Q'd Meatloaf

[BamsBBQ]

once u have this, u will not want to eat it any other way

take your favorite meatloaf recipe(mine is 2 parts ground beef,1 part ground pork,1 part ground veal + extras) and put it the smoker..cook until your desired temperature...

http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/3418/ml3jr7.jpg

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/742/ml1sf6.jpg

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/3053/ml2gh5.jpg

[PanchoHambre]

meatloaf in a smoker.... brilliant I'm sold

[Keltin]

So true! I’ve been grilling and smoking meatloafs for years now. Once you try it, you will NEVER do it another way! More people need to realize the beauty of grilling and smoking a meatloaf! Awesome pics!!!

[Maverick2272]

Sooo.... what yer sayin is I need a smoker? LOL if I start in on DW now I might have one by mid summer, LOL.

[Keltin]

Sooo.... what yer sayin is I need a smoker? LOL if I start in on DW now I might have one by mid summer, LOL.


Summer??? Just in time!!! Start now!! :thumb:

[Maverick2272]

I'm on it!! LOL.

[QSis]

Geez, I haven't done a smoked meatloaf in years! I'll try it this Spring.

I have a metal mesh loaf basket. What do you guys use?

Lee

[BamsBBQ]

Sooo.... what yer sayin is I need a smoker? LOL if I start in on DW now I might have one by mid summer, LOL.

you can go to your local walmart, and pick up an ECB (El cheapo brinkman) for less than $30... its charcoal

Geez, I haven't done a smoked meatloaf in years! I'll try it this Spring.
I have a metal mesh loaf basket. What do you guys use?
Lee

i start mine out in a pie plate then i move it directly to the grill when it forms up depending on which smoker i am using..most times it goes right onto the rack

[GrillinFool]

Sooo.... what yer sayin is I need a smoker? LOL if I start in on DW now I might have one by mid summer, LOL.

Just about any grill can be turned into a smoker. Here is some info on how to turn a simple Weber Kettle into a smoker (http://grillinfool.blogspot.com/2008/11/so-you-want-to-smoke-but-you-dont-have.html)

Here is the write up I did of Meatloaf I did on the grill in December:

Many people think of Meatloaf as some sort of blah food. It is what it is. Hamburger, some onion, an egg, maybe some ketchup or BBQ sauce, maybe some breadcrumbs, etc. Nothing all to exciting. Well, if your meatloaf is missing that certain something that you can't put your finger on, then take notes. It's pretty amazing what a grill and a couple apple chunks can do for meatloaf.

Here is the process for making the meatloaf. I made two small meatloaves. About 2 pounds each. I started with two pounds of ground sirloin and two pounds of ground chuck I added just a little garlic and some fresh grated Romano:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU55eUywPEI/AAAAAAAAAfw/UmGdWO7Zrsw/s400/3.JPG (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU55eUywPEI/AAAAAAAAAfw/UmGdWO7Zrsw/s1600-h/3.JPG)Half a diced medium onion:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU55fKEo5pI/AAAAAAAAAgA/XWhpT0MiKRQ/s400/4.JPG (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU55fKEo5pI/AAAAAAAAAgA/XWhpT0MiKRQ/s1600-h/4.JPG)Then I added some ketchup and a beaten egg:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU55ey1sVYI/AAAAAAAAAf4/WOyr3-Vxq3o/s400/5.JPG (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU55ey1sVYI/AAAAAAAAAf4/WOyr3-Vxq3o/s1600-h/5.JPG)Worcestershire sauce with some emulsified garlic:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56wUeVsGI/AAAAAAAAAgI/yMrKXE-7HMY/s400/6.JPG (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56wUeVsGI/AAAAAAAAAgI/yMrKXE-7HMY/s1600-h/6.JPG)After that I added many turns black pepper, about a teaspoon and a half of salt, and a few squirts of Chipotle Tobasco Sauce and then mixed it all together with my hands.

***One very important note for meat loaf. Do not knead the meat too much. Mix the ingredients all together but do not mash the meat up too much. You actually want the meatloaves to remain porous. It should have cracks and crevices (unlike a stuffed fatty).

Here are the two loaves in their perspective pans:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56woORM2I/AAAAAAAAAgQ/Pt8kyP8VURU/s400/7.JPG (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56woORM2I/AAAAAAAAAgQ/Pt8kyP8VURU/s1600-h/7.JPG)The one on the left I slathered with regular tobasco. I was out of my fave, the Chipotle, so I added some Penzey's Chipotle powder on top of the Tobasco. Since the wife isn't into hot food I put a toothpick in that one to differentiate that from the one I did not spice up.

I was heading to probably the only place in St. Louis that sells Halloumi cheese when I stopped in to my favorite wine store in the St. Louis area. At first I got a rather quizzical look from one of the proprietors when I asked what would pair well with grilled meatloaf. I was thinking a merlot but he recommended a French Red to me. As I have said on many occasions that I am not someone that drinks European wines as I just don't know that much about them. I will drink one on someones recommendation but I don't really touch them much. But these guys at Grapevines know what they are talking about. They have never sent me astray.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU59fYKRSoI/AAAAAAAAAgw/qqlQvXFL6Qg/s400/Red+Rhone.JPG (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU59fYKRSoI/AAAAAAAAAgw/qqlQvXFL6Qg/s1600-h/Red+Rhone.JPG)I was told that this Vacqueyras Red Rhone would be spectacular and that the last glass would be the best due to aeration of the wine. So I decanted the wine for about 30 minutes.

I have to tell you the wine was spectacular and paired perfectly with the meat loaf. Just to be honest, I do not have any marketing agreement whatsoever with Grapevines. I just love the store and the people that run/own the place are top notch.

While the wine was aerating I put the meatloaves on the grill, coals to the top with a chunk of apple and the meatloaves towards the bottom so that I get some smoke flavor while taking some time to cook the meatloaves:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56w_U7TGI/AAAAAAAAAgY/79xyj4d0mi4/s400/8.JPG (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56w_U7TGI/AAAAAAAAAgY/79xyj4d0mi4/s1600-h/8.JPG)Despite the high wind and cold temps I was able to keep the temp at right about 300 for most of the session:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU7jlBd0sPI/AAAAAAAAAhA/UeSZitGYzHQ/s400/Temp.JPG (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU7jlBd0sPI/AAAAAAAAAhA/UeSZitGYzHQ/s1600-h/Temp.JPG)I would've liked to have gotten the temp to 350 for 60 minutes. But I just couldn't get the fire that hot in that wind. So I went with 300 degrees for 90 minutes.

About an hour in the loaves are looking pretty good (as well as some Halloumi cheese I added which I will talk about in another thread):
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56xVAeFnI/AAAAAAAAAgg/UQ8pmCsV1ws/s400/9+-+60+mins.JPG (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56xVAeFnI/AAAAAAAAAgg/UQ8pmCsV1ws/s1600-h/9+-+60+mins.JPG)
After 90 minutes I pulled the loaves off the grill to rest inside. I took these pictures before I drained the fat out of the pans:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56xQvctjI/AAAAAAAAAgo/smJm9a20gyQ/s400/10+-+Resting.JPG (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU56xQvctjI/AAAAAAAAAgo/smJm9a20gyQ/s1600-h/10+-+Resting.JPG)My wife was kind enough to offer this wonderful bowl full of mash potatoes as her contribution to the meal:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU7ks_2r4GI/AAAAAAAAAhY/ckbaFGkAN7k/s400/Mash+Taters.JPG (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU7ks_2r4GI/AAAAAAAAAhY/ckbaFGkAN7k/s1600-h/Mash+Taters.JPG)My favorite comfort food in the world is meatloaf and mash potatoes. I was about to be in heaven.

And here we have the meat loaf plated over a pile of those excellent mash potatoes:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU7kIi-mmoI/AAAAAAAAAhQ/WpEI_B3Zng8/s400/12+-+Money+Shot.JPG (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_lLYQMKEzoYI/SU7kIi-mmoI/AAAAAAAAAhQ/WpEI_B3Zng8/s1600-h/12+-+Money+Shot.JPG)
What I should've done differently:



My dad suggested I mix a pound of sausage into the meat instead of going all beef. I probably should've done this. I needed a bit more fat since half the meat was ground sirloin.
With that in mind I should've done a second egg. A meat loaf should be a bit wet after everything is mixed together and this wasn't. The flavor was still great, it was just missing a bit of the fattiness that would've made it stellar...

[Keltin]

I actually smoke mine on a Weber 22” charcoal grill. Put the coals on one side and the meatloaf on the other. It runs a little hotter, but that is fine for meatloaf. Takes about 1.5 hours for a 4 pound loaf. I just free-form it. I don’t use a pan, but instead put a sheet of aluminum foil on the grill and place the loaf directly on that. Works really well. Granted, all the fat runs down into the belly of the Weber, but I burn that off later.

[GrillinFool]

I actually smoke mine on a Weber 22” charcoal grill. Put the coals on one side and the meatloaf on the other. It runs a little hotter, but that is fine for meatloaf. Takes about 1.5 hours for a 4 pound loaf. I just free-form it. I don’t use a pan, but instead put a sheet of aluminum foil on the grill and place the loaf directly on that. Works really well. Granted, all the fat runs down into the belly of the Weber, but I burn that off later.

I did mine too in a weber. Indirected.

The reason for the small bread pans is so that the meat loaf will be bread size which makes for perfect leftover meatloaf sammiches

[Love2"Q"]

why do you cook them in the pans ?

[joec]

I've never done it in my smoker outside but have done it in the oven smoker. Will try it when we thaw out a bit in my outside unit for sure.

[GrillinFool]

why do you cook them in the pans ?

so the loaves would be in bread size for leftover sammiches. Also, it just makes it easy to handle the loaves...

[Love2"Q"]

i like to do mine on foil so the grease drains off ...

[GrillinFool]

i like to do mine on foil so the grease drains off ...

To each his own. I used bread pans to better shape the loaf. I think maybe I need to break out the dewalt and drill some drain holes to have the best of both worlds!?!?! Just not sure I want to have to answer this question, "Honey why are there holes in my bread pans?"

[Love2"Q"]

i used to use the disposable ones and put holes in them ..
but the tin foil is cheaper ..
it can be tough to get it on and off the grill though ..

[Keltin]

i used to use the disposable ones and put holes in them ..
but the tin foil is cheaper ..
it can be tough to get it on and off the grill though ..

I always get DW to help me. I carry the loaf out on a cookie sheet that I use only for transporting meats. She holds the cookie sheet, and then I use 2 spatulas to pick up the loaf on the ends and lower it to the grate. Once it's cooked, it's even easier to pick up with the 2 spatulas.

[Maverick2272]

Or maybe line the loaf pan with tin foil so you can just pick it up by the tin foil and drop onto the grill?

[BamsBBQ]

I always get DW to help me. I carry the loaf out on a cookie sheet that I use only for transporting meats. She holds the cookie sheet, and then I use 2 spatulas to pick up the loaf on the ends and lower it to the grate. Once it's cooked, it's even easier to pick up with the 2 spatulas.

Or maybe line the loaf pan with tin foil so you can just pick it up by the tin foil and drop onto the grill?

or do what i do... when the meatloaf is halfway through cooking and firm...take out of the pan and put on the racks to finish smoking

[Keltin]

or do what i do... when the meatloaf is halfway through cooking and firm...take out of the pan and put on the racks to finish smoking

That will definitely work too! Good one! :thumb:

[Maverick2272]

I like having several different ways of doing things. That way if I am inept at one, I have another one to try! LOL.