Post by Glen Carman aka Delmonico on Sept 5, 2017 3:43:30 GMT -6
Meatloaf
Meat loaf and its little brother, meat balls goes way back in Europe to late Roman times at least, or a least items that were similar to what we call meat loaf today. However meat loaf as we know it in America was developed and became a staple in cook books following the Civil War. It became very popular during The Great Depression because it stretched expensive meat and often incorporated leftover s into the mix. Today it is a staple of diners, small cafes and truck stops which specialize in what is often called comfort foods. Often leftovers are sliced and used for sandwiches. In the era before modern electric meat grinders meatloaf was a much more labor intensive process since the meat had to be ground or chopped by hand, it really takes it out of the modern “comfort food” class and makes it more of a big deal.
Today most recipes for meat loaf call for just ground beef, most 19th century recipes use from ¼ to ¾ pork, or even 100% pork, a ratio of about 2 parts beef to 1 part pork (sausage) being the norm. Some recipes call for veal or ground ham also.
Besides ground meat, a traditional meat loaf contains some sort of filler, often crackers, leftover bread, or a cereal like oat meal, plus eggs to help bind it together. Other ingredients used are often some sort of sauce, most often tomato based, on top and/or incorporated into the meat mixture. The top may also be garnished with bacon, added on top raw before baking. Most often chopped onions are added to the meat mixture before baking as well as some sort of herbs and spices.
Most often the mixture is placed in loaf pans and baked, however it lends itself well to being made in camp in a dutch oven. I have found it goes over very well and it can be an inexpensive item used to feed a large group, although I have also found out that often it is so well liked that people tend to eat just a bit more of it than they would other main dishes, but that shows how well it is received.
I like to make my camp meatloaf out of about 2/3 ground beef and about 1/3 ground bulk sausage. Plain ground pork can be used also, but it can be hard to find sometimes. I make it in a 14 inch deep oven; this will feed 15-20 people with no problem. Like almost all my recipes the amounts are never exact and what I add will often reflect what I have on hand. I make this after a couple days in camp and make sure we have biscuits and I have leftovers on them. I use tomato ketchup in it, not as popular in meat loaf as it is today, it was around in the period, Heinz brand was introduced in 1876, but others were making it and selling it before then.
Since 12 deeps are more in line with what most will use rather than a 14” deep, I will reduce my basic recipe to fit that size oven.
Meatloaf
3 pounds of ground beef
1½ pounds of ground bulk sausage or ground pork
1-2 onions (chopped)
4 large eggs
6 stale biscuits
1½ cups ketchup
Several strips of bacon (optional)
Salt and pepper
Other spices and herbs desired
Mix the meat together in a large pan, add the onions plus salt and pepper to taste. Break the eggs and mix in with the meat well, adding about cup ketchup. Crumble up the biscuits fairly fine and add to the mixture, mix well.
Pack the meat mixture into the dutch oven; garnish the top with the bacon strips and the rest of the ketchup.
Bake in a moderate oven (325-375F) for 45 minutes to an hour. (It should read 160F on a meat thermometer. A meat thermometer is a modern device I often carry for safety.)
Before cutting and serving, tip the oven and pour off any excessive grease.
Meat loaf and its little brother, meat balls goes way back in Europe to late Roman times at least, or a least items that were similar to what we call meat loaf today. However meat loaf as we know it in America was developed and became a staple in cook books following the Civil War. It became very popular during The Great Depression because it stretched expensive meat and often incorporated leftover s into the mix. Today it is a staple of diners, small cafes and truck stops which specialize in what is often called comfort foods. Often leftovers are sliced and used for sandwiches. In the era before modern electric meat grinders meatloaf was a much more labor intensive process since the meat had to be ground or chopped by hand, it really takes it out of the modern “comfort food” class and makes it more of a big deal.
Today most recipes for meat loaf call for just ground beef, most 19th century recipes use from ¼ to ¾ pork, or even 100% pork, a ratio of about 2 parts beef to 1 part pork (sausage) being the norm. Some recipes call for veal or ground ham also.
Besides ground meat, a traditional meat loaf contains some sort of filler, often crackers, leftover bread, or a cereal like oat meal, plus eggs to help bind it together. Other ingredients used are often some sort of sauce, most often tomato based, on top and/or incorporated into the meat mixture. The top may also be garnished with bacon, added on top raw before baking. Most often chopped onions are added to the meat mixture before baking as well as some sort of herbs and spices.
Most often the mixture is placed in loaf pans and baked, however it lends itself well to being made in camp in a dutch oven. I have found it goes over very well and it can be an inexpensive item used to feed a large group, although I have also found out that often it is so well liked that people tend to eat just a bit more of it than they would other main dishes, but that shows how well it is received.
I like to make my camp meatloaf out of about 2/3 ground beef and about 1/3 ground bulk sausage. Plain ground pork can be used also, but it can be hard to find sometimes. I make it in a 14 inch deep oven; this will feed 15-20 people with no problem. Like almost all my recipes the amounts are never exact and what I add will often reflect what I have on hand. I make this after a couple days in camp and make sure we have biscuits and I have leftovers on them. I use tomato ketchup in it, not as popular in meat loaf as it is today, it was around in the period, Heinz brand was introduced in 1876, but others were making it and selling it before then.
Since 12 deeps are more in line with what most will use rather than a 14” deep, I will reduce my basic recipe to fit that size oven.
Meatloaf
3 pounds of ground beef
1½ pounds of ground bulk sausage or ground pork
1-2 onions (chopped)
4 large eggs
6 stale biscuits
1½ cups ketchup
Several strips of bacon (optional)
Salt and pepper
Other spices and herbs desired
Mix the meat together in a large pan, add the onions plus salt and pepper to taste. Break the eggs and mix in with the meat well, adding about cup ketchup. Crumble up the biscuits fairly fine and add to the mixture, mix well.
Pack the meat mixture into the dutch oven; garnish the top with the bacon strips and the rest of the ketchup.
Bake in a moderate oven (325-375F) for 45 minutes to an hour. (It should read 160F on a meat thermometer. A meat thermometer is a modern device I often carry for safety.)
Before cutting and serving, tip the oven and pour off any excessive grease.