a recipe for Amish meatloaf with bacon strips and ketchup glaze that I enjoyed in Holmes County, Ohio, while visiting Amish country.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 1 hr |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 15 mins |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 1 – 9×5 inch loaf |
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 2 ½ cups crushed butter-flavored crackers
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup ketchup
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 slices bacon
- 1 cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons vinegar
- ¾ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
- ½ cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- In a medium bowl, mix together ground beef, crushed crackers, onion, eggs, 3/4 cup ketchup, and 1/4 cup brown sugar until well blended. Press into a 9×5 inch loaf pan. Lay the two slices of bacon over the top.
- Bake for 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until cooked through. While the loaf bakes, mix together the remaining 1 cup ketchup, vinegar, salt, mustard and 1/2 cup brown sugar. Spread over the top of the meat loaf for the last 15 minutes of baking.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 464 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 46 g |
| Cholesterol | 118 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 24 g |
| Saturated Fat | 7 g |
| Sodium | 1161 mg |
| Sugars | 34 g |
| Fat | 21 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I think this is a very good meatloaf minus two issues: first, it tends to fall apart, even after cooling it, when you are slicing it to serve and second, it is a little too sweet for my taste. Having many Amish friends, I can vouch that they like things sweet, so this is authentic!
Excellent
When I make a recipe for the first time, I always do it word for word. I had misgivings about this one, with all that ketchup and sugar, but I like a moist meatloaf, so thought I’d give it a try. It was the worst meatloaf I have ever eaten. Don’t even think I’ll try to tweak it or anything. I’ll stick to tried and true.
Love this meatloaf recipe! We use ground moose meat instead of beef, still a wonderful recipe. So simple and tasty!
I agree there was just too much sugar in the original recipe. I made it as written and then made it again with some changes: I left out the sugar altogether in the meatloaf and only added 2 Tbsp. to the topping. To the meatloaf, I added 1 Tbsp. or Worcestershire, 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1/3 C. ketchup. To the topping, I also cut down the vinegar to 1 tsp. For those reviewers who said it was too greasy, try this hack: slice an onion into 1/2 inch slices and place them into the bottom of the pan in a single layer, then put the meat mixture on top. This keeps the meat above the grease and adds more flavor! Cut down on the onion in the meatloaf if you wish…I do this for roasts as well, try it!
I found this recipe years ago and it is now my go to for meatloaf. I usually sauté the onions first and make more of the sauce for topping. Serve with mashed potatoes and chopped broccoli to balance the sweetness.
After reading other reviews, I also reduced the sugar and added Worcestershire sauce and garlic powder. I also reduced the quantities for the glaze (ran out of ketchup!) which was no problem. The hint about putting two slices of bread at the bottom of the pan to soak up melted fat was very clever. Will definitely make this again!
I’ve made this several times and it’s great. I made it exactly as written the first time and then made some changes. I use crispy fried onions instead of crackers. I removed the bacon and drained the grease for the last 15 minutes of baking. I love the topping sauce and double that, half for the top and the other half for dipping meatloaf in.
I followed this recipe exactly and found it to be an enjoyable meatloaf. However, the topping was a bit too tangy and too sweet at the same time. Next time, I would either put less vinegar and brown sugar in the topping and/or use half as much.
Great.
100%
delicious, had to cook about 15 minutes longer, best meatloaf I have tasted
I didn’t have butter crackers, so I substituted saltines (thought the butter crackers would be too sweet anyway). I seasoned the mix much more than called for in the recipe, with black pepper, garlic powder, and Chinese five spice powder. I also mixed in some Worcestershire sauce… But it still tasted flat to me. Also, I cut back on the cracker meal but it still tasted like there was a little too much filler. Despite all of the above, I would make it again and try different adjustments. A little bit of cumin might work; also would highly recommend some Asian fish sauce for umami.
My favourite meatloaf recipe! Family favourite!
I made this recipe for only 4. I looked at the ingredients and made changes based on my own tastes. I’m not a big fan of too much sugar. So I cut it way back. I also added mustard. I liked the idea of bacon on top. So, that is something new for me. I look forward to having it for dinner tonight.
I halved all the ingredients, since it’s just me and my wife. I used Splenda brown sugar. It’s delicious; very sweet but delicious.
great recipe, sadly bad for a diabetic like myself. Yet the friend i made it for loved it.
My husband says it’s the best he’s ever had!
This definitely deserves 5 stars. I never liked meatloaf until I tried this. I think anyone trying it for the first time should make it as it says and then you can adjust from there. I have made this over 30 times. I have a catering business and tried it out on my customers and they really liked it as well. I am not an onion person but I do like using the small yellow cooking onions in it. Love the brown sugar and sometimes up that. You can also play around with the salt and pepper. I made three tonight and made the topping for two of them and my family likes that. I prefer ketchup Again, try it the way it says and then next time if you want a change make them!
Meatloaf was moist. I won’t make the topping next time. I’m not to crazy about ketchup on meatloaf.
This is the best meatloaf I’ve ever made! It’s an easy recipe and it never fails. Friends and family request it time and time again.