the meatloaf develop a nice outer crust.

My Pro Tip

Expert Tips

Use an instant read thermometer

It can be hard to tell when recipes made with ground beef mixtures like meatloaf or meatballs are cooked all the way through just by looking at or touching them. Ground beef is safe to eat when it's cooked to 160°F, so it's best to insert an instant read thermometer into the center of the meatloaf when you think it's done.

Handle the meat gently

The beef is the last ingredient we add to the meatloaf mixture so that we don't overwork it. Combine all of the other ingredients well first, then break up the raw ground beef by handling it lightly with your fingers and placing it on top. Then, combine everything together as gently as possible, since overworked meat can become tough during baking.

Don't skip the glaze

The ketchup and mustard glaze adds flavor and helps lock in moisture during baking. If you don't care for ketchup, try using a smooth tomato sauce instead. Add some mustard powder to it, and add at least some of the brown sugar to help with browning.

Consider mini meatloaves

You don't have to change any of the ingredients to make individual meatloaves instead of one large, sliced loaf. Just divide the mixture into 10 equal portions and shape gently into loaves. Bake for about 40 minutes.

substitutions

Ingredient substitutions

Beef

I'm not planning to show you how to make gluten free meatloaf—without meat. I'm not saying it can't be done, but that is a much bigger job.

I just want to point out that you can use a mixture of ground meats in this recipe, rather than just lean ground beef. A “meatloaf” mixture of ground pork, beef, and veal also works great here, but there is a lot more fat in the mixture than when you use 90% lean ground beef. There will be more rendered fat around the loaf that you need to wipe away after baking.

Dairy free

There is dairy in this recipe in the milk, and in the grated cheddar cheese. The milk is easy to replace with any unsweetened nondairy almond milk. I don't recommend oat milk, since it has more flavor and is less smooth than almond milk or dairy milk.

To replace the dairy cheese, I have made this recipe using Daiya brand dairy free cheddar-style shreds in place of the cheddar cheese and it tasted great. You can also replace the cheese with more quick oats and add 2 more tablespoons of milk.

Egg free

I haven't tried making this recipe without eggs. If you're avoiding eggs, I'd recommend experimenting with a “chia egg” (1 tablespoon ground white chia seeds mixed with 1 tablespoon lukewarm water, mixed and allowed to gel) replacement for each of the two eggs. I prefer chia to flax seeds since they have a much more neutral flavor.

Meatloaf without oats

For the equivalent of quick-cooking oats, I simply pulse certified gluten free old-fashioned rolled oats in a food processor 2 to 3 times. Any further processing will give you oat flour.

To substitute the oats entirely, I have also made this recipe with ground gluten free corn flake cereal, plain gluten free crackers, or coarsely ground gluten free breadcrumbs.

If you decide to use a corn flake cereal, be sure to use a very simple corn flake cereal like the kind that has only two ingredients—corn and salt. Sweetened cereals like Chex really change the flavor balance of the meatloaf mixture.

Worcestershire sauce

In the U.S., Lea & Perrins brand Worcestershire sauce is gluten free. Be careful what brand you use, as some contain barley malt in place of molasses.

It really adds nice depth of flavor to the recipe, but you can leave it out entirely, or replace it with some gluten free fish sauce or a mixture of molasses and anchovy paste, even.

Tomato ketchup

Again in the U.S., Heinz tomato ketchup is gluten free, but it does have quite a bit of added sugar. Organicville ketchup has no added sugar, which is fine especially since we're adding brown sugar to it for the glaze.

Dijon mustard

In place of Dijon mustard, you can add 1 1/2 teaspoons ground mustard powder, or half yellow mustard and half mayonnaise.

Make ahead/leftovers

Storage & reheating instructions

Whether you've made individual meatloaves or a single loaf sliced by cross-section, you can keep baked and cooled meatloaf fresh in the refrigerator. Allow the leftovers to cool completely, then wrap each piece or slice tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Freezing

For longer storage, place the individually wrapped pieces in a freezer-safe zip-top bag, with all the air squeezed out and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost frozen meatloaf in the refrigerator overnight.

Refreshing

To refresh refrigerated meatloaf, sprinkle lightly with lukewarm water and place in the microwave oven at about 40% power for about 90 seconds or in the toaster oven at about 325°F for about 5 minutes. Serve with more glaze.