Extra-Large Meatloaf Cooking Temperature

Old Gramps is back looking for help in the kitchen again.

To make a long, complicated story short, my lady friend insisted on me making a massive meatloaf today, about 5-6 pounds of meat in total (combination of beef, veal and pork) plus the usual other ingredients. By the time I was done mixing and forming it, it would barely fit in our largest baking dish if I crowned it heavily.

So far so good... but the problem is that I need it to cook in no more than 2 hours. Last time I made a meatloaf that large (or at least close), I ended up having to cook it for closer to 3 hours in total.

So my question for today is really pretty simple: At what temperature must one cook a 5+ pound meatloaf for it to be fully cooked and ready to eat in 2 hours or less?

As always, thanks for any and all helpful replies!!!

Take care,
Tom

I would make it into 2 loaves and bake at 375° for an hour to an hour and a half until it reached and internal temp of 170°. For one large loaf, I would think that it would really depend upon the dimensions of the loaf.

Mama said:

I would make it into 2 loaves and bake at 375° for an hour to an hour and a half until it reached and internal temp of 170°. For one large loaf, I would think that it would really depend upon the dimensions of the loaf.

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Thanks Mama. I agree with you that this much meat should have been cooked in 2 or 3 separate baking dishes... or more sensibly, we should have bought and used only half the ingredients. For some reason, we are mathematically challenged at times when it comes to food (a long story for another time).

Next time, I will try to have a supply of aluminum foil baking pans handy for any overflow or miscalculations.

Let me ask my question a little differently: Can I push the baking temperature up to 400 degrees? Or would that cause smoking or uneven cooking (i.e., too much on the outside, not enough on the inside)?

Take care,
Tom

if it is not in the oven yet, I would put half the meat mixture in the frig and bake it off tomorrow, once the pan is emptied

I don't think I would raise the temp to 400. It would probably cook too quickly on the outside and burn before the inside was done.

goatherders idea is a good one but if you can't, I would just put it in at 375° and check it in a couple of hours. I've never baked one that large.

goatherder said:

if it is not in the oven yet, I would put half the meat mixture in the frig and bake it off tomorrow, once the pan is emptied

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Yeah, too late for that now. It went in the oven at 1 PM local time (about an hour ago). Doesn't look like it's going to be even close to ready by 3 PM. Old Gramps seems to have blown it again.

Time to come up with an alternative plan... fast!!!

Take care,
Tom

Mama said:

I don't think I would raise the temp to 400. It would probably cook too quickly on the outside and burn before the inside was done.

goatherders idea is a good one but if you can't, I would just put it in at 375° and check it in a couple of hours. I've never baked one that large.

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Okay, thanks again. That's what I needed to know.

I'll let the "monster meatloaf" take it's sweet time at 375 degrees. I'll run out and get something quick for our Sunday afternoon dinner.

Take care,
Tom

Maybe you could slice it and finish what you need it in a pan on top of the stove and then finish baking the rest?

Mama said:

Maybe you could slice it and finish what you need it in a pan on top of the stove and then finish baking the rest?

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Ahhhhh!!! An excellent idea!!!

Now why on earth didn't I think of that?

I'll give it a try!!!

Take care,
Tom

How did it work out for you, Tom?

Lee

Just out of curiosity, why did you have to make such a massive meatloaf? There must have been a reason.

I would have divided up the meat after it was mixed into 3 or 4 parts and frozen all but one of them. Label and date the meat and you'll have ready made meatloaf for the future.

I'd serve slices from each end first, in case the middle isn't well done. In that case, you could rebake those middle slices if necessary.

He could have taken the same idea as a doughnut and, creatively, made a hole in the center.

That's true High Cheese. I've a friend that does that with hamburger patties. Why didn't I think of that? Maybe because the roasting pan would have to be huge.

Hey - I'm still waiting to find out why his lady friend was so insistent that he make a 5-pound meatloaf in the first place - lol!!!!!

Hi folks,

I am so sorry it took so long to get back to you. Something went wrong with my e-mail account. Everything is fine and back to normal now.

To answer your questions, I followed Mama's suggestion and that was just the ticket! We ate on time (more or less) and our guests didn't feel rushed to get out the door. Minor crisis averted!

In answer to the monster meatloaf size question, that was simply the combined size of all the ingredients she bought for me to use this time around. Like I said, despite my past career, when it comes to foods we have a way of sometimes becoming mathematically challenged. I only realized that I was in way over my head when it was too late to reverse course.

I only own one large "oven safe" baking dish that we routinely use for cooking meats in the oven. It has worked well for large meatloafs before, but last week's monster meatloaf set a new size record.

In retrospect, I should have split up the monster meatloaf into 2 or 3 separate loafs before I started cooking. We all know that now and we would have been fine with that approach... although it is very nice to slice off a full width/full height slab of an extra-large meatloaf. I think it has a bit more eye appeal and it makes for a mean cold meatloaf sandwich a day or two later.

Take care,
Tom

great things went well, gramps!