The best meatloaf recipe ever! This traditional meatloaf recipe is just like mom used to make, made with ground beef and a sweet and tangy glaze topping.
What makes really good meatloaf?
I think the trick to good meatloaf is using lean ground beef. The problem with a lot of meatloaf recipes is that they call for ground beef with a high fat content. As the meatloaf cooks, the fat cooks out and makes a greasy mess. Not this recipe!
How to make moist meatloaf:
You may be thinking, but won’t lean ground beef make the meatloaf dry? Not at all! The milk, egg, ketchup, and diced onion in the meat mixture are all working to keep the meatloaf moist and delicious.
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This classic meatloaf is perfect for a busy weeknight meal because it can be prepared in minutes. The only thing to chop is a 1/2 cup of onion.
How to make the best meatloaf recipe:
Make the meatloaf.
- Add 90% lean ground beef to a large bowl.
- Add dried bread crumbs and some diced onion.
- Add milk, an egg, ketchup, and worcestershire sauce.
- Add dried parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Mix it together REALLY well.
- Pour the meat mixture into a loaf pan.
Make the ketchup glaze.
- Add ketchup, brown sugar, and red wine vinegar to a bowl.
- Whisk until combined.
- Pour the glaze over the meatloaf.
- Bake it!
I’ve been playing around with this recipe for the past few months, making it many times. And, I didn’t mind the repetition at all because I do believe I ended up with the best classic meatloaf recipe ever. 🙂
Check out these other easy comfort food recipes:
- The Best Classic Chili
- BBQ Chicken Sloppy Joes
- Creamy Crock Pot Pork Chops Potatoes & Onions
- 30 Minute Chicken & Dumplings – From The Slow Roasted Italian
Check out the step by step video for this meatloaf recipe below.
- 1 lb. 90% lean ground beef
- 1 cup dried bread crumbs
- 1/2 cup diced yellow onion
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 large egg beaten
- 2 tbsp. ketchup
- 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp. dried parsley leaves
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
- For the Topping:
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tbsp. packed light brown sugar
- 1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large bowl, add the beef, bread crumbs, onion, milk, egg, 2 tablespoons ketchup, worcestershire sauce, parsley, salt, garlic powder, and pepper. Use your hands to mush and mix these ingredients together until well combined.*
- Add the meat mixture to a loaf pan. Pat the meat down into an even layer.
- In a small bowl, add 1/4 cup ketchup, the brown sugar, and vinegar. Stir to combine. Pour the sauce on top of the meatloaf and spread it into an even layer.
- Bake uncovered for 55 minutes.
Let the meatloaf rest for 8-10 minutes before serving (or it may fall apart).**
Recipe Video
*Be sure to mix the meat really well. This is a very moist meatloaf recipe so under mixing can cause the meatloaf to be too soft/mushy.
**I use two thin spatulas to remove the meatloaf from the pan and transfer it to a cutting board. You could also slice and serve the meatloaf directly from the loaf pan, or use parchment paper to line the pan for easy removal.
This sounds like my mom’s recipe except for the brown sugar and vinegar added to the ketchup glaze. I’m trying this recipe tonight, but I’m on a gluten free diet and am considering using oats, possibly roughly ground or crushed gluten free crackers. What do you think?
I’d like to hear how that tasted. The roughly ground or crushed gluten free crackers may work, but I wasn’t sure about the oats. Did you try it? How was it?
the quaker oats are gluten free and work awesome in this recipe.
I’d go with rice. Either cooled steamed rice, or crushed rice bread/crackers should do the trick. Steamed rice that has been cooled is used as the starch binder for most stuffed pepper recipes, I imagine it would do the same thing in a meatloaf, just use a smaller rice-to-meat ratio as you see in stuffed peppers so it’s not crumbly.
It was a great recipie. I added mixed vegetables into the meatloaf. It was delicious!
When you put in mixed veggies did you use can or frozen and if you used can did you use the juices as well
I haven’t made meatloaf in years because it always came out dry and not very tasty. I followed this recipe and WOW, it’s the best Meatloaf I have ever tasted. It is so moist and flavorful, I was amazed. The glaze added to the wonderful flavor. After eating a generous portion I immediately wrote the recipe down for many future Meatloaf meals.
55 mins is not long enough for the meatloaf to cook threw, preping was easy , just the timing was way off, now I just hope it taste good 😒
some people just dont know how to cook then 🙁 🙂
Some people are just rude and petty people
Please don’t listen to them. There was nothing you said in your comment that was petty. All you said is it takes longer. It is a fact that every oven is different. Ours always takes 10 to 15 minutes longer to cook things than what the recipe says. I can’t believe adults are somewhat bullying on a freaking recipe site, LOL. But namaste.😊
I made your recipe exactly as you wrote, except for doubling the sauce and cooking it in a regular pan instead of a loaf pan. Your recipe was Fantastic! I pinned it and this will be one I will fix often! Thank you for Sharing, it was Delicious!
Amanda-
I had not prepared Meatloaf in quite sometime (more than 5 years).
This recipe produced a VERY family pleasing main course.
As I had a large group to feed, I found the “scaling” function useful.
I have made a few suggestion regarding “values” in the Instructions, (please see below-(*)
I selected 50 servings. (Note: the followings quantities are based on this selection)
Using my “Chefs Privilege”, I made the following substitutions/changes:
80/20% ground beef– vs 90%, what I had on hand (*)
2 cups diced Walla Walla sweet onions (*)- vs (2.5) Yellow onions
1 cup diced celery (addition)
2 cups milk (reduction of .5 cups- to reduce total moisture
5 Tbsp. dried parsley– vs 5 tbsp.
For the Topping
5 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar– vs 5 tbsp. red wine vinegar (*)
It would be very helpful, and less confusing, if the values shown in the , 2
Could also be scaled.
“Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In a large bowl, add the beef, bread crumbs, onion, milk, egg, 2 tablespoons ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, salt, garlic powder, and pepper. Use your hands to mush and mix these ingredients together until well combined.*
3. Add the meat mixture to a loaf pan. Pat the meat down into an even layer.
4. In a small bowl, add 1/4 cup ketchup, the brown sugar, and vinegar. Stir to combine. Pour the sauce on top of the meatloaf and spread it into an even layer.
5. Bake uncovered for 55 minutes- {1}.
6. Let the meatloaf rest for 8-10 minutes [more for larger loafs] before serving (or it may fall apart).**”
{1} Additionally as a “food safety” reminder, there should be some guidance to check the internal temperature at the point.
Overall, this is a GREAT recipe, and I HIGHLY recommend it to all.
Thanks for the help!
This is my recipe exactly with one exception. (well two really) I’ve been “eye balling” the amounts. Also my glaze contains Ketchup, mustard and brown sugar – no vinegar.
The meatloaf is baking right now and it smells amazing! I did however make a couple of substitutions since I did not have all of the ingredients on hand. I sautéed onions, fresh thyme, minced garlic, 2 diced and deseeded jalepenos, and half of an orange bell pepper in butter and olive oil before adding it to the meat mixture. I added freshly grated Parmesan cheese to the mixture, as well as an extra egg and a third cup chicken broth since I did not have any milk. I also did not have any ketchup, so instead, I used Heinz 57 sauce for the meatloaf mixture and Heinz chili sauce with spicy brown mustard, brown sugar and a dash of red wine vinegar for the glaze. I’m a little nervous about all of the substitutions but it smells amazing in the oven!
Delicious!!!! Love the taste, will be making this often.
Super try also using reduced red wine in the meatloaf!!
5 🌟
Really tasty. The topping sets it off
I used ground venison. Will definitely make again.
loved this meat loaf it was very tasty will be making it again
Waoo! meatloaf is very tasty recipe, I enjoy it with my friends and in this post its described very well. I appreciate your writing.
I make dinner for my husband’s 88 year old grandfather every day. I prepare a meal and take it over the next day for him to enjoy. This meatloaf recipe has never let me down! I make him a full loaf and he freezes it for future dinners when we are out of town or busy with our boys’ practices. Thank you so much for this recipe. It always puts a smile on his face!