This Easy Mini Meatloaf Recipe with Potatoes gives you meat and potatoes all in one delicious shot! Make meatloaf and cheesy potatoes when you're craving something hearty, in miniature form. And best of all, dinner's on the table in just around 30 minutes!
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Why You'll Love Mini Meatloaf
I don't know about you, but we are totally a meat and potatoes family! Between my super picky husband and our gals who can be fickle at times, a good meatloaf dinner is a sure-fire win in our home.
Now, my mom has a killer meatloaf recipe. But, it requires you to wait 1+ hours for dinner to be ready, not to mention figuring out boiling/mashing/roasting/baking potatoes. So I decided to streamline the process a bit.
We've all seen mini meatloaf cups, or as I like to call them, muffin tin meatloaf. This is a super efficient way to get dinner on the table quicker, with the added bonus of everyone getting some of the crispy bits that are usually reserved for the end piece (I live for the end pieces!).
But I've decided to take it a step further. In addition to all the mini meatloaf action happening here, I'm also adding potatoes to this easy cooking process to kill two birds with one stone.
Satisfy your hearty dinner craving with this meatloaf and potatoes recipe. Here are just a few more reasons to try it:
- Quick and easy
- Family-approved
- Totally delicious!
- Perfect for weeknight dinner
- Ready in 30 minutes
Ingredient Information and Substitutions
- Ground Beef - You can use your preference, but I recommend buying ground beef with a lower fat content so this isn't too greasy.
- Seasonings - You'll need salt, black pepper, and garlic powder for both the meatloaf and potatoes.
- Worcestershire Sauce - To give your loaf a complex umami flavor.
- Ketchup - A key ingredient for most meatloaf recipes, don't skip it! I also serve this on this side to make it even more kid-friendly.
- Parmesan - I also love adding a touch of Parmesan or Romano cheese to the mix for more flavor and texture.
- Breadcrumbs - Also for flavor and texture, breadcrumbs help to bind everything together too.
- Egg - Your other binder!
- Potatoes - Make sure they're peeled and sliced thin. I used red skinned potatoes, but any kind will work as long as they're thin.
- Olive Oil - So that the potatoes crisp up nice and golden.
- Cheddar Cheese - For a cheesy finish!
How to Make This Mini Meatloaf Recipe
Step 1: Combine the meatloaf mixture
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and mix all of the meatloaf ingredients in a large bowl until just combined — don't overwork the meat.
Step 2: Assemble the meatloaf cups
Spray a muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray. Try to use a non-stick pan too if you have one.
Divide the meat mixture evenly into each muffin cup and press down slightly until they are filled halfway.
Step 3: Prepare the potatoes and bake
Place peeled and thinly sliced potatoes in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Toss to coat evenly and add 4-5 slices on top of each mini meatloaf. Bake for 20 minutes.
Step 4: Melt cheese
Remove meatloaf muffins from the oven and add your cheddar cheese on top. Return the pan to the oven and bake for about 10 more minutes to melt the cheese.
Let the meatloaf and potatoes cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the muffin tin. Serve and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure! Just make sure you use a heavy hand with the seasonings — you want to be able to smell it! Here's the exact recipe for ground turkey and sweet potatoes mini meatloaves.
Yes! The only reason I peeled them is that my daughters can be weird about potato skins (kid life!).
The liquid content helps make it tender, but don't add too much liquid or it can be soggy. Also, try not to overwork the meat. Be aware that when you're making smaller meatloaves, you tend to have more of the crispy edges.
This goes back to the last question: not enough liquid. While you don't want it to be soggy, the liquid binds all the dry parts and meat together. It takes a little while to get to the point where you can "feel" the right texture, but once you've made it a few times, it gets into your bones. Trust me on this!
3-4 days covered in the refrigerator.
Yes, as long as it's been refrigerated. I personally love to slice up the leftovers and eat them on a sandwich with white bread and ketchup (and serve the leftover potatoes on the side). That said, I know people can be weird about leftovers, so no judgment if cold meatloaf isn't your thing.
Tips For Making The Best Meatloaf and Potatoes Dinner
- Use meat with a lower fat content. Normally I'm an 80/20 kind of gal, but for this recipe, you'll want a lower fat ratio for the beef. It still tastes good with 80/20, but it tends to be greasier. Lower fat helps eliminate the extra grease factor.
- These tend to stick to the pans. The best way to combat this is to use a non-stick muffin pan and spray them well with cooking spray.
- Be careful not to overwork the meat as it can get tough quickly.
- Once all the ingredients are mixed together, smell it. I know this sounds weird, but it should smell flavorful. If it doesn't, add more of the ingredients. Also, if it feels too dry, add a tiny bit of water.
- Be sure to slice the potatoes super thin as if you were slicing them for scalloped potatoes. This will make sure that they cook through. A Mandoline is super helpful for this.
- I don't add the cheese until the last 10 minutes of cook time to avoid it being overcooked.
- For easy removal from the pan: cool them for 5 minutes and use a butter knife to cut around the edge of each muffin — start where the meat meets the sides of the muffin tin, then around the bottom, and carefully remove each one. They do stick a little so be careful.
- Make it GF: One of our readers, Erin left a comments sharing that she made these grain-free by substituting the bread crumbs with the same amount of almond flour (1:1).
Make it a meal!
A few great recipes to round out and complete this meal would be:
- Peas with Onions
- Easy Garlic Green Beans
- Summer Bounty Strawberry Salad
- Grandma's Best Banana Cake
- Quick and Easy Chocolate Pudding Cake
More Meatloaf Dinner Recipes to Try...
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5 star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below ⬇️ and/or a review in the comment section further down. Check out my Amazon Store for all my favorite tools, including those used in this recipe. And follow @thelifejolie on Instagram and TikTok!
Mini Meatloaf Recipe with Potatoes
Ingredients
Meatloaf
- Cooking spray
- 1 pound ground beef, 90/10
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2-4 Tablespoons ketchup
- ⅓ cup Romano or Parmesan cheese
- ⅓ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg
- Warm water (optional- this is only necessary if your mixture feels to dry- start with a little if you need it)
Potatoes
- 3-5 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and spray a 12 cup non-stick muffin time with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix all meatloaf ingredients until combined. Be sure you don't over work the meat.
- Divide the meat between each muffin cup and press into the tin to evenly cover it (it should come up right around half way).
- Place the potato slices in a large bowl. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Toss until each slice is coated.
- Place about 4-5 slices onto the tops of the meatloaf in the muffin pan.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the cheese onto each meatloaf and potato muffin.
- Return the pan to the oven for an additional 10 minutes to melt the cheese.
- Let them cool for 5 minutes. Use a butter knife to cut around the outside where each meatloaf meets the sides of the muffin tin and carefully remove them from the tin (they do stick a bit so do this carefully). Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Use meat with a lower fat content. Normally I'm an 80/20 kind of gal, but for this recipe, you'll want a lower fat ratio for the beef. It still tastes good with 80/20, but it tends to be greasier. Lower fat helps eliminate the extra grease factor.
- These tend to stick to the pans. The best way to combat this is to use a non-stick muffin pan and spray them well with cooking spray.
- Be careful not to overwork the meat as it can get tough quickly.
- Once all the ingredients are mixed together, smell it. I know this sounds weird, but it should smell flavorful. If it doesn't, add more of the ingredients. Also, if it feels too dry, add a tiny bit of water.
- Be sure to slice the potatoes super thin as if you were slicing them for scalloped potatoes. This will make sure that they cook through. A Mandoline is super helpful for this.
- I don't add the cheese until the last 10 minutes of cook time to avoid it being overcooked.
- For easy removal from the pan: cool them for 5 minutes and use a butter knife to cut around the edge of each muffin — start where the meat meets the sides of the muffin tin, then around the bottom, and carefully remove each one. They do stick a little so be careful.
- Make it GF: One of our readers, Erin left a comments sharing that she made these grain-free by substituting the bread crumbs with the same amount of almond flour (1:1).
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