This Mini Meatloaf recipe is full of flavor and cooks in a fraction of the time of a traditional meatloaf!
These are a great solution to “what’s for dinner” any day of the week and can be prepped well ahead of time!
A Quick Weeknight meal
- Mini meatloaves are quick to prepare and to cook.
- These are made with lean beef but ground chicken or turkey works well too.
- It’s easy to make extras and freeze for future dinners when you’re short on time.
Ingredients
MEAT Use lean ground beef (80/20). You want a little fat to keep them moist but not too much (so they’re not oily).
FLAVORS Some freshly diced bell peppers, onions, and garlic add flavor (and moisture).
BINDER Seasoned bread crumbs are blended together with some herbs and seasonings for these yummy little burger bombs.
Variations
- Mini Meatloaf is easy to make with ground beef, chicken, or turkey.
- These loaves can be stuffed with cheese or topped with faves like sliced greens or bacon bits.
- For a keto version, replace the breadcrumbs with almond flour or crushed pork rinds (and use just sugar-free ketchup for the topping).
- Our special combo of ketchup and chili sauce gives each mini meatloaf a little burst of flavor. But you can also spread some ketchup or bbq sauce before baking.
How to Cook Mini Meatloaf
Mini meatloaves cook up faster than a traditional full-sized meatloaf!
- Cook green pepper, onion, & garlic; cool.
- Combine all ingredients per the recipe below and form into mini meatloaves.
- Place on a parchment lined pan and bake.
If preferred, these can be made into meatloaf muffins by forming the mixture in a muffin tin.
What to Serve with Meatloaf
Everything and anything goes with meatloaf! We like to serve meatloaf with a hearty side dish like mashed potatoes or hasselback potatoes, and a veggie like glazed carrots or some roasted parmesan asparagus!
Leftovers
- Store mini meatloaves in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freeze in zippered bags with the date labeled on them for about 6 months and pop out anytime you want to make mouthwatering meatloaf sandwiches or need a quick dinner.
- Reheat in the microwave and refresh with salt & pepper.
More Meatloaves We Love
- Air Fryer Meatloaf
- Parmesan Chicken Meatloaf
- Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf
- Instant Pot Meatloaf
- Crockpot Meatloaf
- Mini Chicken Meatloaf
Did you enjoy this Mini Meatloaf recipe? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Mini Meatloaf
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ⅓ cup finely diced green bell pepper
- ¼ cup finely diced onion
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- ⅓ cup seasoned bread crumbs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 egg yolk
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Topping
- ¼ cup ketchup
- ¼ cup chili sauce
Instructions
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Line a baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 400°F.
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In a small skillet, cook green pepper, onion, & garlic until tender. Cool completely.
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Combine bread crumbs, milk, ketchup, mustard, egg yolk, Italian seasoning, and salt in a small bowl. Mix well.
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Add beef and the cooled onion mixture.
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Gently combine and shape into four mini meatloaves, 3" x 2". Mix topping mixture and spread over meatloaves.
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Bake 22-25 minutes or until the center of the loaf reaches 165°F.
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Cool 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Dinner, Entree, Main Course
Cuisine American
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Turned out very well, served at a lunch with Keto- folks. They loved it. I used a whole egg for binery…shhhhh
So happy they enjoyed it, Marilyn!
I tried making these mini meat loaves last night. Followed the recipe exactly as written. The only thing that I did differently was to make two slightly larger loaves. I cooked them a little longer than the 20-25 called for only because of their size. When I went to check their doneness with my instant read thermometer the beef just fell apart. I literally had 2 piles of broken up meat. Obviously there wasn’t enough binder in them to hold them together, and as I said I followed the recipe to a tee. Needless to say, I will NOT be making them again. Guess I’ll just stick to my old standby that I’ve been making for over 40 years.
Oh no, I am so sorry this recipe didn’t hold together for you Carol. It could be due to the size of your meatloaves. For a larger or full-size meatloaf we love to use this meatloaf recipe, it has a greater ratio of binder to help them stay together at that size. Hope that helps.
You can’t blame the author when you didn’t follow the recipe. It was, as you know, meant for 4 smaller loaves.
Made these yesterday; two left over for lunch today. They were absolutely delicious; this recipe is a keeper. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed them, Anne!