What To Do With Leftover Meatloaf
The list of things that remain constant in the universe is incredibly short. Right at the top of that list are blue skies, a round earth, and the impossibility of making just enough meatloaf. There's either too little or too much of it! Making simple meatloaf can be time-consuming, and with so much effort going into one meal it only makes sense to opt for excess instead of a deficit, doesn't it? But, sometimes an entire meatloaf is too much for one dinner. So what do you do with the leftovers?
That confusion is exactly where these tricks come into play. Maybe, just maybe, that leftover meatloaf could make you a ton of super easy meals. With enough awesome ideas, you might even find yourself intentionally adding a tiny bit more to the original recipe so you're sure there are leftovers to experiment with. What's more, meatloaf spices soak in deeper over time, so it tastes better on the second day. If you're looking to experiment, here's what to do with all of that leftover meatloaf.
Chuck it in bread
The greatest thing about bread is how universal it is. You'll need breadcrumbs to make the meatloaf itself, then when you need to do something with the leftovers the first place to turn to for ideas is -– you got it -– back to bread. The easiest bread and meatloaf combo is a meatloaf sandwich. While it's super simple to make, you have to do it right. Slapping a chunk of meatloaf between slices of bread is a lot more likely to make a dry disaster than a proper sandwich, so don't do that literally.
The first step to creating a bread and meatloaf beauty is choosing the right kind of bread. Meatloaf slices are thicker than other sandwich fillings, so thin bread won't do. You can stick with a thicker version of regular white or brown bread, or experiment with sourdough, a French baguette, or even multigrain bread.
Next, decide what toppings you'd like. Butter and cheese are constants, but you can choose to vary it up with other ingredients, such as peppers, onions, or bacon. You can even switch things up and make a meatloaf sub with marinara sauce.
Whip it into a pasta sauce
If you have more time on your hands or you'd prefer doing something spicier with your leftover meatloaf, meatloaf sauce is just the thing for you. It's not only a perfect use for your leftovers, but it makes for a quick and easy pasta dish the following night.
To make a sauce out of your leftover meatloaf, you'll need to cut it up into chunks that are just slightly larger than meatballs. If you're not a fan of chunky sauces, you can mash them up into very small pieces. Make a simple tomato sauce and add the meatloaf, along with bell peppers, onions, garlic, zucchini, or squash. Use your imagination — the whole point is to be inventive!
If you can get your hands on fresh herbs, it's their time to shine. Otherwise, dried oregano, onions, garlic, and peppers do just fine. The leftover meatloaf adds a ground beef taste with an infusion of spices to give the tomato sauce the push it needs to go from basic to perfect. Like regular tomato sauce, you can serve this meatloaf sauce with some spaghetti.
Make a roll with it
Ever since East Asian dynasties invented the spring roll to celebrate the onset of spring in the era of Chinese monarchies (via Foodicles), the world has loved a delicious roll. People have also been liberal enough to experiment and create multiple variations over the years. While spring rolls are traditionally filled with vegetables and meat, leftover meatloaf makes a superb, spicier replacement for the protein.
Chop your meatloaf into cubes or julienne it alongside other parts of the filling (such as carrots, and cabbage, onions), then stir-fry the mix for a little over one minute to get the juices flowing. As soon as the mixture is a bit cooler, you can follow along with the rest of the steps for regular homemade spring rolls or egg rolls. If you're not sure which to choose, here's the difference — spring roll wrappers are thin, so they fry into a smooth shape, while egg roll wrappers are thickened, so they form a bumpy shape.
Stuff it into some peppers
Stuffed bell peppers are another meal where you can switch out regular beef for meatloaf to get an even better result. Aside from taste, baked bell peppers help to beef up regular meatloaf in the nutritional areas where it falls short. According to dietician Bonnie Taub-Dix (via Insider), baked bell peppers are more nutritionally beneficial than raw ones because the cooking breaks down the cell walls, making the nutrients easier to absorb. Unfortunately, cooking also gets rid of some vitamin C, but the loss is minimal with baking as compared to boiling or steaming.
Like the roll filling, you'll need to chop up the leftover meatloaf with some vegetables and sauté it. Again, here you can include any ingredients you like, such as parsley, rosemary, onions, peas, or zucchini. For a more solid filling, include rice or potatoes. Unlike roll fillings, there isn't a ready-made wrapper for stuffed peppers. You'll need to wash them, cut off the tops, and trim the bottoms to get evenly-shaped bells that are all set for the oven.
Bake it into a pie
Meatloaf baked on its own is good, but meatloaf baked into a pie is just heavenly. A global favorite for leftover meatloaf is shepherd's pie, a dish generally believed to originate from both Great Britain and Ireland during the countries' long joint relationship. However, as Seasoned Pioneers reports, it's most likely that it was originally an Irish meal.
Shepherd's pie fits in perfectly as a use for leftover meatloaf because it was created as a way to use up leftover vegetables and meat in frugal households. Soon, it morphed into a delicacy that was intentionally made.
This pie is essentially a base of a sauteed meaty filling covered with potatoes. Leftover meatloaf isn't the only thing that works here; you could also use up leftover or dried potatoes this way. Crumbled or chunky meatloaf with vegetables and spices makes an excellent choice for the bottom of the pie, and after lightly frying it in olive oil or melted butter, you're all set to make an upgraded version of shepherd's pie.
If you prefer a more conventional pie, bake leftover meatloaf into a crusty, custard-like quiche. Like shepherd's pie, vegetables and meatloaf will form the base, however, instead of potatoes, it will be covered with a solid biscuit mix.
Fry it with rice
Fried rice is a popular takeout option, but when you have leftovers in the fridge you can simply make your own. In fact, using leftover meatloaf is the perfect way to use up last night's dinner. Save for the meatloaf and a couple of minor changes, the recipe for regular fried rice will have you well on your way here.
Like many other meals, you'll need to get some vegetables and chop them up alongside the meatloaf. However, an important thing to note here is that the vegetables won't be cooked for very long, and they need to remain firm, yet chewable. The trick to striking this balance is in the shape, size, and thickness of the cutting. It's best to julienne or dice your veggies. Chop the meatloaf to about double the size of the vegetables, and you're all set to get started.
Making meatloaf fried rice is particularly easy. To begin with, parboil lightly-salted, long-grain rice and leave it to cool. Next, you'll sauté the vegetables, sauces, spices, and meatloaf, then stir in the cooled rice and let it sit for a few minutes on low heat. To allow the spices to really soak through, leave the mix for a few minutes without heat too.
Mix it up with Asian noodles
A useful rule of thumb for figuring out where leftover meatloaf can or can't fit is to draw a parallel between how you're using meatloaf and how you use ground beef. If ground beef would fit in just fine, there's a decent chance that meatloaf can do the job. Just like beef, leftover meatloaf can extend its tentacles across sauces and rolls to add spice to Asian noodles.
Unlike spaghetti or macaroni, you don't have the option of making meatloaf for noodles into a sauce. That's not to say that you can't have variety with meatloaf noodles, though. One way to combine both is by chopping up the meatloaf and stir-frying it into lo mein or rice noodles with vegetables and spices. Alternatively, you can crumble the meatloaf on the noodles after cooking.
Both of these kinds of meatloaf noodles are easy to make, so choosing between them is entirely up to you. Nonetheless, don't be afraid to shake things up and break the norms of how you make your noodles. If there's one thing meatloaf is meant for, it's trying anything and everything.
Cook it into a soup
Making a sauce out of leftover meatloaf is great, but turning it into a soup is even better. Forever the versatile meal, leftover meatloaf can blend in perfectly with both cream- and tomato-based soups.
For a creamy meatloaf soup, break down the meatloaf into bite-sized pieces and add it to a potato or cream of mushroom soup for a savory and mellow bowl of warmth. If you prefer an acidic twist, add your meatloaf bits to tomato soup or even tomato and vegetable soup. You can even opt for a cheeseburger soup by topping your bowl with cheddar cheese and bacon bits.
While you can grab canned soup at the store, making your own is even better, especially if part of the work is already taken care of by using leftovers. Toss any leftover vegetables you have on hand into the soup, add a few sprigs of fresh herbs (or dried if you must), and you have a complete meal in a bowl.
Chop it into a bruschetta
With leftover meatloaf, you can bring centuries of Italian history to your palate by adding it to bruschetta. Bruschetta essentially consists of one grilled or toasted half of a French baguette topped with vegetables, fruit, and meat. There are many types of bruschetta, but the tomato variant is the most popular, probably because of its universality.
Guess what's also universal? Meatloaf! Cuttings from leftover meatloaf make an excellent addition to the mix of toppings for bruschetta, especially because they add spice to an all-fruit salad. A huge upside to making bruschetta from leftover meatloaf is that there's little-to-no cooking to be done. The topping is a raw mix, most commonly made of tomatoes, garlic, cheese, oil, and pepper that you chop together and leave to marinate.
The bread is best when it's rubbed with oil, then slightly baked or grilled to make it firm and toasty. Spread the mix over it, and you're good to go! Since it requires so little effort, you can easily make a bruschetta out of leftover meatloaf as an appetizer or a snack.
Turn it into a burger
Meatloaf wouldn't really be a proper substitute for ground beef if it couldn't make its signature dish, the hamburger. Leftover meatloaf can replace ground beef to serve as a patty, and with the right additions, you'll have yourself a proper burger or slider in no time.
The first step to putting a leftover meatloaf burger together is cutting the patties out of the loaf. While you can certainly cut it into a circle like typical hamburger patties, that can be tricky. Instead, simply slice it to the thickness you prefer and slap it on your bun. If it hangs over a little, no big deal, but if it bothers you, simply cut it to fit.
To get the burger flavor into the meatloaf slices, brush some barbecue sauce over them and put them on a grill in the oven for a couple of minutes. When the sauce visibly caramelizes, the patties are ready. With a grill, you might need to flip them over a few times. Toast your bun if you like, choose your toppings, and dive into a juicy burger from leftover meatloaf.
Add it to scrambled eggs
Leftover meatloaf is great for lunch and dinner, but there are ways it can also fit into your breakfast plans. The ground beef flavor combined with the spices in meatloaf can add verve to an otherwise bland breakfast. A super easy fusion is meatloaf scrambled eggs.
To make an egg scramble out of leftover meatloaf, chop the meatloaf slices into cubes along with some onions, peppers, and vegetables. The meatloaf chunks will need to be firmer and slightly more compact to fry well with the eggs, so fry them for a few minutes before adding in the rest of the onions and vegetables. Scramble some eggs and add them to the meat and vegetable mixture, and cook until done.
If you'd prefer a more filling meal, boil some potatoes, cut them into cubes, and add the potatoes to the scrambled eggs mix. The potato mix makes the eggs more solid, so the dish can work as a stand-alone meal. Better still, you can break the rules and make this for lunch or even dinner.
Put it in tacos
Everyone loves tacos. So why not use your leftover meatloaf as a taco filling? While we aren't entirely sure where the taco originated from, according to professor of history Jeffery Pilcher, the theory is that it "dates from the 18th century and the silver mines in Mexico, because in those mines, the word 'taco' referred to the little charges they would use to excavate the ore," (via Smithsonian Magazine). However we came about tacos, it's unlikely that its inventors were overly picky about what could or couldn't work as a taco filling.
The more common taco toppings are vegetables, like lettuce and tomatoes, with protein additions, such as cheese and beef. But, leftover meatloaf can replace beef in almost any dish, so there's a place for it in tacos, too.
To make meatloaf tacos, chop up the meat with other vegetables and sauté the mix in a well-oiled non-stick pan. Add the mix to your taco shell, top it with all the goodies, and you have a handheld meal made of leftovers.