6 Solutions For How To Fix Mushy Meatloaf

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Meatloaf is a staple for many households these days. It’s also amazing comfort food! You may like it because you can make it using almost any type of meat, without compromising on flavor.

However, many home cooks face a mushy meatloaf at some stage. Are there easy solutions for how to fix mushy meatloaf? Why isn’t your recipe working? Our tips will give you quick insight into what to do differently in future.

Reasons Why Meatloaf is so Popular

Although people often associate meatloaf with American culture, the dish actually goes as far back as the 5th century’s Roman cooking. Also, the meat dish is part of German, Belgian and Scandinavian culture, with the American version originating in colonial times.

The dish has many ‘cousins’ such as meatballs that are associated with Dutch culture. But anyone who has tasted a version of it will agree:

• It’s a perfect side for a variety of dishes
• You can use it as part of lunch or dinner, since it works with sandwiches but also hot dishes like mashed potatoes
• The loaf is pretty easy to cook

While the last fact is true, you may face a dilemma of a mushy meatloaf when you make your own. Let’s see what can be done to fix it.

Why is Meatloaf Mushy Inside Sometimes?

A lot can go wrong in the kitchen, right? But with meatloaf, in the majority of cases, mushy meatloaf is caused by using insufficient liquid or not having enough filling ingredients. There are some other reasons too, which the fixes below will clarify.

How to Fix Mushy Meatloaf

Scroll down and compare your recipe with our suggestions on how to prevent mushy meatloaf. These fixes show you what to do differently during the preparation phase, so you can enjoy properly textured meatloaf.

1. Use the Right Meat

When it comes to making meatloaf, there needs to be a fine balance in terms of the fat content. You can manage this by the meat you use. Having enough fat is important to ensure the meat doesn’t dry out.

This is especially relevant with this dish because meatloaf’s cooking process is pretty long. However, adding too much fat results in a very greasy meal and the wrong meat can cause mushiness.

• Cooking with Beef and Pork

To achieve the right balance, most expert cooks advise you to use a combination of veal, beef, and pork. Some people don’t like using veal, in which case the right ratio of beef and pork will suffice. You can even use beef only, and then you must opt for 85% to 90% lean meat.

• Cooking with Poultry Meat

If you’re making turkey and chicken loaves, use thigh meat. Thigh cuts don’t dry out as much as other parts and will add amazing flavor.

2. Use Sufficient Binders

Meatloaf is meant to be tender, and to make this happen it must retain moisture throughout the cooking process. How do you guarantee this? You need to bind the meat with the right mixture of:

• Carbs
• Liquids
• Protein

There are multiple ways to help achieve this and you can experiment with your recipe to find one that suits your palate:

• Use breadcrumbs or fresh bread
• Add cream, water, or milk with the bread option you pick
• Add eggs

The challenge is to add the right ratio of fillers and binders. These ingredients affect the texture and can therefore result in mushiness if you get it wrong.

3. Add Less Liquid

In the majority of cases, the mushy texture of meatloaf is caused when you add too much liquid. Of course, you need to add sufficient liquid to ensure juicy meatloaf. However, when you add excessive liquid, the meatloaf won’t dry up enough during cooking.

Also, the meat will boil rather than cook. This proves why it’s important to choose the right recipe and follow it properly in terms of amount of liquid and cooking time. When it comes to the liquids the following are common in recipes:

• Ketchup
• Worcestershire sauce
• Soy sauce

Use them moderately to make sure there is no liquid pool. You can still fix the problem if you notice there’s too much liquid before you cook it. Pour out any liquid you see in the dish or pan and squeeze out some liquid before putting it in the oven.

4. Use Sufficient Seasoning

Seasoning is the ultimate way of achieving delicious flavor but it also affects texture. For this reason, you cannot use pepper and salt only. When the meatloaf doesn’t have sufficient seasoning, it will result in a bland taste.

Furthermore, there won’t be any gravy to bind the meatloaf and depending on what ingredients you used for flavor, mushiness is a possible outcome. For this reason, research ways to season meatloaf correctly, so it tastes good AND has the right texture.

5. Use Eggs

For many dishes, eggs are popular thanks to their binding characteristics, but don’t think they only work for baking. Eggs are great at fixing the mushy meatloaf before you cook it.

When you mix the ingredients, and you notice the meat is mushy but not watery, you can add more eggs and they will ensure the meatloaf binds well.

6. Add More Meat

A very easy fix for mushy meatloaf is simply increasing the amount of meat. If the meat itself has the right fat content but other ingredients resulted in a mushy mixture, add more meat before you bake it. Just make sure to add enough seasoning to ensure it still tastes as flavorful.

Fixing Mushy Meatloaf: What To Do Once The Meatloaf Is Cooked

If you have already made the mixture or even cooked the meatloaf and it came out mushy, all is not lost. You can try the following:

• Use a different cooking method: With this fix you need to make peace with the fact that your dish will be flat and therefore look completely different than the traditional meatloaf. You can put the cooked meatloaf in a sheet pan and spread it around. Put it in the oven this way—it is known as free-form baking. It will help drain out liquids.
• Use a different pan and cook again: Some home cooks put it back in the oven but use an inverted loaf pan to drain juices while maintaining the traditional shape of the loaf.
• Let the dish rest: Wait about 30 minutes after taking the dish from the oven. In some cases this time allows juices caught between the meat particles to settle. Serve it after this has happened and it may seem less mushy overall and perhaps won’t fall apart completely.
• Cook it longer: On occasion, especially if your meatloaf mixture isn’t extremely watery to begin with, a little more heat can solve the problem. Simply cook it longer than usual but just take it out before it burns and ruins the flavor.

Final Thoughts

After a few tries at making meatloaf you’ll know exactly what consistency the mix should have before putting it in the oven.

If you notice any problem with mushiness before or after baking, you now know where to start tweaking your recipe. And if you have more tips for others, please share with us!