Breezy Spicy Mexican Turkey Meatloaf

Made this favorite for dinner last night. Recipe makes a LARGE meatloaf supplying plenty of leftovers for another meal or two &/or lunchtime meatloaf sandwiches!!

Breezy Spicy Mexican Turkey Meatloaf

3 pounds ground turkey
2 medium onions, peeled & chopped
1 red (or orange or yellow) bell pepper, seeded & chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded & chopped
2 “Chipotle Peppers in Adobe Sauce”, chopped, + one tablespoon of sauce*
2 large eggs
1 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs (like Progresso brand)
Approx. 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
Approx. 1 tablespoon dried oregano
Approx. 1 tablespoon dried smoked Chipotle chili powder
1 pound extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated**
Extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil an 8 x 13 baking dish (or 2 smaller loaf pans, or a baking sheet for a freeform loaf***).

Saute onions, bell & jalapeno peppers in a few dollops of olive oil until just softened. Stir in chopped Chipotles & sauce. Set aside to cool a bit.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs thoroughly with a fork. Add ground turkey, bread crumbs, garlic, oregano, chili powder, grated cheese, & cooled sautéed vegetables. Mix lightly but thoroughly with hands until ingredients are combined.

Press into loaf pan, smooth top, & bake for approx. 1 hour or until the center of the loaf registers 175-180 on an instant-read thermometer. (Don’t worry about the top getting too brown – that’s normal due to the high cheese content.) Remove from oven & allow to rest for 10 minutes. Slice & serve as is, or topped with a spoonful or two of your favorite salsa.

* Any leftover Chipotle peppers & sauce can be stored in the fridge or freezer & added to chili, tacos, enchiladas, or any other favorite Mexican recipe.

** This is not the time to break out your pricey crumbly aged cheddar. This is the time for the innocuous inexpensive 1# block of supermarket stuff – lol!!

*** I make this in a lovely imported Williams Sonoma large 8” x 13” glazed pottery baking dish. However, you can also make this in 2 smaller loaf pans, or make a free-form loaf on a baking sheet.

Re: leftovers - I slice the remaining meatloaf & wrap each slice individually & snugly in cling wrap, then place the slices in a Ziploc bag & into the freezer. They defrost & reheat beautifully in the microwave.
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
This sounds great, Breezy!

I love using ground turkey in place of ground beef in many dishes, but find that it really does need stuff to flavor it up. You've got plenty of excellent flavors in this one!

Lee
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
I finally got around to making my version of this.

Great! If you put enough stuff in ground turkey, it actually tastes good!

Here's what I did:

Lee's version

1 pound ground turkey
1/2 medium onion, peeled & chopped
1/2 red (or orange or yellow) bell pepper, seeded & chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded & chopped
1 large egg
1/3 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs (like Progresso brand)
2 teas. Italian herb seasoning
1 teas. salt
1 teas. dried smoked Chipotle chili powder
8 oz. package extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Pam

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly Pam a loaf pan, or a baking sheet for a freeform loaf.


In a large mixing bowl, beat egg thoroughly with a fork. Add bread crumbs, garlic, onion, red pepper, seasonings, grated cheese, and mix. Add ground turkey. Mix lightly but thoroughly with hands until ingredients are combined.

Press into loaf pan, smooth top, & bake for approx. 1 hour Remove from oven & allow to rest for 10 minutes.
 

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