A paleo diet friendly meatloaf with mushrooms as a binder
- 1 egg
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 pound ground pork can substitute beef if desired
- 2 cups white button mushrooms very finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes
- 3 teaspoons fresh thyme minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh oregano minced
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce in lieu of ketchup
- 1 tablespoon honey optional
- 1/2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce optional
- 1 tablespoon cooking fat i use bacon drippings
- Carbohydrate 6.74614966763203 g
- Cholesterol 135.862916364952 mg
- Fat 25.7756264981602 g
- Fiber 1.19041459061782 g
- Protein 30.4938674026318 g
- Saturated Fat 9.97747397401671 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (230g)
- Sodium 233.59347976148 mg
- Sugar 5.55573507701421 g
- Trans Fat 3.53583264454639 g
- Calories 385 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat your oven to 350 F.
- In a medium sized skillet placed over a medium heat, melt the cooking fat, add the mushrooms and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, or until soft.
- In a large bowl, combine the meat, salt, pepper, egg, onion, mushrooms, chili pepper, thyme, oregano and garlic. Mix well, makng sure to break-up the meat. Add the cooked mushrooms as well. It’s very important that the mushrooms are evenly distributed to ensure the loaf bonds well.
- Lightly grease loaf pan with additional cooking fat and fill it with the meat mixture. Place in the oven and cook for approximately 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine ketchup, honey and Worcestershire sauce to make the sauce for the top of the meatloaf.
- After cooking for 15 minutes, gently spread the sauce on the top of the loaf.
- Continue cooking for another 40 minutes.
What the ingredient list does not tell you is that moisture management dictates the structural integrity of a grain-free meatloaf. Early iterations of American meatloaf evolved from European scrap-meat terrines and 19th-century colonial sausages, transforming inexpensive cuts into substantial dinner tablespacing using whatever binders were on hand. Without breadcrumbs to absorb the rendered juices of ground beef and pork, this recipe relies on finely chopped white button mushrooms. Sautéing those mushrooms for two to three minutes in bacon drippings drives off excess internal water before the mixture enters the oven, preventing a soggy final product. When combining the raw meats, egg, and aromatics in a large bowl, distribution must remain completely uniform; pockets of dense mushrooms will cause the loaf to crack and crumble upon slicing. Preheat the oven strictly to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, ensuring the proteins coagulate at a steady rate throughout the one-hour and fifteen-minute total preparation window. Brushing the tomato sauce, honey, and Worcestershire glaze over the surface only after the initial fifteen minutes of baking prevents the sugars from scorching before the interior reaches a safe temperature. Letting the baked loaf rest for ten minutes before slicing allows the internal juices to redistribute evenly through the meat.
