I’ve been making Nana’s simple meatloaf, and you’ll find that while it is yummy with a side of creamy mashed potato and steamed veggies for dinner, it is also fantastic to have cold for lunch, broken up over a salad, or sliced thick in a sandwich (with a dollop of onion jam and lots of arugula!). So I usually double my recipe to have two loaf tins, which means lots of left overs for lunches!
Once in Santa Monica, the formidable and wonderful Niloufer Ichaporia King (how about THAT for a cool name) did a book signing in a landscape architect’s studio garden round the corner. Dad, always one step ahead, had bought her cook book for me on a trip to London and I had been madly cooking her excellent Bombay Parsi dishes, making everyone at home very happy. I grabbed my book and raced round to hear her speak. Her spicy version of meatloaf is just SO good: here I double the recipe again, and either serve it for dinner with a green salad and raita, or do what the author had done at her book signing: slice it thin and into wedge shapes when cold, and top with relish and a mint leaf -it was excellent as a canapé. Make them both, they are deeelish!
Nana’s Meatloaf
2 slices white bread or a cup of panko crumbs
1/4 pint milk
1/2 kg beef or a mix or pork and chicken mince
2-3 rashers bacon, chopped
2 lightly beaten eggs
1 large onion, chopped
2 tablespoons tomato sauce
2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste
loaf pans
Method:
Crumble bread or crumbs into the milk and leave to soak for about ten minutes.
Using a fork stir the mixture into the beef mince and mix through.
Add all the other ingredients gradually, and mix well.
Brush the loaf tins with some olive oil.
Set the oven to 180 degrees celsius, and bake the meat loaves until golden brown, or for about 40 to 50 minutes.
Midway through the baking process, (after about 15 to 20 minutes) pull out the pans from the oven, brush a combination of tomato sauce and Worcestershire sauce over the loaves, and cover with foil.
Bake for the remaining time.
Niloufer’s Parsi Meatloaf
1 kg ground chicken, turkey or lean pork (I use a combo)
1 large onion or six stems green spring onion
6 slices peeled fresh ginger, freshly chopped
2 to 3 green chillies, finely chopped (I use one)
1 cup chopped fresh coriander
1/2 cup chopped mint leaves
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons salt
4 to 6 oz grated raw potato
2 tablespoons pomegranate syrup
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
Method:
Heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.
Mix all of the ingredients together well in a large bowl.
Pat the mixture into two loaf pans.
Brush the tops with a mix of olive oil and pomegranate syrup.
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes.