This Mini Meatloaf recipe is full of flavor and cooks in a fraction of the time of a traditional meatloaf!

These are a great solution to “what’s for dinner” any day of the week and can be prepped well ahead of time!

close up of Mini Meatloaf

A Quick Weeknight meal

  • Mini meatloaves are quick to prepare and to cook.
  • These are made with lean beef but ground chicken or turkey works well too.
  • It’s easy to make extras and freeze for future dinners when you’re short on time.

Ingredients

MEAT Use lean ground beef (80/20). You want a little fat to keep them moist but not too much (so they’re not oily).

FLAVORS Some freshly diced bell peppers, onions, and garlic add flavor (and moisture).

BINDER Seasoned bread crumbs are blended together with some herbs and seasonings for these yummy little burger bombs.

ingredients to make Mini Meatloaf

Variations

  • Mini Meatloaf is easy to make with ground beef, chicken, or turkey.
  • These loaves can be stuffed with cheese or topped with faves like sliced greens or bacon bits.
  • For a keto version, replace the breadcrumbs with almond flour or crushed pork rinds (and use just sugar-free ketchup for the topping).
  • Our special combo of ketchup and chili sauce gives each mini meatloaf a little burst of flavor. But you can also spread some ketchup or bbq sauce before baking.

process of making a Mini Meatloaf

How to Cook Mini Meatloaf

Mini meatloaves cook up faster than a traditional full-sized meatloaf!

  1. Cook green pepper, onion, & garlic; cool.
  2. Combine all ingredients per the recipe below and form into mini meatloaves.
  3. Place on a parchment lined pan and bake.

If preferred, these can be made into meatloaf muffins by forming the mixture in a muffin tin.

Mini Meatloaf cooked on the baking sheet

What to Serve with Meatloaf

Everything and anything goes with meatloaf! We like to serve meatloaf with a hearty side dish like mashed potatoes or hasselback potatoes, and a veggie like glazed carrots or some roasted parmesan asparagus!

Leftovers

  • Store mini meatloaves in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
  • Freeze in zippered bags with the date labeled on them for about 6 months and pop out anytime you want to make mouthwatering meatloaf sandwiches or need a quick dinner.
  • Reheat in the microwave and refresh with salt & pepper.

More Meatloaves We Love

Did you enjoy this Mini Meatloaf recipe? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below! 

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close up of Mini Meatloaf
4.84 from 24 votes↑ Click stars to rate now!
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Mini Meatloaf

Mini meatloaves are moist & tender with a flavorful ketchup-chili sauce on top!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Cool Time 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 4 loaves
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Ingredients  

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • cup finely diced green bell pepper
  • ¼ cup finely diced onion
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • cup seasoned bread crumbs
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 2 tablespoons ketchup
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 egg yolk
  • ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Topping

Instructions 

  • Line a baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 400°F.
  • In a small skillet, cook green pepper, onion, & garlic until tender. Cool completely.
  • Combine bread crumbs, milk, ketchup, mustard, egg yolk, Italian seasoning, and salt in a small bowl. Mix well.
  • Add beef and the cooled onion mixture.
  • Gently combine and shape into four mini meatloaves, 3" x 2". Mix topping mixture and spread over meatloaves.
  • Bake 22-25 minutes or until the center of the loaf reaches 165°F.
  • Cool 5 minutes before serving.
4.84 from 24 votes

Nutrition Information

Calories: 383 | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 126mg | Sodium: 807mg | Potassium: 552mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 382IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 67mg | Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Course Beef, Dinner, Entree, Main Course
Cuisine American
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Mini Meatloaf with writing
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ingredients in a bowl to make Mini Meatloaf with finished loaf and a title

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About the author

Holly Nilsson is the creator of Spend With Pennies, where she creates easy, comforting recipes made for real life. With a passion for nostalgic flavors and simplified techniques, Holly helps busy home cooks create delicious meals that always work. She is also the author of “Everyday Comfort,” which promises to inspire even more hearty, home-cooked meals.
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Comments

  1. Turned out very well, served at a lunch with Keto- folks. They loved it. I used a whole egg for binery…shhhhh5 stars

  2. I tried making these mini meat loaves last night. Followed the recipe exactly as written. The only thing that I did differently was to make two slightly larger loaves. I cooked them a little longer than the 20-25 called for only because of their size. When I went to check their doneness with my instant read thermometer the beef just fell apart. I literally had 2 piles of broken up meat. Obviously there wasn’t enough binder in them to hold them together, and as I said I followed the recipe to a tee. Needless to say, I will NOT be making them again. Guess I’ll just stick to my old standby that I’ve been making for over 40 years.1 star

    1. Oh no, I am so sorry this recipe didn’t hold together for you Carol. It could be due to the size of your meatloaves. For a larger or full-size meatloaf we love to use this meatloaf recipe, it has a greater ratio of binder to help them stay together at that size. Hope that helps.

    2. You can’t blame the author when you didn’t follow the recipe. It was, as you know, meant for 4 smaller loaves.

  3. Made these yesterday; two left over for lunch today. They were absolutely delicious; this recipe is a keeper. Thank you.5 stars