You’ll want to cook smoked meatloaf all the time once you understand how tasty it is and how simple it is to prepare.
While conventional meatloaf is baked, people are beginning to understand how much better meatloaf is cooked on the smoker. The additional amazing taste profile, as well as the smokiness, making this comfort dish a joy to enjoy with the family.
And if you’ve been turned off by dry meatloaf in the past, don’t worry; I provide a terrific method for keeping it moist throughout the cook in this delectable smoked meatloaf recipe.
Contents
- What kind of meat to use for meatloaf?
- Should you cover the meatloaf while cooking it?
- Equipment you will need
- How to smoke meatloaf step by step
- Serving your meatloaf
- FAQs
- What is meatloaf glaze made of?
- How long to smoke a 2lb meatloaf at 225?
- What should the internal temperature of smoked meatloaf be?
- Does meatloaf cook faster covered or uncovered?
- What is the secret to moist meatloaf?
- What is meat glaze called?
- What is the best wood to smoke a meatloaf?
- What temperature do you smoke meat at?
- What is the best meat to fat ratio for meatloaf?
- How can you tell the temperature of meatloaf without a thermometer?
What kind of meat to use for meatloaf?
The sort of ground beef you choose has a big impact on how wonderful your meatloaf turns out. With many butchers and shops providing increasingly lean ground beef, you must ensure that you are buying the good old style higher fat ground beef that we have used for years.
If you like grinding your own beef, I recommend using brisket trimmings and chuck steak, which have a decent meat to fat ratio of roughly 80% meat and 20% fat.
I’ve also tried a blend of 30% pork and 70% beef and had some fantastic results. Because pork has a greater fat content than beef, I recommend using no more than one-third ground pork in the recipe.
It has a greater fat ratio, which not only keeps the meatloaf moist but also helps it all cling together, and fat is taste.
Should you cover the meatloaf while cooking it?
You want to include some smoky flavor into the meatloaf, therefore covering it with foil will restrict the amount of smoke flavor we can incorporate into the meatloaf.
Then there’s the fact that you’ll be basting it every 30 minutes for the next couple of hours, and if you cover it with foil, you’ll lose a lot of the basting glaze because it’ll adhere to the foil.
So, no, I don’t advocate covering a meatloaf while it’s burning.
Equipment you will need
- Smoker, I was using a Z Grills 700 Pellet Smoker
- Thermometer
- Basting brush
- Chopping board
- Brisket knife
How to smoke meatloaf step by step
1. Making your meatloaf mix
I prefer to dice and cook my bacon ahead of time. The onion is then diced and fried in the bacon oil. It gives an unbelievable amount of flavor to the meal. This may also be done the day before and stored in the fridge until required.
maybe even eggs.Most meatloaf recipes will need you to utilize bread crumbs, milk, and eggs.
I want you to mix these ingredients about 5 minutes before preparing your smoked meatloaf in this recipe. This permits the bread crumbs to absorb all of the liquid from the milk and eggs, keeping the meatloaf moist and soft throughout the cooking process.
While the bread crumbs are soaking, begin mixing the other meatloaf ingredients.
Do not overmix the meatloaf ingredients; work quickly to ensure that everything is well distributed; but, if you begin overworking the meatloaf, it will form a very heavy and thick product once cooked.
Once everything is combined, move it to a chopping board to form. You want a consistent shape from one end to the other. This will result in an even cook. When shaping your meatloaf, aim for a width of 5 inches and a height of 3 inches.
Transfer to a wire rack and coat with your preferred BBQ rub. I used my Ultimate Dry Rub for Ribs on this meatloaf and it really provided a nice depth of flavor to it.
It is now ready to go on the smoker rack.
2. Getting the smoker ready
I opted to prepare this dish in my pellet smoker, so all I had to do was set the temperature and wait for it to warm up.
On this type, I fill the hopper with enough wood pellets for the cook and then turn the heat dial to smoke; within minutes, a plume of smoke emerges from the smoker’s door, and the smoke settles and you can hear the roar of the fire.
We can now seal the cover and set our smoker to the desired temperature of 250F. Some pellet grills may be started with the lid closed, so be sure to read the directions for your specific model.
It takes around 8 minutes to get ready to smoke.
3. Making the sauce and glazing the meatloaf
We have a couple of hours while the meatloaf is smoking to prepare our sweet BBQ glaze.
Simply combine ketchup, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, and brown sugar in a pot over low heat and whisk for 5 minutes. This allows the sugars to dissolve and the BBQ sauce to thicken.
Start coating the meatloaf at 2 hours and every 30 minutes until the meatloaf reaches an internal temperature of 165F or you run out of glaze.
Cook the meatloaf until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Cooking time may vary based on the thickness of your meatloaf and the kind of smoker you choose.
Serving your meatloaf
After a little rest, begin slicing the meatloaf at the conclusion of the cooking time.
This savory meatloaf goes well with buttery mashed potatoes and steaming garden fresh veggies.
It is a favorite dinner in my house, and I hope it will become one in yours when you try it.
