Grain Free Meatloaf Recipe – Keto Meatloaf (2024)

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My meatloaf skills have come a long way, baby. The first time I made meatloaf I created a sweet disaster.

As a new wife I wanted to impress my husband with a delicious, classic meatloaf. You see, I didn’t have a recipe for meatloaf and these were the days before recipe websites existed. (I mean, just barely before, though.Omg, how old am I?)

I gathered all of the most interesting meatloaf making tips from my mother, mother-in-law, and a couple of aunts-in-law and put them all together in one recipe.

I had meatloaf tips galore! Use crushed Saltines; use only crushed Ritz crackers; bread crumbs are the best! Add a honey glaze to the top and brown sugar to the meat mixture. Pour ketchup over it! Mix ketchup and brown sugar in the meatloaf AND on top. Oh my!

I added a little of everything that had been suggested to me, stuck the meatloaf in the oven, and crossed my fingers.

Y’all. It was not good.

It was quite sweet. I may have gotten carried away with the brown sugar suggested by at least two of my meatloaf mentors.

My darling husband suffered through and choked it down but I refused to eat more than two bites. It was hands-down the worst dish I have ever made.

Eleven years after the “Sweet Meat Fiasco of 2001” I have come a long way with my meatloaf recipe.

Most importantly, I’ve learned that crackers, bread crumbs, and sugar are completely unnecessary ingredients for a delicious meatloaf.

When I transitioned my family from a standard American diet to a paleo diet my meatloaf recipe was among the first recipes I changed to a grain-free one.

If you’ve visited this page before you’ll notice that I’ve updated my grain-free meatloaf recipe to give low-carb options for a keto meatloaf recipe. I even added cheese as an optional (but recommended) ingredient.

My family eats mostly low-carb, high-fat now and I’ve changed our favorite recipes to accommodate our new way of eating.

By the way, if you’re struggling to find healthy, grass-fed beef in your area, check outButcherBox to get grass fed beef shipped directly to you.

Read on for my grain-free, keto-friendly meatloaf recipe. There’s a printable option at the end if you need it.

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Perfect Paleo Meatloaf Recipe OR the Best Keto Meatloaf Recipe – You Decide!

When my family began our real food journey, I began creating recipes that reduced the amount of wheat and grains we consumed.

Although we first tried the Weston A. Price/Nourishing Traditions diet, we soon realized that a Paleo/Primal diet worked better for our family.

It’s time consuming to properly prepare grains and we all feel better when we eat fewer grains. We prefer to consume wheatin yummier forms like pancakes, waffles or sourdough bread when we do eat it.

I struggled to find a good meatloaf recipe without bread crumbs or crackers in the mix, so I created one. I’d heard that meatloaf would fall apart after baking if there were no breadcrumbs in the recipe but, to my delight, my grain free meatloaf didn’t fall apart.

Also, I omitted all of that brown-sugar business that I’d been told was crucial for a yummy meatloaf. It’s not. If it was, however, I would have use coconut sugar instead of brown sugar.

My original recipe (which you can see below in addition to the keto updates I’ve made to it) uses honey in the glaze, but I’ve found the recipe to be delicious without it, as well.

If you want a completely unsweetened keto meatloaf use an unsweetened ketchup instead of the tomato paste/honey glaze.

And, of course, you can use a ketchup sweetened with stevia, erythritol, or sucralose if you prefer.

I don’t use no-calorie sweeteners because they all taste terrible to me and do terrible things to my digestive system. Yes, even stevia. Yuck!

On to the recipe!

Grain Free Meatloaf Recipe with Keto-Friendly Options

Ingredients

For the meatloaf

(for either paleo OR keto)

2 lbs of ground beef

2 large eggs

1 medium onion, diced

5 cloves of garlic, crushed/pressed or minced

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp real salt

fresh ground pepper to taste

2 TBSP butter for sauteing the onion and garlic

butter or avocado oil spray for coating the baking dish

optional – 1/4 – 1/2 tsp ground mustard

Optional, but recommended – 1 cup of shredded sharp cheddar cheese

For the glaze

The glaze is optional, but I like it because it makes the meatloaf feel and taste more like “mom’s classic meatloaf”.

(paleo option)

4 – 6 oz tomato paste(use more a tangier flavor, less for a sweeter flavor)

1/2 tsp real salt

1 TBSP raw honey

(keto option)

4 oz unsweetened ketchupOR

4 ozsugar free ketchup (if you like no-calorie sweeteners)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees
2. Butter or spray with non-stick spray a glass loaf pan
3. Dice the onions and mince the garlic
4. Melt two tablespoons of butter in a skilletover medium heat
5. Saute the onions in the skillet until translucent
6. Add the minced garlic to the skillet and saute for a few minutes. Don’t burn the garlic!
7. FOR PALEO GLAZE – While the garlic and onions saute, prepare the glaze by combining the glaze ingredients in a saucepanover medium-low heat and stir to combine. When sauce is hot and combined remove from heat and set aside.
8. Place the ground beef, eggs, sauteed onion and garlic, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and (optional) ground mustard and cheddar cheese in a large mixing bowl and mix by hand until well combined.
9. Form a loaf and place in the prepared loaf dish.
10. If you’re using a glaze, spread it over the meatloaf now.
11. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes. (You want an internal temperature of at least 160 degrees.)
12. Let the meatloaf sit for at least 10 minutes after removing from the oven.
13. Slice and serve

Here’s a printable version.

If you’re looking for Keto Meal Plans I recommend REAL PLANS. They’re my favorite real food, keto meal planner.