Our CHEESEBURGER MEATLOAF is loaded with bacon and cheddar and has an easy ketchup and mustard topping! It’s the only meatloaf recipe our family eats!
Do you guys want to hear a sob story?
My parents never, not once, fed me meatloaf as a child. How dare they! What kind of parents were they, anyway?!
I mean, sure, most kids hate meatloaf and yes, I absolutely would have whined about it had my parents dared to serve me a hunk of loaf shaped meat full of who knows what.
But, still. It’s the principle of the matter.
Anyway, I make up for lost time by feeding my kids this cheeseburger meatloaf every chance I get.
It’s so moist and tender, loaded with flavor from bacon and cheddar, and it’s simple enough to whip up.
This meatloaf goes great with my green bean casserole and mashed cauliflower or some crockpot mashed potatoes.
Meatloaf Ingredients:
Ground Beef – We go for a 90/10 beef here. There is plenty of fat from the bacon, cheddar, and mayo.
Bacon – Fry it up and crumble it or dice it before you fry.
Cheddar Cheese
Rolled Oats
Stove Top Stuffing OR Panko Bread Crumbs – Either one will work, but we always have Stove Top on hand and love using it in meatloaf.
Mayonnaise
Egg
Salt
Ketchup
Yellow Mustard
Brown Sugar
Helpful Tip!
Meatloaf in a Hurry!
To make this even faster for busy weeknights, I like to portion this out into 12 balls and bake it in a muffin tin! It’ll bake in about 15-20 minutes but check the temp with a thermometer to be sure.
What Readers are Saying!
“This is now my favorite meatloaf recipe! Well done Karly!”
-Lori
How To Make Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf:
Bacon: The first step to making this meatloaf recipe is the most difficult. That’s because you have to resist eating all of the bacon by itself. So you should probably just make extra!
Start by chopping the bacon into bite sized pieces and then fry in a skillet until they are just about crispy. Drain the grease and add the pieces of bacon that you didn’t eat to a large mixing bowl.
Mix: Next you’ll want to add the ground beef and all of the remaining ingredients except the ketchup, mustard, and brown sugar to the same mixing bowl that you put the bacon in.
In a separate bowl, mix together the ketchup and mustard. Pour half of this mixture into the bowl with the bacon and other ingredients. Set aside the other half for now.
Now for the fun part! Mix the meatloaf ingredients together and shape it into a loaf that will fit into a large baking dish. For best results, use your hands!
Helpful Tip!
Stove top stuffing or Panko bread crumbs works best for this recipe, but there are other options too!
- Crushed pork rinds and almond flour also work and make a good low carb option!
- Potato flakes can work as a good binder, and so can cooked rice!
- If you don’t have any of that but you do have the oats, just use more oats.
Bake: Almost done! Add the brown sugar to the remaining half of the ketchup and mustard that you set aside, and mix until combined.
Spread it over the top of the meatloaf and finally you can begin baking. It’ll should take about 45 minutes. Finally, you can slice and serve!
VARIATIONS!
Meatloaf is one of those recipes that you can easily add to or subtract ingredients from. Below are a few options:
- Some diced onions are a common addition to meatloaf, and are good with the bacon cheeseburger flavor!
- Pickles are another hamburger topping that could be added to this meatloaf.
- Mix in some Worcestershire sauce for extra flavor!
More family favorites!
Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef 85-90% lean
- 8 slices bacon
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1 cup dry Stove Top Stuffing mix
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup prepared yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Chop the bacon into bite sized pieces and place in a hot skillet over medium heat. Fry until just about crisp. Drain and add bacon to a large bowl.
- Add the beef, cheese, oats, stuffing mix, mayonnaise, egg, and salt to the bowl with the bacon.
- In a small bowl combine the ketchup and mustard. Add half of the mixture to the meatloaf mixture. Add the tablespoon of brown sugar to the remaining ketchup and mustard and set aside.
- Use your hands to combine the meatloaf mixture until well mixed. Dump into a large baking dish and shape into a loaf about 8 inches long and 4 inches thick.
- Spread the ketchup and mustard mixture over the meatloaf.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in the center reads 160 degrees.
ColleenB.~Texas says
Looks delicious . Has been so long since I have made a meatloaf. You inspired me to make one soon.
I also leave my meatloaf set for a spell which makes it much easier to cut that way. If you cut into it too soon, it falls apart so by leaving it rest for a spell, you get nice clean cut slices.
I have put mine in square pan before and cut into squares or can make individual ones and put in muffin pans or a brownie pan of which I have done.
Making individual ones you can freeze for another day
Karly says
I love the little mini meatloaves! 🙂
Dawn says
Karly, how many servings will this make? I need to make meatloaf for 50 people. 🙂
Karly says
I would say this would make 8 reasonable sized servings. 🙂
Tabatha says
Any substitutions recommendations for the mustard inside the meatloaf? My husband is a mustard-hater (silly, I know). I don’t have much experience with meatloaf, so I am unsure of whether I can just leave it out or if I will need to increase the liquid elsewhere.
Also, I made this once, as is, and it was fantastic! My kids thought it was the greatest, so thanks for a fantastic recipe!
Karly says
I would just leave it out entirely. 🙂
Tabatha says
Thank you very much for your quick reply!
D. Smith says
No onion? It sounds good otherwise, but we (Especially my husband) would miss onion in it.
VicE says
Of course we do NOT want to consume hamburger grease! Geez- get a real meatloaf pan with an insert that drains it or put slices of bread in the bottom of the pan/dish to absorb it.
Karly says
We happen to like it this way, but you’re welcome to use a meatloaf pan or put bread under the loaf.
Robyn says
We live in Africa and cannot get Stove Top Stuffing nor bread crumbs. Would it work to put in more oatmeal?
Karly says
More oatmeal would probably work fine. You could also make your own bread crumbs by grinding up some day old bread.
Jeanenne414@gmail.com says
Absolutely.l
Scott says
My “secrets” are…
A: use BBQ sauce instead of ketchup for the top. Brand doesn’t seem to matter, to me the generic tastes just as good as the high$$ stuff.
B: Use crushed potato chips instead of (bread/stuffing/crumbs/whatever). Try varying the taste using different chip “flavors”.
Other than that, this recipe sounds heavenly!
Karly says
Sounds like some tasty chhanges!
Dennis says
I will definitely try your recipe without changes before improvising, but my favorite part of the meatloaf growing up was the topping of Campbell’s Tomato Soup mixed with Worcestershire sauce before baking…
Something about the oven and the tomato getting reduced down to a hard consistency really is delicious.
Karly says
Hmm, I’ve never tried that topping! Sounds delicious!
Kim says
yummy this meatloaf was soooooooo good!!!!
Karly says
@Kim,
So glad you liked it!
harlee says
What kind of stove top stuffing would you use?
Linda Brown says
And meatloaf makes THE BEST sandwiches–hot or cold!!
Corina says
My mum never made meatloaf for me either! And I dont’ think I’ve ever had it, but I see a lot of recipes online and I would love to try it one day.
LaShanda says
This looks soooo yummy! Thank you for this one!
JanetFCTC says
If you’d had to eat MY mothers meatloaf, you’d have been thrilled to miss it lol. Cooking wasn’t her strong point 😛 THIS meatloaf however, looks heavenly. We could happily eat meatloaf once a week or more so I will most definitely be trying your version!
Des {Life's Ambrosia} says
We love meatloaf in our house. Of course I didn’t like it when I was a kid, but I’ve fed it to my toddler on a number of occasions because it’s my husbands favorite meal and surprise he LOVES it. And I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to make this one now because we are all sure to love it.
Joanne says
My mom tried to feed us meatloaf ALL THE TIME. It was tragic. I revolted and threw fits constantly…pretty sure I was a vegetarian even then.