Meaty Loaf

Meatloaf is quite a versatile thing to cook. You can serve it on its own with some boiled vegetable and mashed potato, you can dress it up with some nice gravy, use the left over in sandwiches. I have even chopped up the leftover meatloaf and used it in pasta, noodles. Usually the meatloaf is a bit dense with all the meat. I saw a cooking show where they added a variety of vegetable to the meatloaf. The recipe I am sharing today is inspired by a couple of meatloaf recipes I found in the foodnetwork website. If you are looking for a good source of recipes and food related info, the foodnetwork website (http://www.foodnetwork.com) is a great resource.

You can serve this meatloaf on its own or with the sauce mentioned in the following recipe. The meatloaf uses very little oil, If your mince meat is made with lean meat then this recipe is quite low-fat.

Balsamic Tomato Glazed Meatloaf in a Rich Tomato Sauce
Serves: 8



For the Meatloaf:
Beef Mince - 1 lb
Lamb mince - 1/2 lb ( you can omit the lamb and just do all beef then add 1/2 lb more beef)
Capsicum finely diced - 1 cup
Mushroom finely diced - 1 cup
Onion finely diced - 1/2 cup
Garlic Paste - 3 teaspoons
Cilantro or Parsley finely chopped - 4 tablespoons
Dried mixed Italian herb - 2 teaspoons
Tomato ketchup - 1 cup
Chili sauce - 1/4 cup (or as per your taste)
Bread Crumb - 1 cup
Egg lightly beaten - 2
Parmesan cheese grated - 1/2 cup (you can try cheddar as well)
Balsamic Vinegar - 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons
Oil - 1 tablespoons
Tabasco - 1 tablespoon (optional)
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

For the Rich Tomato Sauce:
Butter - 2 tablespoons (substitute of margarine if you want)
Flour - 2 tablespoons
Tomato Paste - 2 tablespoons
Garlic - 4 cloves (diced very fine)
Canned Tomato (10 oz can) - 1 chopped fine (you can use fresh tomato as well. See note for details)
Chicken stock cube - 2 (diluted in 2 1/2 cup hot water and cooled slightly)
Dried mixed herb - 2 teaspoon
Red wine vinegar - 1/3 cup


To make the meatloaf
Heat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat the oil in a pan, add the onion. Cook till they are translucent. Add the garlic, mushroom, capsicum, salt and pepper and cook till the capsicum becomes soft (about 4 minutes). Set aside to cool.

Mix the minced meat with half the tomato ketchup, chili sauce, bread crumb, eggs, cilantro/parsley, little salt& pepper, dried herb, 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar and the cooked vegetable and mix until just combined.

In a baking sheet, shape the minced meat mixture into the shape of a loaf (you can use a loaf tin as well).

Mix together the remaining tomato ketchup, Tabasco and balsamic vinegar to make the glaze and brush the top of the meatloaf with this mixture. Make sure all the exposed part of the loaf is well covered with this glaze.

Bake for 1 to 1 1/4 hour. Check periodically to see if it is done. Let the meatloaf rest for 10 -15 minutes before slicing.

To make the sauce
Heat the butter in a pan. When the butter is frothy and turns slightly brown, add the garlic and cook till the garlic starts to brown. Add the flour and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes until the flour turns brown and smells toasty.

Add the tomato paste, chicken stock and cook for 5 minutes. Make sure you keep stirring and the sauce does not turn lumpy.

Add the chopped tomato and red wine vinegar. Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes (stirring occasionally). Finish off with the dried herb, salt and pepper.

Serve the warm sauce on the side with the meatloaf.

Enjoy!!!!

Note:
1. Balsamic vinegar maybe a bit hard to come across in Dhaka. However, if you can, pick up "Kajoli" natural vinegar from Agora. It is the closest to Italian style Balsamic Vinegar. I love the product especially if I am making salad dressings.

2. If using fresh tomato, make sure you remove the skin. To remove the skin, make small incision in the whole tomatoes, drop them in boiling water and boil for 1-2 minutes. Remove and put in cold water. The skin will come off very easily.

3. You can use the rich tomato sauce over boiled pasta and add the left over chopped meatloaf. Garnish it with some chopped olive and cilantro. This way you have a new dish the next day using the leftovers without too much effort! :)