How Many Eggs Are in Meatloaf? (2024)

FAQs

How many eggs for 2lbs of ground beef? ›

A good rule of thumb is to add one egg for every pound of ground meat you use. So, if you use two pounds of meat, you should include two eggs.

The Basic Meatloaf Formula

All recipes for meatloaf start with the same basic formula: 2 pounds of ground meat and a “panade” made of bread or crackers soaked in milk. Along with a few eggs, this panade helps to hold the ground meat together and adds some essential moisture to the mix.

Eggs bind the mixture, add flavor and increase browning, but too much egg will make a meat loaf tough and rubbery. Use about one egg per pound of meat. If using pork sausage, skip the egg. Milk adds flavor and moisture and helps distribute the seasoning throughout the mass.

When this happens, it's because you didn't use enough. Next time, try adding in an extra egg and/or some more breadcrumbs. Alternatively, rice, barley, corn flakes, crackers, and dried soup mix can also stand in as binding ingredients as well. Including larger quantities of these items should help solve the problem.

Add 1 egg yolk per pound of hamburger. It won't add appreciably to the fat content and will bind the meat beautifully. The other thing you can do is add canned, drained, crushed black beans or chickpeas to the hamburger.

How many eggs are in a pound? Eggs vary in weight since not all eggs are the same. Large eggs tend to weigh just short of 2 ounces each. It takes between 8 and 9 large eggs to equal one pound.

Onions, garlic and celery do pose one problem though: they don't cook down easily. Little bits of crunchy onion or celery or potent, hot garlic will spoil the comforting aspect of eating meatloaf.

Too Much Liquid

One of the most common reasons meatloaf is watery is an overabundance of liquid ingredients. Adding broth, milk, or eggs can enhance flavor and moisture, but too much can lead to a soupy consistency. Use these ingredients sparingly, and consider adding breadcrumbs or oats to absorb excess moisture.

Should I cook my meatloaf covered or uncovered? The meatloaf can be cooked uncovered. However, if you are concerned about it burning, you can cover the meatloaf with foil for the first 45 minutes and uncover it for the final 15 minutes to allow the meatloaf to brown on top.

If you don't have any bread, you can substitute it for breadcrumbs, crackers, cereal grains, oatmeal, instant rice, instant barley, or even potato flakes! However, bread is still the best choice of all the potential options.

Why is milk added to meatloaf? ›

Milk and other dairy products, like heavy cream and buttermilk, contain both water and fat, adding two types of moisture to our meatloaf. There's a long-held theory that milk can tenderize ground meat, and this is the reason often cited for cooking ground meat in milk to make a Bolognese-style ragù.

Yet under certain conditions it may still be pink in color. You're right, this may be caused by the presence of other foods - particularly those containing nitrites. Nitrites may come from cured products such as bacon or ham, which are sometimes included in meatloaf recipes.

Each two-pound carton is the equivalent of about 1.5 dozen eggs.

The pre-crumbled steamer basket method was the one preferred in our Test Kitchen. Set pressure to high, and cook for about 6 minutes for one pound and about 10 minutes for two pounds. (To cook one pound of ground beef from frozen, set the timer to 30-40 minutes instead.)

I highly recommend adding 1/4 to 1/3 cup of water per pound you are browning to the pan. This will help keep the ground beef from sticking to the bottom of the pan, and it will steam/burn off as the beef browns. Browning 4-5 lbs. in one pot can take up to 20 or 25 minutes, so be patient.

Egg yolk acts as a binder and adds flavor

After forming it into a patty, he explains that the egg actually helps bind the meat together, and adds an incredibly rich flavor to the burger patty. As a good rule of thumb, it's best to add one yolk per pound of ground beef.