Grilled Meatloaf

1″ inch slice of Meatloaf with a Hoisin Sauce glaze on a blue plate.

The Best Meatloaf

Most folks agree that you haven’t really had meat loaf until you’ve had it grilled. I originally wrote this recipe using an oven but a grill follows the same basic principles. Set you’re temp, keep the lid down and watch the clock and that’s basically all you have to do. My recipe, however, excludes ketchup. If you’ve got a problem with that, just top it with a Ketchup glaze at the end instead of my Hoisin Sauce and no one’s the wiser. I can promise you this, though, this recipe is tender, moist, flavorful, it will still stay on your fork and it makes the best leftover sandwich’s.

Raw ground beef and pork sausage in separate packages.

Meatloaf not Beef loaf

One of the things I learned, long ago, was to mix sausage with Beef in any recipe with a ton of ingredients and this recipe is no different. I mean, that’s one of the secrets to my Chili recipe and it is phenomenal. There is a 2 to 3 standard ratio that I use being 2 parts sausage to 3 parts beef and you’ll see that reflected in the ingredients. After all, we’re making Grilled Meatloaf, not beef loaf.

If you’ve ever tried my Chili recipe, you might notice that the ingredients are very similar to this recipe, too. I’ve simplified each recipe with the addition of taco seasoning but there are also a few other herbs and spices to fine tune it to the point to where they’re distinguished. Though, some things just shouldn’t change.

Chopped and sauteed onions in a large pan on the stove top.

Raw or Cooked Onions

Technically, once the Grilled Meatloaf is cooked, the onions are cooked as well but they usually go into the meat mix raw. Barf! I don’t know what it is about raw onions, in this recipe, but I can’t stand them cooked that way in meatloaf or on pizza. This is crazy to say because I love onions. In fact I’m a huge fan but, for some reason, I just can’t stomach them in a meatloaf recipe. That’s why I recommend sauteing them first. It’s just a personal preference but I find that there is a much more enjoyable flavor and texture, doing it this way, too but whether you choose to do it this way will be up to you.

Raw Meatloaf, all mixed, shaped and uncooked in a cake pan.
Mixing the Meatloaf Ingredients

There’s really nothing special you have to do to mix the ingredients correctly. Other than the sauteing of the chopped onion, that I’m recommending, all you have to do is mix everything together into one big mush, then shape into a loaf on a baking tray or sheet.

You may find that the meat mix is very wet and you might be tempted to add more bread crumbs but this is folly. In order to maintain moisture, the meat loaf must be like this. A dried out Meatloaf is just as bad as any dried out or over cooked Roasted Turkey!

Grilled and glazed Meatloaf in the roasting pan on the grill.
How to Grill Meatloaf

Grilling Meatloaf really isn’t much different than baking it in the oven. You need to establish a 350° Fahrenheit temp, with the lid down, and cook over indirect heat. The other difference is, just rotating the pan half way through cooking and I demonstrate everything you need to know in the video tutorial.

Because I use a propane grill, it’s easy to focus my heat from 1 out of the 3 burners by turning the front burner on only, then cooking the meatloaf over indirect heat over the other two burners, not lit. The only thing I might recommend, if you’r using gas too, is adding some chips to the lit burner to get the smoke flavor affect going. That’s the only thing I wish I did differently in the video, just to add more smoke flavor. If you’re using charcoal or smoker anyway, you’re already set!

Fully Grilled Meatloaf, cooked and cooling down on a cutting board for slicing.

Grilling Meatloaf Ingredients:

1.5 lbs Hamburger
1 lbs Pork Sausage, breakfast
1 Onion, chopped and sauteed in Olive oil and salted
1 pkg Taco Seasoning, original (2 oz )
1 tbsp Adobo Sauce, from Chipotle Peppers
1 15 oz can Diced Tomatoes
1 tbsp Cumin
1 tbsp Mexican Oregano
1 tsp Coriander
1 tbsp Worcestorshire Sauce
1 cup Bread Crumbs
2 Egg
2 tbsp Brown Sugar
5 Cloves Garlic, chopped

Hoisin Sauce for Glaze

Mix all of the ingredients together and shape the meat into a loaf in a cake pan. Grill or bake at 350° Fahrenheit, 45 minutes, add glaze and bake at 400° Fahrenheit for 15 more minutes. If you want to see how I make a Mushroom and Swiss with Leftover Meatloaf, CLICK HERE!

Grille Meatloaf video tutorial by PoorMansGourmet

Mexican Style Grilled Corn on the Cob

Mexican Style Corn on the Cob Main pic

The Best Corn on the Cob

This Mexican Style Corn on the Cob recipe, otherwise known as Elotas, is the absolute best way to grill your corn.  It’s the street style Corn on the Cob you get from the push carts in L.A. so I’m tellin’ ya, you’ve got a winner here with this recipe.  It’s absolutely, hands down, the best Corn on the Cob I have ever had!

Grilled Corn on the Cob

I find that the best Corn on the Cob always tastes better when it’s been grilled.  In the video tutorial, I just use an electric grill for filming but it’s not even close to the same thing.  So if you’ve got an outside grill with propane or some charcoal, that’s definitely the way to go.  The smoke and the flame will take the Elotas to a whole new level.  Also, be sure to use regular Mayonnaise, not light.  You’ll cheat the flavor.  The Cheese I used here is a Mexican Cheese called Catija but you can use Queso Fresca or even just Parmesan if that’s all you’ve got.  It really won’t make that big of a difference.  Just don’t replace any other ingredients unless you want to stick to plain chili powder instead of the taco seasoning.

Other grilling and picnic style recipes, including my Hawaiian Mac Salad and Coleslaw, are listing in these links here below.

CLICK HERE for Hawaiian Mac Salad
CLICK HERE for Coleslaw

Mexican Style Corn on the Cob Ingredients:

5 Corn Cobs
1 Lime, juiced
1/4 cup Fresh Cilantro, chopped
1 pkg Taco Seasoning
1/2 cup Catija Cheese, grated
1 cube Unsalted Butter
1/2 cup mayonnaise

Be sure to watch the video tutorial and Grill your Corn on the Cob for 8 to 10 Minutes, constantly turning, over Medium High Heat and top with all of the above ingredients.

Thai Red Curry Shrimp – Spicy Prawns Recipe

Thai Red Curry Shrimp Main pic

This Thai Red Curry Shrimp recipe was just the thing I needed to film this week. With Independence day just around the corner, I thought a spin on the traditional “Shrimp on the Barbee” was in order.  Though I pan fry in this video recipe, there’s no reason why you couldn’t take these straight to the grill after the Prawns are marinated.

I lucked out at the super market when I found these whole jumbo shrimp with heads.  That’s not normally how I buy them.  But they give that Awe and Wow effect when they’re served this way.  And just so you know, you don’t have to have whole jumbo’s .  Just use what you’ve got and what’s available.

Also, if curry and/or spicy shrimp recipes are you’re thing, you might want to check out the Curry Chicken Salad and the Firecracker Shrimp recipes I’ve listed below!

CLICK HERE for Curry Chicken Salad
CLICK HERE for Firecracker Shrimp

Thai Red Curry Shrimp Ingredients:

1 lbs Jumbo Shrimp, Whole (8 to 10)

MARINADE
2 Garlic Cloves, chopped
2 tbsp Thai Red Curry Paste
1/4 cup Fish Sauce
1 Lime, juiced
1 tsp Kosher Salt

Splash of Sherry or White Wine when cooking the shrimp (about 2 tbsp)

Topping
3 tbsp Butter, melted
2 tbsp Thai Red Curry Paste
1 tsp Fresh Thai Basil, chopped
1/2 tsp Red Chili Flakes

For the Topping, combine the melted butter with the curry paste, add a pinch of Kosher salt, the Chili flakes and chopped Basil.