Herbed Beef Meatloaf with Tomato Glaze

Ingredients

• Meatloaf

  60 g plain dry breadcrumbs

  unseasoned, fine dry crumbs, not fresh bread or stuffing mix

• 100 g whole milk

  pasteurized; about 3.25% fat

• 150 g yellow onion

  peeled edible weight; grate and retain juice

• 10 g garlic

  peeled edible weight; finely mince

• 50 g whole egg

  1 large egg without shell; crack into a separate bowl

• 4 g fine table salt

  entire salt allowance

• 1 g ground black pepper

  all mixed into the loaf

• 1 g dried thyme

  dried leaves, not fresh sprigs

• 800 g ground beef

  90% lean / 10% fat; keep refrigerated until folding in

• Tomato glaze

  100 g tomato ketchup

  standard ketchup, not reduced sugar or low sodium

• 15 g light brown sugar

  weighed, not a heaped spoon

• 15 g cider vinegar

  food-grade 5% acidity; about 1 tablespoon

Directions

1. Preheat the oven

   Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C), conventional setting, with a rack in the centre. Measure the listed ingredients separately. Keep the beef, egg and milk refrigerated until their steps.

2. Line the loaf pan

   Line a 23 × 13 × 7 cm metal loaf pan with baking parchment across the base and long sides, leaving lifting handles above the rim. Put the pan on a rimmed baking tray. Do not add oil or cooking spray.

3. Grate the onion

   Grate the peeled 150 g onion on the coarse side of a box grater into a small clean bowl. Retain the onion juice; it belongs in the mixture.

4. Mince the garlic

   Finely mince all 10 g peeled garlic on a clean board. Keep it separate from the onion for its own addition step.

5. Crack the egg

   Crack one large egg into a separate small bowl. Use 50 g edible egg without shell. Check for shell fragments.

6. Beat the egg

   Beat the egg with a fork until the white and yolk are blended. Wash hands and clean anything touched by raw egg.

7. Add the breadcrumbs

   Put all 60 g plain dry breadcrumbs into a large clean mixing bowl.

8. Add the milk

   Pour all 100 g whole milk over the breadcrumbs.

9. Stir the panade

   Stir the milk and breadcrumbs with a flexible spatula until evenly moistened.

10. Let the crumbs hydrate

    Leave the breadcrumb mixture for 5 minutes so it softens and absorbs the milk.

11. Add the grated onion

    Scrape all grated onion and its juice into the hydrated crumbs.

12. Add the minced garlic

    Add all 10 g minced garlic.

13. Add the beaten egg

    Pour all the beaten egg into the mixing bowl.

14. Add the measured salt

    Add the measured 4 g fine table salt. Ketchup and breadcrumbs also contain sodium; no extra seasoning is added later.

15. Add the black pepper

    Sprinkle all 1 g ground black pepper over the mixture.

16. Add the dried thyme

    Add all 1 g dried thyme leaves. No extra thyme garnish is used.

17. Mix the seasoned panade

    Stir thoroughly to distribute the egg, onion, garlic and seasonings through the softened crumbs.

18. Add the cold beef

    Add all 800 g cold ground beef to the seasoned panade. Do not wash raw meat.

19. Fold the mixture together

    Use the spatula to fold and turn until the ingredients are evenly distributed and no large pockets of panade remain. Stop once combined; do not knead into a dense paste. Clean hands, tools and surfaces that contact raw beef.

20. Shape the loaf in the pan

    Transfer all the mixture into the lined loaf pan. Gently press out large air pockets and smooth an even top without packing hard. Keep the pan on its rimmed tray.

21. Add ketchup to a clean bowl

    Put all 100 g tomato ketchup into a separate clean small bowl. Use clean utensils for the glaze.

22. Add the brown sugar

    Add all 15 g light brown sugar to the ketchup.

23. Add the cider vinegar

    Pour all 15 g food-grade cider vinegar into the glaze bowl.

24. Stir the glaze smooth

    Stir the ketchup, sugar and vinegar until blended and the sugar is dispersed. There is no separate reserved serving sauce.

25. Brush all the glaze over the loaf

    Brush all the glaze evenly over the raw loaf, scraping out the glaze bowl. Do not reuse the brush or bowl for ready-to-eat food after they touch raw meat; wash them thoroughly.

26. Bake the glazed loaf

    Bake uncovered on the centre rack for about 60–75 minutes. Keep parchment away from exposed heating elements. If the top darkens early, loosely tent with foil within the parchment maker's heat limit. Start checking the centre at 60 minutes.

27. Check the centre temperature

    Insert a clean instant-read thermometer from the side into the thickest centre without touching the pan. The centre must reach at least 160°F (71°C). Check a second central spot. If either reading is lower, return to the oven and recheck after 5 minutes using a cleaned probe. Colour and the timer are not safety checks.

28. Rest the cooked meatloaf

    Once the temperature is safe, leave the loaf in its pan on a heatproof trivet for 10 minutes. Retain the pan juices; they are included in the nutrition estimate.

29. Lift the loaf onto a board

    Use the parchment handles carefully to lift the rested loaf onto a clean serving board. Keep the cooked juices in the pan for serving. Remove the parchment from under the loaf before slicing.

30. Serve with the retained juices

    Serve one of the six equal portions and divide all retained cooked pan juices between the portions. This recipe includes no side dish or extra ketchup. Refrigerate leftovers in shallow containers within 2 hours, or 1 hour if the room is hotter than 90°F (32°C). Keep at 40°F (4°C) or below for up to 3 days; reheat to 165°F (74°C).