How Long to Cook a 3 Pound Meatloaf May 2023 El Reno Ok

Table of Contents

Introduction

Meatloaf is a classic dinner, and it’s perfect for busy weeknights. You can serve this dish with mashed potatoes and vegetables to make it a complete dinner. I like to use my slow cooker so the meatloaf cooks while I’m at work in the morning, but you can also bake your loaf in the oven or cook it on top of the stove.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Baking meatloaf at temperatures between 350 and 375 degrees F is ideal, as it allows you to cook your loaf quickly while ensuring that the outside doesn’t burn before the inside is cooked through. If you’re using a convection oven and want a lighter crust on top, set it at 325 degrees F.

Place the meatloaf in a 9×5 loaf pan.

You will need to use a loaf pan in order to cook your meatloaf. This will keep it from drying out or burning, and will also help you get an accurate estimate of how long it takes for your meatloaf to be done. Make sure that the loaf pan is oven safe, deep enough to hold all of your ingredients (about 3 inches tall), and large enough so that when placed on top of each other in the oven they do not overflow into each other’s spaces.

Combine the remaining ingredients, except for the cheese, in a large bowl.

In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients, except for the cheese. Use a wooden spoon to mix until combined.

Do not use an electric mixer or hand-mixer because they can over-mix the meatloaf and cause it to be tough and rubbery when you cook it later on in your oven.

When you are done mixing all of your ingredients together in this step, you should have a soft mixture that’s ready to go into your loaf pan!

Spoon the beef mixture into the loaf pan and spread it out to about 3 inches thick.

Once you have your beef mixture ready, it’s time to get it into the loaf pan. This can be a little tricky because the meatloaf should be about 3 inches thick when you’re done. If you’re unfamiliar with measuring 1/2-inch thicknesses in your loaf pan, use this trick: hold your spatula straight up and down over one side of the loaf pan. If there are two fingers’ worth of space between the top of your spatula and where it touches the edge of your pan (about 2/3 inch), then that is roughly equivalent to 1/2 inch.

Now spread out all sides evenly so that their thicknesses are equal–this will help ensure even cooking throughout!

Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the top of meatloaf.

Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the top of meatloaf. If you’re making a cheeseburger-style meatloaf, sprinkle shredded cheddar on it before baking. If you are adding cheese after baking, wait until after removing from oven and let it cool slightly before sprinkling with shredded cheddar or any other kind of sliced or grated cheese (see above).

Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into middle of meatloaf reads 155 degrees F.

Remove from oven and let stand 20 minutes before slicing.

If you use 3 pounds of ground beef and want to make a meatloaf that’s an inch thick, cook for an hour and 10 minutes at 350 degrees F.

A 3-pound loaf will take 1 hour and 10 minutes to cook if you bake it in the oven at 350 degrees F.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for a quick and easy meal that will feed your whole family, then this is the recipe for you! It takes less than an hour to make, so there’s no need to spend hours in the kitchen. Plus, it only requires three ingredients: ground beef, breadcrumbs and eggs–and those are all optional if you don’t have them on hand or want something different like cheese instead.