Turkey Meatloaf
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A family favorite, this turkey meatloaf is as flavorful and juicy as one made with ground beef.
Swapping ground turkey for ground beef is a great way to make meatloaf a bit healthier. However, for all its merits as a low-fat alternative to ground beef, ground turkey can be dry and bland. The key to making a good turkey meatloaf is to add flavor and moisture without adding fat, which would defeat the whole purpose of making it lighter. I season this turkey meatloaf with sautéed onions and garlic, and I also add some of the sweet and tangy glaze directly to the meatloaf mixture, which makes the meatloaf flavorful and juicy. One tip if you’re making this for kids: be sure to chop the onions very finely. My experience is that kids do not like finding flecks of onions (or flecks of anything, really!) in their meatloaf. Naturally, leftovers make excellent meatloaf sandwiches.
“This meatloaf was delicious. It was moist, tasty, and so easy to make. My husband gave this a 10, and I loved it too! I loved that I could freeze one for another nights dinner.”
Looking for more ways to lighten up your classic ground beef recipes? Try my turkey chili, skillet turkey burgers and turkey meatballs.
What you’ll need To Make Turkey Meatloaf
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by making the glaze: in a medium bowl, combine the ketchup, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, and mustard.
Whisk to combine.
Next, in a small pan, heat the olive oil and add the onions.
Cook until softened, then add the garlic and cook for a few minutes more.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the glaze with the Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, paprika, thyme, salt, pepper, and eggs.
Whisk to combine.
Mix in the onion mixture.
Then add the bread crumbs and turkey.
Use your hands to mix it all together.
Form two loaves on a baking sheet.
Then spread the remaining BBQ glaze over top.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. I prefer this “free-form” meatloaf to those made in a loaf pan; clean-up is so much easier and all the extra fat is able to ooze out during baking.
Scrape the fat away from the loaves, transfer to a platter, and slice.
You may also like
- Meatloaf (Family-Style & Mini Loaves)
- Italian Meatloaf
- Turkey Meatballs in Marinara Sauce
- Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Pan-Seared Turkey Burgers
- Turkey, Spinach & Cheese Meatballs
Video Tutorial
Turkey Meatloaf
A family favorite, this turkey meatloaf is as flavorful and juicy as one made with ground beef.
Ingredients
For the Glaze
- ⅔ cup ketchup
- ⅓ cup dark brown sugar, packed
- 1½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
For the Meatloaf
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1½ tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1½ tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 large eggs
- 2 pounds ground turkey (93/7)
- ¾ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- A few springs chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Set oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil; grease the foil with olive oil or non-stick cooking spray.
- Make the Glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together the ketchup, brown sugar, cider vinegar, and Dijon mustard. Set aside.
- Make the Meatloaf: Heat the olive oil in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Cook the onions, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 to 2 minutes more. Do not brown. Set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl, combine the salt, pepper, paprika, thyme, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, eggs, and ¼ cup of the BBQ glaze. Whisk until well combined. Stir in the onion mixture. Add the ground turkey and breadcrumbs and mix with your hands until evenly combined.
- Transfer the meat mixture into two even piles onto the prepared baking sheet. Shape into two long loaves about 1½ in high x 6 in long x 4 in wide. Spread the remaining BBQ glaze over the loaves, letting it drip down the sides a bit. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the meatloaves are cooked through. Scrape any fat away from the sides of the loaves, then transfer the loaves to a platter. Slice and garnish with parsley if desired.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cooked meatloaf can be frozen for up to 3 months. When ready to serve, defrost it in the refrigerator for 24 hours and then reheat it in a 300°F oven until hot in the middle.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 413
- Fat: 17g
- Saturated fat: 4g
- Carbohydrates: 33g
- Sugar: 20g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 35g
- Sodium: 1086mg
- Cholesterol: 166mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments
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best turkey meatloaf ever!
Love this recipe!!! Thank you… my family Thanks you, too.
I have a meatloaf recipe that has always been my family’s favorite until I tried this one; now this is our favorite and I have given the recipe to several friends and they love it also. I make the full recipe and we eat one loaf which lasts for two days sometimes three days and freze a loaf for another time and I do not have to fix dinner that day.
We love it. I would like to get some of your cook books and try your other recipes.
It is a Keeper!
Madelyn Sies-Quint
Sadly this meatloaf was awful. It was bland and dry. The sauce was good, but couldn’t hide the very disappointing meatloaf. Made exactly as directed, but family had to toss it out. Sad dinner!
I’m vegetarian and am not good at cooking meat, but I decided to make try this for my husband. It turned out perfectly and he absolutely loved it. Will definitely be making this again.
This was my first time ever making meatloaf surprisingly! It turned out really well! I also tried to cut more cholesterol by substituting “Just Egg” for the eggs. It made the loaves a lot less firm right out of the oven. (Which we devourved and didn’t care because of the great flavor!)But they set up better overnight in the fridge for leftovers! Thank you for sharing! This will be my go-to meatloaf recipe!
This was excellent! I was very skeptical about ground turkey meatloaf, but this turned out so good!
I deviated somewhat from the recipe:
I skipped the Dijon, cause yuck.
I didn’t have italian breadcrumbs, so we did food processed saltines with Italian seasoning
I did not read about forming the loaves on a cookie sheet until well after they were in the oven. So, once they were close to internal temperature, I removed the loaves from the pans and gave them five more minutes in the oven to have the desired effect.
Will save this for future use, thanks!!
This recipe was so delicious
Will be making this again & again
Thank You
I made this into meatball instead of loaves. Hubs won’t eat meatloaf but he loved the meatballs!
This is so much fun to make and equally so to eat! I usually add finely chopped carrots, substitute the seasoned breadcrumbs with plain to cut down on the salt, and play around with the seasonings. No matter what I do, it’s fantastic – it’s hard to go wrong! The glaze is the best. I also bake the meatloaves in mini loaf pans and freeze one or two (uncooked) to make at a later date. Thanks for the recipe!
Absolutely delicious
Thank You