# One skillet meatloaf



## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

I'm a bachelor, I like things simple. I don't live to eat, I eat to live, BUT! I like eating! I also hate doing dishes. In the rack by the sink is one plate, one bowl, one fork, one spoon, one mug... They never get put away, that is where they live. I also have one piece of PA bluestone on the dining room table. Yes, the occasional unusual item, maybe a can opener or potato masher I pull out a drawer but not usually.

Tonight I made meatloaf and thought of this thread! I'm no gourmet so don't have much to contribute here. I am also a lot like my Czechoslovakian Grandmother, as my sisters always point out to me, I have no recipe, I use guidelines. When she was still around they tried to get some of her 'recipe's' while helping her in the kitchen. She was a flurry of activity and you had to stay out of her way though! But man O man, could that little woman cook! "You put some flour in the bowl." How much flour? "Oh, about that much." Then cut some butter and fold it in." How much butter? Oh, this much, maybe some more if needed."...

That is the background. I make a meal (or preferably several!) in as few dishes as possible.

My pan is a nickel/cast iron #8 skillet. Not plated, it is somehow forged right in and remains nice silver and shiny even if it is scratched. If you ever find one of these babies, buy it! If you don't like it send me a note and I'll buy it plus shipping from you.

Ok, ingredients: potato, green pepper, onion, garlic, ground beef, ground sausage, bacon, eggs, breadcrumbs, catsup and spices. Basic proportions are 1/3 beef. 1/3 sausage, 1/3 RAW taters. I used to do 2:1 beef to sausage but like the richer mix better.

Put on some tunes, give the dog something to keep her busy, grab the veggies, a cutting board and the skillet. Set the skillet on the stone (I don't know about most folks but it is always greasy on the bottom, I like to have something to set it on, hot or cold). Peel and cut the tater into 1/4" or smaller pieces. One good size red, two smaller ones or half a big baker is about right for 1# of beef and 1# of sausage. Toss into the pan. Cut 1/4 to 1/2 the pepper and the same with the onion in the same size small pieces. Salt and pepper to taste. What you are making is small home fries, so adjust to how you like them.

Put on the heat, medium to med low, add some olive oil so they don't stick and cook for 10 or 12 minutes. Just about done but not mush, you need some body to them. If you want 'crunchies' Go to high for the last few minutes and brown them a little, not BURN, brown.

Take off the heat and let cool completely. If you put too much oil in the pan rest it so one side is lower, push the taters to the high side and spoon out the extra oil.

When cool, squirt ketchup, maybe 1/4 cup maybe 1/2 cup or so, make a layer on it all. Crack two eggs (one per pound of meat is about right), sprinkle breadcrumbs on the whole mess and give it a stir with the spatula. You should have a nice wet gloopy runny mess at this point. Dump the beef and sausage on top. Use your hands and mix them together without really digging into the tater glop. When they are pretty well mixed, start folding in the glop. If too wet, add some more breadcrumbs, if too dry remember not to use as much breadcrumbs next time!! That or give it another dab of ketchup or if way too dry, another egg, it isn't going to kill anything.

Form it into a loaf in the pan. Oh, the oven should have been preheating to 350. If not turn it on now. I like my loaf slices to be half the size of a slice of bread so two slices per sandwich, when cut in half it is perfect. Get the bacon and cover that bad boy up, overlapping the slices cause you know they will shrink some. Depending on your oven and loaf thickness, hour and twenty plus or minus. Let rest for 10 minutes and you are good to go!

I like to use Neese's sausage but whatever is your favorite will do. For something different try an Italian, hot or mild sausage for sausage loaf! A1 or barbecue sauce would also work. I also incorporate 'leftovers' in a good meatloaf. Corn, peas, broccoli, carrots... Just cut them up and fold them in. If you add enough extra's in you don't even need to add a sided salad to make a balanced meal. Get the pan out of the fridge, set it on the stone, hack off a piece, eat and you are ready to move on.


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## Freyadog (Jan 27, 2010)

Thumper calls this refrigerator meatloaf. If its in the refrigerator it is good in meatloaf.


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

Woody, this sounds really good!

Did your family every eat potato dumplings? My family is part Czech and that is a family favorite.


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## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

Freyadog said:


> Thumper calls this refrigerator meatloaf. If its in the refrigerator it is good in meatloaf.


There ya go! I do that more with a beef 'stew' thing. Brown a piece of meat in a pot, add water then start looking around. The meat takes around 3 hours to tender so you have lots of time to taste while tossing stuff into it. Some folks call it 'goulash'.


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## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

weedygarden said:


> Woody, this sounds really good!
> 
> Did your family every eat potato dumplings? My family is part Czech and that is a family favorite.


I never knew them as dumplings. And after running around with the puppy in the sun all day can't even recall their real name, but, those dough wrapped potato things are to die for! That is if you are of that ethnic persuasion.


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

*knedliky? Woody*

Woody, this is one version, made with raw potatoes. My family made our dumplings with raw potatoes, but they are classically made with mashed potatoes. Our family does not use baking powder in ours. The ones made with mashed potatoes usually have a couple eggs in them.

We also did not put them in the oven in the au jus, but put some au jus over the top after we cut them into bite size pieces and piled kraut on top. For the in-laws who did not like kraut , they would use butter on them.

People from my church went on a mission trip to the Czech Republic and said they had potato dumplings for every meal they ate while there, including breakfast.

When one of my great aunts was homesteading in the early 1900s, she and her family made up a 50 pound bag of potatoes into dumplings for her to take to her shanty because potatoes would have frozen and spoiled, whereas the dumplings could freeze and still be eaten.



> http://www.food.com/recipe/knedliky-czech-potato-dumplings-331464
> 
> 8 -10 potatoes
> (1 dumpling = about 1 potato)
> ...


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## readytogo (Apr 6, 2013)

Woody said:


> I'm a bachelor, I like things simple. I don't live to eat, I eat to live, BUT! I like eating! I also hate doing dishes. In the rack by the sink is one plate, one bowl, one fork, one spoon, one mug... They never get put away, that is where they live. I also have one piece of PA bluestone on the dining room table. Yes, the occasional unusual item, maybe a can opener or potato masher I pull out a drawer but not usually.
> 
> Tonight I made meatloaf and thought of this thread! I'm no gourmet so don't have much to contribute here. I am also a lot like my Czechoslovakian Grandmother, as my sisters always point out to me, I have no recipe, I use guidelines. When she was still around they tried to get some of her 'recipe's' while helping her in the kitchen. She was a flurry of activity and you had to stay out of her way though! But man O man, could that little woman cook! "You put some flour in the bowl." How much flour? "Oh, about that much." Then cut some butter and fold it in." How much butter? Oh, this much, maybe some more if needed."...
> 
> ...


Have you try a small crock pot for your one person meals,very economical no oven heating no major clean-ups easy re-heating and even with a timer you can set it for a warm lunch at work


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## readytogo (Apr 6, 2013)

*Dumplings ,food of the world.*

Wow, what a great topic, potato dumplings actually saved life's many years ago, when I make mashed potatoes I make enough to have left over especially for dumplings.For 1 cup of potato add 1/2 cup flour and 1 egg,salt/pepper to taste and into the soup or stew they go,simple.Grated cheese,green onions,Italian herbs,can be added for different flavors.
And since we are in the subject of cooking and I used my crock pot for everything I made a cheesecake and bread pudding in it, very creamy and moist do to the steam factor in the pot,the cake had no crumb shell just coated the bowl insert with butter and sugar and the pudding had a burn sugar caramel coating which gave it a beautiful top color and flavor.I also don`t know the cost of smoked salmon in your areas but here in the bigggg cityyyy is veryyyy expensive so I smoke it in my wok,very effective,in the picture t looks burn but is only the black tea smoke.
Bread pudding.







Smoked salmon.


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

readytogo said:


> Have you try a small crock pot for your one person meals,very economical no oven heating no major clean-ups easy re-heating and even with a timer you can set it for a warm lunch at work


Depending on the season and even day, sometime I like to cook an oven meal to help heat the house up a bit.

With this skillet meal, it could be cooked on a grill outside.


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## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

Yes, it could, using indirect heat. That or just make them into Meatloaf burgers and cook as you would a regular burger.

Something similar, I made meatball burgers, flame seared them then canned them. I fit 4 per half-pint. After canning I got 1/2" of grease in the bottom and the burgers were kind of dry. But! Put them, or crumble them in sauce, let them simmer for a spell and they were fine.

<chuckle> Being a bachelor I have had some interesting, ok, perhaps disastrous efforts. I am reminded of the Andy Griffith episode where Aunt Bea leaves for some reason and Andy cooks for Opie. I don't remember what he cooked, eggs maybe?, but Opie looks at it and says it is burned. Andy corrects him and says it is just well done. Regardless, it is what's for dinner! Add ketchup, mustard or your strong condiment of choice to your stores.


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## readytogo (Apr 6, 2013)

*Quick meals and saving money.*

I really enjoy cooking and making many dishes from the same meat, is key in kitchen economics in our times, chicken and pork are very versatile and quick cooking especially in a pressure cooker or set it and forget it in a slow cooker, so in a pressure cooker I cook some chicken, shredded and to give it more chicken flavor I add a few bullions, then some is used for salad, some for soup and my favor it, I mix it with my favorite taco sauce for tacos or enchiladas, left over's if any, go towards chicken turnovers, burritos; the same can be done with pork,shreaded pork and a jar of bbq sauce makes for good pork sandwiches and if you canned any of this meats, instant meals with just an addition or two. Just the other day I cooked a turkey breast in the crock pot ($1.68 per pound) we had sandwiches, pasta salad, soup and was able to canned 2 pints for another day, deli turkey around here is $7 dollars per pound ,so saving money calls for a better digestion don`t you think.
:beercheer:


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## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

That is the ticket! I make the basic meal very bland. Each day I can take some and add a vegetable or spice to it so it is the same base but tastes different.

Using the meatloaf... Next night take some and open a half-pint of spaghetti sauce, have sloppy joes, leftovers are meat sauce for spaghetti (why is it no matter how little spaghetti you make there are always leftovers???). Next night take a slice, chop it up in a cream rue and put over noodles. Of course, I am still a huge fan of meatloaf sandwiches.


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## Jewel (Sep 6, 2014)

Great thread! Thanks for all the delicious recipes and ideas 

We call them Skillet meals and I make them often. They're especially good for cooking on our tiny wood stove.

One favorite is burrito mix.If I have leftover rice in the freezer I use that, otherwise cook as below. 

In a large deep skillet I add maybe a teaspoon of olive oil, if needed, add a chopped onion and brown 3/4 to 1 lb ground beef, venison or combination. Drain and save juice when browned. 

Add 1 to 1 1/2 cup rice and twice as much liquid including the meat juice. Cover and simmer until rice is tender.

Add homemade taco seasoning, 1 Tablespoon of flour and about 1/4 water or corn liquid and a pint of drained corn. cook to thicken. Than add a pint or can of refried beans. Mix all well and make sure it's heated through.

Shred a hard cheese on top and stir in, cover and remove from heat.

Serve in a bowl with sour cream on top or in a homemade tortilla.


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