Smoked Meatloaf – Better than Ever

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Over the years we have posted several recipes for smoked meatloaf and, of course, the accolades just pour in and especially from those who have just tried it and realize that it is really good. Now we've gone back to the drawing board to create a smoked meatloaf that's better than ever.

After writing out the steps, I realized that it looks complicated at first glance. It's actually easy in spite of how it looks. You will notice below that I used 3 bowls to combine ingredients. It's just the way I chose to do it. If you want to add everything to the same large mixing bowl that will work just as well.

Step 1: Soak the Bread

Take two slices of loaf bread or the top and bottom half of a bun and tear it into small pieces. (About 1 cup of bread)

With the bread in a small bowl, pour ½ cup of buttermilk over the bread.

The bread will soak up the buttermilk and this will be part of what makes the meatloaf so moist.

Once the milk is soaked in, crack a couple of large eggs onto the bread mixture. Stir gently to combine.

Set aside

Step 2: Sauté the Vegetables

Cooked vegetables release more moisture, are more tender and tend to be sweeter. Thus we will sauté them before use.

Dice bell peppers, onion and celery so that you end up with about ½ cup of each.

If you have extra, place them in a zip top bag and place them in the freezer for later.

Pour 2-3 TBS of olive oil into a skillet over medium heat.

Once the pan is hot enough, pour in the onions, peppers and celery and stir to mix with the oil.

Let them cook for about 10 minutes or until the vegetables start to get slightly soft.

Once the veggies are finished cooking, remove them from the pan and into a plate or bowl to cool.

Add 1/4 cup of Jeff's barbecue sauce and 3 TBS of Jeff's original rub  to the sautéed vegetables. Stir to combine.

Step 3: Mix the Meatloaf

Place the 1 pound of ground chuck and 1 pound of ground sausage into a large mixing bowl.

Add the bread, buttermilk and egg mixture to the top of the meat.

Add the vegetable, sauce and rub mixture to the top of the meat as well.

Add 1 teaspoon of salt to the top of the mixture and gently combine the ingredients together.

Do not overmix. Do just enough to combine and then stop. Overworking the meatloaf mixture will make it tough.

Step 4: Form Into Loaf

Pour or scoop the mixture onto a cookie sheet, food grade butcher paper, etc. and form into a loaf with your hands.

You can also place the mixture into a loaf pan to form it and then dump it out onto the pan, rack or tray that you will use to cook it.

You will notice that this mixture may be a little wetter than what you are used to using but that's ok. It will form and hold together just fine.

I recommend about 2 inches thick in the shape of a rectangle but you can get creative with this if you like.

If using a rack, I recommend placing a piece of parchment paper under the meat so it will be easier to remove once done. (I forgot to do this)

I kept the rack over a pan until I got out to the smoker to make sure I did not drop anything. I used the same method for bringing it in once it was finished.

If you have this heavy duty stainless steel pan and rack, you won't need the flimsy foil pan and it will work a LOT better!

Step 5: Smoke the Meatloaf

Set up your smoker for cooking at about 240°F (116°C) using indirect heat with hickory smoke or whatever smoking wood you have available.

If your smoker has a water pan, I recommend that you use it.

Once your smoker is maintaining the proper temperature, the cooking can commence.

Place the meatloaf in the smoker.

Keep a light smoke going for at least 2 hours.

Let the loaf cook for 3-4 hours or until it reaches about 155°F (68°C).

Use a digital probe meat thermometer such as the “Smoke” by Thermoworks to monitor the temperature of the meatloaf while it cooks.

Note: total time will depend on thickness of loaf, temperature of smoker and how often the door/lid is opened.

Step 6: Top with Sauce

At about 155°F (68°C), brush the top and sides of the meatloaf with plenty of Jeff's barbecue sauce. Give it about 25-30 minutes to caramelize then remove from the smoker.

Finish temperature for ground beef is actually 160°F (71°C) but knowing that it will continue to cook and rise in temperature even after being removed from the smoker, it is ok to remove it a few degrees early.

Step 7: Rest and Serve

Once the meat is brought into the house, tent some foil over the top and let it rest for 15-20 minutes before slicing and serving. This resting period gives the juices in the meat time to redistribute throughout the loaf.

After resting, slice and serve. I moved mine to a serving platter and sliced at the table.

Tips for Meatloaf:

1. Soaking the bread in milk before adding it to the meatloaf does a great job of helping the meat to be moist. I chose buttermilk for a richer flavor.
2. Sautéing the vegetables makes them a little softer at the front end and helps the meatloaf to end up more moist.
3. Making sure to remove the meatloaf at or just slightly before 160°F will ensure that it safe to eat but not dried out at all.
4. Do not overmix the meat. It is easy to overwork the meat trying to get a perfect balance of ingredients throughout the loaf but it is best to just mix as little as possible. Mixing the non-meat ingredients first then adding them to the meat helps to minimize the mixing process.
5. Cook the meatloaf sitting on a sheet pan, pan with a rack or even a wooden plank instead of leaving it in a loaf pan. Letting it sit in juices, grease, etc. does not bring great results.
6. If you are worried about it being salty enough or overly salty/seasoned, fry a teaspoon of the mixture in a skillet and taste it before proceeding to form the loaf. This takes mere minutes and you will know exactly how well the meat is seasoned and/or if it needs a little extra salt.
7. Let the meat rest before slicing into it. We do this for many meats that we cook to allow the juices to settle back into the meat before cutting it open to minimize moisture loss.
8. If you are using a cookie sheet, I recommend an old one with holes drilled in the bottom to allow the juices to escape. Place a foil pan with water below the meatloaf to give the drippings a place to safely fall and keep your smoker clean.