Truth be told, this dish has not been one of my successes. Usually mine come out too dry. Or fall apart completely as soon as you touch it.
Well, finally, I did it right. And that is thanks to a recipe from Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. Flavorful and moist. Plus it stayed pretty much intact. I think the trick she uses is what ensures cohesiveness.
Let's get started.
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
In a skillet, add a tablespoon of olive oil. Saute about 3 cups of chopped yellow onions. Mix in some chopped thyme, 2 teaspoons of kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon of ground black pepper. Let this go for a few minutes and let the onions get translucent.
Remove the onions from the heat and add the following:
3 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce.
1/3 cup of chicken stock or broth.
1 tablespoon of tomato paste. (Those paste tubes are perfect when you need small amounts of tomato paste).
Mix it all together and let it cool.
In a big bowl, place 2 1/2 pounds of ground chuck. 20 percent fat content is perfect. To this, add a 1/2 cup of dry bread crumbs plus two beaten eggs. Add the onion mixture.
Now the best way to mix this up is using a spoon or a fork. You don't want to make the mixture so tight that it can't breathe.
On a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, shape the loaf. Take some ketchup and spread it all over the top.
Place in the oven. Now here's the big trick. On the rack below, place a pan filled with hot water. This will give you the moistest meat loaf ever. Let this go for one hour and 15 minutes or until the internal temperate is 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mine didn't fall apart. I hope yours doesn't either.
Dinner last night: Steak and pan roasted tomatoes.
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