Barbecue Meatloaf & Potato Sheet Pan
Barbecue Meatloaf & Potato Sheet Pan is adapted from from Sheet Pan Suppers by Molly Gilbert, Courtesy of University of Texas Press
This Barbecue Meatloaf & Potato Sheet Pan supper is my dad Bruce’s culinary pride and joy. His repertoire in the kitchen is small but solid; he’s great with cereal, SpaghettiOs, and meatloaf. The recipe is his go-to “special occasion, Dad’s cooking” dinner, and it’s full of all of his favorite things (such as diced onions and barbecue sauce). It’s a smoky, sweet, tangy version of regular (boring?) meatloaf, and it’s fantastic. Dad usually serves his famous loaf with tiny whole roasted potatoes, but using Yukon golds, sliced thin, really brings things to a new level, flavor-wise.
Dad bakes his meatloaf right on the pan, but I’ve found that elevating the loaf on a wire rack over the potatoes prevents everything from getting soggy and really perfects the dish. Trust me on this one, Pops.
- Servings Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
- 1.1 Kg (2½ pounds/about 4 medium-size) Yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled, scrubbed, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
- 59 ml (¼ cup) extra-virgin olive oil
- 2.5 (½ teaspoon) kosher salt
- 5 ml (1 tablespoon) plus 2.5 ml (½ teaspoon) garlic powder
- .9 Kg (2 pounds) lean ground beef
- 1 large yellow onion, diced (about 2 cups)
- 473 ml (2 cups) barbecue sauce
- 118 ml (½ cup) plain dried breadcrumbs
Preparation
Let’s cook:
1. Preheat the oven to 109°C (375°F) with a rack in the center position. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
2. Place the potatoes on the prepared pan, drizzle with the olive oil, sprinkle with the salt and the ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, and toss to coat. Spread the potatoes in an even layer and set a wire rack on top.
3. Fold a piece of aluminum foil into a 25 x 15 cm (10 x 6 inch) rectangle and place it in the center of the wire rack. Use a skewer or a fork to poke little holes evenly throughout the rectangle of foil — this will help with heat circulation and keep the meatloaf from steaming in its own fat.
4. Gently combine the beef, onion, the remaining tablespoon garlic powder, 1½ cups of the barbecue sauce, and the breadcrumbs in a large bowl. Without squishing and squeezing too much, form the meat mixture into a loaf on top of the foil rectangle.
5. Place the pan in the oven. Bake the meatloaf and potatoes for 30 minutes, then brush the top of the loaf with the remaining ½ cup barbecue sauce.
6. Return the pan to the oven and bake the meatloaf and potatoes until the potatoes are tender and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the meatloaf registers 65°C (150°F), about 45 minutes more.
7. Allow the meatloaf to cool slightly before slicing. Serve with the potatoes.
