Maw Maw's meatloaf

[Hi, my name is Joe]

This past Christmas, my wife bought me a Lg. BGE and arranged for Santa to deliver it early. Each year the kids in our family come over and bake Christmas cookies, Maw Maw was present as always and was baffled that about this expensive green contraption on our deck. We decided to test the baking waters of the BGE and put a small batch of cookies in. Being uninitiated with the many potentials of what you can cook outside, we all had little hope that these wood fired cookies would be edible.

We soon found out the awesomeness of what can be made on a grill. Maw Maw tasting the cookies first and being enlightned, proceeded to shove these cookies in all the adults mouths saying "These taste better than what came out of the oven!" It was this point when I knew we should throw our stove in the trash. Obviously my wife disagreed and that propane fired conventinal waste of space still occupies the area between two counters

Two weeks ago:
My wife's grandmother makes a kickin meatloaf, (it's a personal favorite of mine). I asked her if she would be willing to come over and we could bake one of here meat-loafs in the BGE, She gave the recipe for me and I decided when it got a bit cooler out I'd get around to it. Maw Maw being Maw Maw, decided to supprise deliver a meatloaf yesterday, already mixed up. Her timing was quite perfect, it's a gloomy, rainy, dreary day; one primed for some comfort food.

These are the best unannounced visits!

Here's the before, during and after shots:

Maw Maw delivers:

Trying to up my game, I transferred this log-O-beef to cast-iron

In she goes. 350-365 Deg


Now to get crazy with a 180 half way through. Once it reached 140ish internal temp I tried to run at 425 but didn't quite get there. I underestimated the amount of Lump needed, next time I'll fill the firebox. I got lazy because it was raining pretty good.

Fresh out the Egg. There are some bits of carbon on the left side. Any tips for keeping that carbon to a minimum?

Here is the center cut after everyone has been served. I think with a bit more practice, I could get this a bit more juicy.

The bottom, I think it turned out pretty well.

The finished product


I hope you enjoyed the story of our beloved Maw Maw and her meatloaf. I've never cooked a meatloaf before and didn't get any direction on meat temp, oven temp or time.

So I need your help fellow pit masters. What can I do to improve this dish?

And given this is my first post of food porn, how can I improve the quality of my post?

Give it to me, I'm hear to learn and hopefully mentor one day.

Cheers,
Joe

[EdF]

Love it. Some strips of bacon on top wouldn't hurt though. Maybe a bit lower temp.

[Hi, my name is Joe]

I'll definitely try that!

[adamjs83]

Just one question, what's the recipe?

[Hi, my name is Joe]

Here you are!

[FireMan]

You just hit a home ruin with that recipe. Now we have to see Kathryn weigh in on this & maybe try it . She fzxdoc is the meatloaf guru along with her PBC.

[RonB]

Lookin' good to me.

[Willy]

First bit of advice--ALWAYS fill the BGE fire box. Closing the vents on the egg when done will save whatever lump didn't get used. Two--buy a Kick Ash basket--it makes clean-up of ashes a breeze. It may seem pricey, but it's worth it. Three, use a leave-in probe thermometer and cook to only 160°F (assuming all beef). FWIW, I do meatloaf around 350°F.

Your meatloaf looks GREAT--nice job!

My wife's meatloaf glaze is 1/2 cup catsup, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 Tbs dry mustard, and some grated nutmeg--it'll cover a pound or two of loaf.

[Hi, my name is Joe]

Thanks for the tips. What type of Pan would you cook in? I assume CI is up there on the list. I've had my eye on the KAB for a bit. I was skeptical on impeading airflow. But from what I'm reading it seems like any potential Con is outweighed by the Pro's

[Willy]

Hi, my name is Joe I use a sheet of tin foil (maybe doubled) with a lot of holes poked in it to allow drainage. Some folks go with no pan, straight on the grates (I worry about sagging and sticking this way). BTW, I said 350°F, but lower is good, too. Happy cooking!

[DeathCassette]

My Lord that looks icredible.

[Huskee]

Looks great, and my only advice coincides with Willy's. 350 and up is where sugars can start to burn, not immediately but they will eventually, and spaghetti sauce is loaded with sugar (try making homemade spaghetti sauce and taste it before adding sugar!) perhaps your actual cooking temp was just enough above that point to cause the slight charring, although honestly I wouldn't worry none about that, I think it looks great and probably adds a little flavor. Hard to tell from the pic, but it could also be soot flakes from the lid of your cooker. They plague me a lto when I'm forgetful to scrape them pre-cook. I grill meatloaf closer to 250-275 personally, I think that slightly lower time gives it more exposure to combustion gasses adding that certain wow that an oven won't give it, without risk of any scorching to the sauce or ketchup or BBQ sauce or whatever a person might use. Also, ground beef at 160 is all you need, or 150-155 if it's there long enough. A good digital instant read thermometer like the ThermoPop or Thermapen is a must-have tool to compliment a good digital leave-in IMO.

Also I think you did great posting your photos. You sorted them out and put captions with each, great work!

[Hi, my name is Joe]

Thanks Huskee. I have a CyberQ with three probes and a thermo Pop. I've got a Dot in the mail The char on top is soot. I don't/haven't scraped my dome, but I think I'll start...

[Hi, my name is Joe]

As far as the photos, importing them and then having them show up at the bottom baffled me. I imported all the ones I wanted to use, then from the list added Medium sized photos. Once I added a photo size the imported list started to grow. Looks like a wonky configuration on the backend.

For placing photos, i'm guessing a bulk import is not the preferred method?

[Mr. Bones]

Great post, an' well done, from here, as well...
Many thanks to MawMaw, Ya' Rock, Lady!
Seems I read somewhere 'bout manipulatin' th' vents on egg cookers, to break th' tight seal, before openin', an' distributin' ashes all over yer foodstuff(s)
Sorry, I don't have any ceramic cookers...

[HouseHomey]

What? No ceramic, sounds like you don't have enough cookers. 😎

[Mr. Bones]

That may be th' problem, Brother!!!

[Hi, my name is Joe]

Thanks Mr. Bones Maw Maw is pretty spicy.

Sounds like you need just one more cooker Just one more, always one more.

[Henrik]

Meatloaf on the grill is always great! I would definitely run at lower temps. Nice photos!

[HouseHomey]

I know not BGE. I'm with Huskee and Willy and EdF and the others. Though the food looks good To me (I'd eat that) I hear the disappoint in your post. It's also learning to dial in a cooker and it's habits. Here is a good rule of thumb I follow for meat loaf and meatballs and a base recipe you can rework in many ways.

First... grind your own meat, a must if possible.
1 egg per lbs of meat, minimum
1/4 cup of bread crumbs (preferably pinko or home made, not seasoned store-bought)
1Tsp kosher salt per pound

Use your own spice blend(paprika, garlic and onion powder etc..) and not the package, you want to taste the meat and not a packaged seasoning. IMHO, no offense meant to Maw Maw. I too grew up on packaged sloppy joe, meatloaf and taco seasoning. It's childhood (my mom, not my GMa) to me with the package but I digress.

Consider add ins like some soy, worstashire, Parm, a spot of BBQ sauce, crumbled bacon and many various things if you choose.

Most importantly always cook off a bit of meat to taste for seasoning before you cook the meatloaf.

It's he mixer is important for even mixing and to get an even crumb too. Let it rest in the fridge after shaping or cook away. Max temp 350° the low and slow concept of meat applies here too.

i like my meatloaf about 150 or so.

dont give up. And Good Luck!!! More pics for the next one!!!

Erik

[Mr. Bones]

Thanks Homey!!!

[Hi, my name is Joe]

You hit the nail on the head! I tend to be quite the perfectionist when it comes to cooking. Don't get me wrong, it was a great first cook, but I know I can execute better. I've got some beef coming in this week. My wife's parents have a small farm and a few cows. Maw Maw takes care of them from time to time Perhaps I'll grind up some Buck (the cows name) and try again in a week or two.

[DWCowles]

Beautiful!

[Skip]

Nice cook and pictures! Meatloaf on the grill is a winner.

[fzxdoc]

Hi, my name is Joe , thank you for the great write up about smoking Maw Maw's meatloaf. It was fun to read, and with the captioned photos , I felt almost like I was there too.

My fav shot, besides the meatloaf half, was Maw Maw's recipe. It's a treasure.

I find that that almost everyone has a good meatloaf recipe that suits their family's taste buds just right. That's why it's one of the great comfort foods, right? Sounds like you have the perfect one for your family, so don't change a thing, is my advice.

Did you you want to cook it at 425F because that's what Maw Maw uses in her oven?

The big question is what did Maw Maw think about her meatloaf?

It was great reading about your Maw Maw and her meatloaf. Nothing says love quite like feeding your family, and I imagine she has done a lot of that over the years.

Kathryn

[Hi, my name is Joe]

fzxdoc I'm with you. My favorite is the hand written note as well. A friend of mine grew up on the Canada/Maine border and one of his favorite dishes is "Kraft Dinner" the cheap mac and cheese in the blue box. I personally think it's terrible, but theres something about comfort food, and taste is a matter of taste after all.

I was looking to create a crust on the outside. That was the reason I cranked up the temp at the end. I figured the reverse sear method works wonders, why can't a similar method work when baking a meat? But I think I'll try a lower temp as recommended and pull it out once the IT is in the 150's

I haven't had a chance to get Maw Maw a piece yet. But she ain't big on leftovers, I assume we'll just make a fresh one and have another go, which is fine by me

[HouseHomey]

Noooooo..... that mac n cheese is terrible but....... I can't live without it! It's childhood to me just like the packages of seasoning. Sloppy Joe's, yum! Man n cheese, please say you'll try it again.

[Hi, my name is Joe]

Do I have to?😓
But, I am highly susceptible to peer pressure, just sayin...