Meat Loaf problem?!
Answers: When I make meatloaf I try to get the leanest meat there is so there is no fat. But still I run into the problem of grease gathering in the pan and it takes the glaze off the top. Is there anything you can add the the meatloaf to keep the grease from being so bad? Maybe more bread to absorb it, does that work better?
make the meatloaf on a cookie sheet. just plop your recipe down and shape it into a loaf with your hands. the fat will drain right off.
if you are using a loaf pan, you really don't have that much fat, but the size and shape of the pan makes it seem more since the meatloaf is already filling quite a lot of it.
besides, let's face it. the best part of the meatloaf is those crispy bits with the glaze. on a sheet pan (cookie sheet) you get far more of that anyway.
Meat, being meat, is naturally greasy. I usually tip the pan over a grease can halfway through cooking to drain some of the fat off, then return it to the oven.
Try using bread crumbs instead of crackers or regular bread... (and when I say bread crumbs, I mean the shredded type used for coating chicken and such) Also, don't forget the egg(s) to bind the meat together.
I use lean ground turkey. It still has a little grease. I wait until it is done, then add the ketchup and put it under the broiler until it has baked on. Keep broiler temp at 350 degrees.
Saw Paula Deen put bread slices UNDER the meat loaf, disgard the bread. I like to use a pan that has slots in an insert to my pan to let grease drain off. Check around in your kitchen for a suitable substitute. Do you use whole egg or egg white only, do you use crackers or bread crumbs. I prefer crushed saltines. When I tried oatmeal, I had that problem. Do not use any or much liquid in your sauce...if ketchup only or based, use only spices or what ever without adding more liquid. I do not have problem then.
What I do is form the meatloaf mixture into a loaf shape and cook it on a cooling rack - like for cooling cake layers. All the grease runs under the rack. I'll never go back to the loaf pan!
Target and other stores sell a meatloaf pan that has a metal insert that lifts the meat above the juices/fat that accumulates at the bottom.
I add crushed saltines but no matter what there is going to be fat. Take a few seconds to drain the fat every fifteen minutes or so. You might have to take a lid or a plate and place it on top to drain so that the meatloaf doesn't slide out. After you have drained it a couple of times (toward the end of cooking) then place the glaze on top.
s&k, when ever i do meat loaf i do it in a loaf pan. i spray the pan then pat a 1/2 cup of light brown sugar in the bottom of the pan, then a 1/2 cup of catsup on top of that. make any meat combo you want, i use 2/3 beef, sirlon and 1/3 ground pork. fat is what gives your meat loaf flavor. bake 350 for one hour. let set about 15min. then pour off the fat. let set another 30 or 40 min. till is cool and firm then flip over, the sugar and catsup melt to gather give the bottom ,which is now the top nice eye appeal and great flavor . good luck and good baking,bacondebaker
A little grease is good for you. You don't want the loaf to taste like dry chewing tabacco do you? I didn't think so and nether do your guests or family that you are cooking for.
You want to have both beef & ground pork mixed wtih about 1 cup of bread crumbs and one egg. I add sauteed finely chopped onion, celery & carrot and add 3/4 cup milk with the bread crumbs, egg, mustard, ketchup, garlic, worchester sauce. Then I place on a cookie sheet in a dome shape, cover with ketchup and bake. You will have some dripping, but it won't affect your glaze at all.